Terry Oglesby has some excellent advice for eighth graders doing book reports (per a Google query):
Oft times, parents will write the book report for their “eight [sic] grader”, oblivious to the usual poor quality of such works, and fill it with big words and fanciful ideas. Unless a concerted effort is made to conceal these, most teachers are able to pick out work done by parents because there are usually at least 7-14% fewer misspelled words, and the grammar usually sounds more “grown-uppy”.
So, be sure to throw in lots of phrases such as, “he done” and, “whitch is relly stuped” and, “duh”.
Second, the actual book itself is unimportant. Those yellow and black books in the bookstore are just fine; you don’t have to read nearly as much and they are usually cheaper than the real book.
Third, be sure to use very large font sizes (14 point is minimum, 26 is preferred), double spacing, 2″ margins, a cover sheet, and a back sheet.
Fourth, the best thing you can do is get a really cool cover. This always impresses teachers.
There now, hope that helps! Let us know how it turns out for you!
The part about the report cover must be true, as this point was often driven home in the Calvin and Hobbes strips, most notably this classic.
