What Do People Do All Day
Jonathan Gershuny, Oriel Sullivan
What Do People Do All Day
Age Rating, Reading Level & Content Guide
Insights from the Centre for Time Use Research
by Jonathan Gershuny, Oriel Sullivan
The text is written at a 6th grade reading level, the subject matter is intended for middle graders (ages 9–12), and the content is gentle with no concerning themes.
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About This Book
Hear the buzz of busy streets, the click of keyboards, and the laughter of friends playing outside. Imagine how people’s days have changed over fifty years—from work to play, from sleep to screen time. What do these changes tell us about how we live and feel today?
Themes
Quick Assessment
This nonfiction book explores how daily activities have evolved over the past fifty years, using detailed research from the Centre for Time Use Research. It examines themes like work habits, sleep patterns, and technology use, offering insights into their impact on health and happiness. Suitable for middle-grade readers, the book presents complex social and economic concepts in an accessible way without intense content.
Why we rated What Do People Do All Day 11LS
What Do People Do All Day is written at a Level 6 reading level across 219 pages. Strong independent readers around grade 7.0 can typically handle this book on their own; with parent or teacher support, What Do People Do All Day works for readers up to grade 8.0.
We rate What Do People Do All Day as 11LS ("Light — Social") because the content sits in the "Gentle" range — no conflict beyond everyday childhood experiences. Across our four dimensions (emotional, physical, social, thematic) the book reads as evenly gentle; no single dimension stands out as a concern.
No specific content flags were raised by community reviewers, which is consistent with the gentle intensity score.
Thematically, What Do People Do All Day explores science & nature, social justice, and nonfiction — these threads give the book room to mean different things to different readers.
Good fit for
- ✓ Children in the Ages 9-12 range — the maturity and attention span match the story's pacing.
- ✓ Patient readers who enjoy slower, character-driven stories.
- ✓ Kids drawn to stories about science & nature, social justice, nonfiction.
- ✓ Curious kids who prefer real-world topics over made-up stories.
Maybe not for
- ! Readers whose emotional readiness lags behind their decoding skills — this book's intensity outruns its reading level, a classic "gifted kid" mismatch.
- ! Reluctant readers who need a fast hook — the pacing here rewards patience.
For Parents
Content Intensity
11LS — Light — SocialNo conflict beyond everyday childhood experiences. Safe for sensitive readers.
Was our "Gentle" content intensity rating accurate for this book?
Reading Insights
Hook Factor
1/10A steady, thoughtful read that rewards patient readers.
Discussion Potential
1/10A lighter read — great for independent enjoyment.
Book DNA
Multi-dimensional content fingerprint
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Details
Book Length
- ISBN
- 9780898451290
- Pages
- 219
- Publisher
- Penguin UK
- Published
- October 1983
- Type
- Nonfiction