This book was a really fun read and would be a super cute classroom read for upper elementary or independent read for any middle grades! I think this book could be a really good classroom book because it offers further discussion points in morals and treating people with kindness. When I originally requested this ARC I didn't even realize it was children's fiction but it still did not disappoint and I chose to read it anyways! I was pleasantly entertained and would recommend this for any young readers out there or teachers looking for a fun classroom book!

Dexter lives with his grandmother at The Pines Retirement Village and has since he was 6. Suddenly, a truant officer shows up and forces Dex to go to the local middle school. The homeschooling he received from various residents at the Pines was not official and now he must go to local middle school. Dexter sticks out at the middle school due to the fact he dresses and acts like a senior citizen. Gianna Greco finds him interesting and want to write an article about him for the school paper. Slowly, the middle schoolers decide to follow Dexter home one day and end up loving it there. Dexter is very handy and starts fixing things at school. This is wonderful until he uses his trusty Swiss Army knife. This incident causes an uproar and a suspension for Dexter. The middle school rally behind him, but is it enough to convince everyone Dexter should be able to come back?

I love Gordon Korman and I loved this story! It is heart warming. I loved the relationship between the middle schoolers and the retirement community. I loved seeing Dexter transform and transform those around him. I didn’t want to put this book down! I had to keep reading to see what happened next. This is sure to be another big hit for Gordon Korman!!

I am just a Gordon Korman fan girl at this point. I don’t know how he keeps writing books for middle grades readers that are varied but deal with the typical issues a child has in 4-7 grades.

Dexter has spent the last 6 years being taught by the residents of the Pines- a retirement community full of some interesting and amazing people. One day, a truancy officer comes and says he has to go to school. Dexter is your typical 12 year old who dresses like those he admires but when that’s a 99 year old man… going to middle school isn’t easy.

Every page kept me wanting to know more watching not only Dexter transform but also the other characters. Another book sure to delight students!

This was fine—standard Gordon Korman but not as strong as other titles. It felt like there was less urgency in the plot—Dex’s suspension felt a bit anticlimactic. I think showing the value of our senior citizens is a wonderful piece of this story. Their knowledge, skill, and experience deserve to be celebrated and I think it’s important for middle schoolers to read about that. I will of course still be purchasing this for my middle school collection.

Gordon Korman is a master at middle grade fiction I read all his books. He does an amazing job of hitting topics that lend to discussion in an entertaining way. Often middle grade books either teach a lesson or entertain the kids. This is a great twist of both. I would love to hear kids discussing this one.

I recieved a free eARC of this book. Thank you for the opportunity.

I've enjoyed Korman's writing since reading the McDonald Hall books as a kid, and this is no exception. Like "Schooled", Old School takes on a kid with a non-standard upbringing (in this case, raised and homeschooled in a senior citizen's community by his grandmother and other residents, in the case of Schooled, raised by a grandmother on a hippie commune) who is forced to go to a traditional public school, struggles to adjust, but eventually ends up changing the school around them for the better.


Like pretty much ALL of Korman's writings, kids will enjoy and relate to Dexter as he provides an outsider view of a world they live in, and, also, hopefully, develop some understanding and respect for the senior citizens in their lives and that they have amazing stories and ideas to share. It's a positive, upbeat book that deserves placement in school and community libraries.

I appreciate that Korman recognizes, and expresses, that there are positive aspects to homeschooling and that homeschooling can have major academic benefits, but I do wish he'd write a book where the homeschooled protagonist doesn't end up gleefully sold on public school and instead finds a compromise between complete isolation with no age peers, but exceptional academics, and inadequate academics with age peers. Homeschoolers will likely find this book lacking as a result, because while Dexter provides a great fish out of water look at public school and a view into the lives of active, thriving senior citizens, homeschooling simply doesn't work that way for a majority of students.


4.5 rounded up

I enjoyed every aspect of this book! Dexter is an endearing quirky character, and I love that he embraces and adores his retirement community where he's being raised by his grandmother. He shows everyone how to handle school bullies-a combination of not caring what they think and treating people kindly. I love his 'can do' attitude and how he takes initiative to fix things at the school that have been long broken even though it's "not his job" to do so. Finally, I can't wait to show my students how one person can affect change in their community. What an awesome and inspiring message that we all so desperately need to hear. Kudos to Gordon Korman for understanding the incredible potential that middle school students possess, not in the future, but NOW!

Gordon Korman has done it again! You’ll love his latest about Dexter who lives in a retirement home with his grandma and has for six years. One day a truancy officer tells him he needs to go to school even though he’s been homeschooled by the many people at the retirement home. In the beginning, students don’t know what to think of Dex who dresses like an elderly person. One thing Dex is good at is fixing things with his Swiss Army knife and the school needs fixing badly because it’s old. When Dex is suspended one day because he was trying to fix something with his knife, the students begin showing more support for Dex and begin hanging out at the retirement home with him. Will he be allowed back to school?