Every child should be able to read well, and nothing else should matter until that goal is reached for each child. Everything requires reading. After reading is fluent we should focus on math skills and logical thinking. Math operations and facts should be so automatic it is like breathing. Students ought to spend hundreds of hours memorizing math facts, if that's what it takes because they will use this information for the rest of their lives.
Logic is invaluable.
Higher-level thinking is often never explored and enriched in our schools and because of that many children cannot seem to see beyond concrete facts and operations. They should learn about the physical world and should be immersed in information about their own bodies. Let's give them real, useful information that relates to their lives. All of us want to make sure that our children know what they need to know to be healthy, happy, and productive people. Even in these books, there is much information that seems to me to be based on tradition rather than utility.