--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: A child who can't read isn't going to get…" description: "\"A child who can't read isn't going to get better because you told him he was bad.\" — Gretchen Whitmer" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/338/gretchen-whitmer-10477_bad_a-child-who-can-t-read-isn-t-going-to-ge_2259682.jpg" --- # A child who can't read isn't going to get better because… ![“A child who can't read isn't going to get better because you told him he was bad.” quote by Gretchen Whitmer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/338/gretchen-whitmer-10477_bad_a-child-who-can-t-read-isn-t-going-to-ge_2259682.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/338/gretchen-whitmer-10477_bad_a-child-who-can-t-read-isn-t-going-to-ge_2259682.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/338/gretchen-whitmer-10477_bad_a-child-who-can-t-read-isn-t-going-to-ge_2259682.jpg) > “A child who can't read isn't going to get better because you told him he was bad.” [Gretchen Whitmer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gretchen-whitmer/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Negative self‑talk after academic failure can hinder future learning and confidence. **In simple terms:** Self‑criticism after failure harms growth. Key Takeaway Encourage growth mindset and supportive feedback. Themes education self‑esteem growth mindset resilience Mood encouraging optimistic Type motivational educational When to use this quote - classroom - tutoring - mentorship - parental guidance Key Concepts psychology of learning self‑talk Questions to Reflect On - How can educators foster confidence? - What strategies counteract negative self‑talk? A Different Perspective May ignore systemic barriers to literacy. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Books](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/books/) [Child](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/child/) [Children](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/children/) ## Related quotes > [Teaching how to read isn't the easiest thing.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/t-j-oshie/teaching-how-to-read-isn-t-the-easiest-thing/) [T. J. Oshie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/t-j-oshie/) > [“Every child should be read to.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kim-hansen/every-child-should-be-read-to/) Kim Hansen > [You teach a child to read, and he or her will be able to pass a literacy test.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-w-bush/you-teach-a-child-to-read-and-he-or-her-will-be-able-to-pass-a/) [George W. 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So I feel bad about spending excess amount of money on things.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/syd/my-conscience-is-really-active-so-i-feel-bad-about-spending-excess/) [Syd](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/syd/) Browse all 7,973 Bad quotes ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "A child who can't read isn't going to get better because you told him he was bad.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Gretchen Whitmer" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gretchen-whitmer/a-child-who-can-t-read-isn-t-going-to-get-better-because-you-told-him/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Bad" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gretchen-whitmer/a-child-who-can-t-read-isn-t-going-to-get-better-because-you-told-him/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/338/gretchen-whitmer-10477_bad_a-child-who-can-t-read-isn-t-going-to-ge_2259682.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/338/gretchen-whitmer-10477_bad_a-child-who-can-t-read-isn-t-going-to-ge_2259682.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/338/gretchen-whitmer-10477_bad_a-child-who-can-t-read-isn-t-going-to-ge_2259682.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“A child who can't read isn't going to get better because you told him he was bad.” — Gretchen Whitmer", "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "creator": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } } }, { "@type": "BreadcrumbList", "itemListElement": [ { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 1, "name": "Home", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 2, "name": "Quotes", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 3, "name": "Gretchen Whitmer", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gretchen-whitmer/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "A child who can't read isn't...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gretchen-whitmer/a-child-who-can-t-read-isn-t-going-to-get-better-because-you-told-him/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gretchen-whitmer/a-child-who-can-t-read-isn-t-going-to-get-better-because-you-told-him/#breadcrumb" }, { "@type": "WebSite", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "publisher": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } }, { "@type": "Organization", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "logo": { "@type": "ImageObject", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wp-content/themes/sq/assets/icons/icon-512.png", "width": 512, "height": 512 } } ] } ```