The Fourth Grade Slump

This study explored the fourth grade slump with regard to the relationship between reading attitude and reading frequency in elementary school children. The Elementary Reading Attitude Scale and the Frequency Questionnaire were administered to two classes of second graders and two classes of fifth graders in the same school. The results were divided into the categories of academic and recreational reading for attitude and frequency. This paper presents the results of the study, as well as the implications for elementary school teachers. Once the surveys had been scored, a correlation was found between overall reading attitude and overall reading frequency, as well as between recreational reading attitude and recreational reading frequency. Surprisingly, the reading attitudes of the students did not drop significantly between second and fifth grade. The implications of this study are that the reading attitudes and frequency of students are connected and one can be improved by increasing the other. This means that teachers should be aware of these two reading elements and how one can positively impact the other.