Read-Alouds vs. Early Readers

[rgrin]

How do you choose which books to read-aloud, and which books to save for your emerging reader to read for himself? Or, do you even bother differentiating?

 

I need to read more to my boys. However, I find myself struggling to choose books to read-aloud. When I find a good one, I think, "Will DS want to read this as one of his readers next month or next year? Maybe I should save it for him." But then, I could be missing out on some great books if I wait for my boys to read them, and they never choose to do so! Does it make a difference to have your child read a book that you've already read to him in the past?

[zenjenn]

I let my kids read whatever they want independently. They are voracious readers and read probably 5-10 books a week (at this point, children's novels/chapter books.) Occasionally they choose quality stuff, often just fluff, but it's all fine with me.

 

I read aloud to them pieces of quality literature for them to listen to, and discuss.

 

Then I have items *they* read to me but they are usually in excerpt format - from their science book, folk tales, etc.

[reign]

I just read what I want and figure they can always reread. There are so many good books I don't think we will run out. I have a list combining sonlight,ambleside,and others sources usually picking from this list.

[Farrar]

Mine HATE rereading. And they always have. Where other kids were always like "read it again!" to little picture books, but my boys needed to wait a day to hear it again. And now, as emerging independent readers, they are NOT interested in reading the things I read aloud. So I definitely feel like I "ruined" a few things for them. Oops.

 

I think avoid reading anything in the chapter book section is a good rule of thumb. So, no Magic Treehouse, no Judy Moody, no Rainbow Fairies... Also, I think it's good to avoid reading aloud most modern series books, because series are such good hooks for kids. But not all series... I mean, we've read Wizard of Oz aloud.

 

I think the best thing is to read aloud a book that a kid is emotionally ready for but that he won't be capable of reading independently for a good while. Really language rich stories but that appeal to younger kids are always perfect, which is why I feel like we end up reading a good many classics.

[ErinE]

I think the best thing is to read aloud a book that a kid is emotionally ready for but that he won't be capable of reading independently for a good while. Really language rich stories but that appeal to younger kids are always perfect, which is why I feel like we end up reading a good many classics.

 

:iagree:

[spaceman]

:lurk5:

[EKS]

I didn't read the leveled readers aloud (Frog and Toad, that sort of thing). I also didn't read Harry Potter and the other popular modern books aloud.

 

I read mostly classic stuff aloud, including modern classics. As they get older, I read the things they are unlikely to read themselves (Dickens for example) or things that I simply want to enjoy with them (Anne of Green Gables or The Hobbit for example).

[KrissiK]

I pick my read alouds by the ones that SWB quotes in WWE. Seriously. DS wants me to read them all, and since they are all good, I get them. It'll take my kids a while to be fluent enough readers to really enjoy them by themselves, and besides, there are so many good books out there.... there's no way you can get through them all.

[go_go_gadget]

I did the early readers (á la Frog & Toad) when the goblins were very young, but when my son was around four we moved on to things like the Oz books. So by the time he was reading them himself, it had been long enough that it didn't feel repetitive to him. Since he's been reading novels, I've only read aloud what he wasn't up to himself (i.e. Dickens and Shelly), but the size of the gap between what he can read himself and what's age-appropriate is fast approaching zero. But it has to happen sometime.

 

My daughter's 19 months younger, so it still works for her.

[boscopup]

I never read aloud the Frog and Toad type stuff or Magic Tree House (which is awful to read aloud anyway - save yourself the misery!). I read books that were above his reading level, but now he can read anything that's at a level he could understand, so I just don't worry about it. I try to read more classics. My son doesn't mind reading things more than once (one of the books we checked out to go with history for last week he read 3 times).

 

Funny thing... The summer before first grade, I read Detectives in Togas to the boys. Last summer (just a year later), I assigned that book for his literature. He had no recollection of us ever reading it. :lol: When I had read it aloud, the boys weren't really used to pictureless read alouds yet. We worked on it over that school year, and now they enjoy them. We're reading Wizard of Oz now, and they like that (there are some pictures, but on my little dinky phone, they're few and far between!). He's reading 101 Dalmatians for his literature this week. I really haven't had any trouble finding books to read aloud. He still prefers picture books for his own reading, which is fine. He reads history books on his own (has knocked out all the SOTW volumes and the Usborne Encyclopedia of World History, so the stamina is definitely there!).

 

So basically... I don't worry about it. By time my son has an interest in reading a book himself, he'll probably need to read it again to refresh his memory.

[stripe]

I too have caught myself shrieking with dismay at the books that have been forgotten. Sometimes I have been redeemed when one small detail is remembered. Otherwise, not. I have read certain readers aloud, like Frances, Frog and Toad, and Little Bear, because they actually have a plot.

 

My mother buys old readers (inc Dick and Jane types) and gives them to my kids, reading them when she comes to visit. I find that boring to listen to, but my kids haven't died from it, yet.

[Farrar]

My boys also have no memory of Detectives in Togas! They seemed to enjoy it at the time, but it's gone now. Oh well! :lol:

 

I will add that we have read aloud a number of modern books too. We read The Girl Who Circumnavigated Fairyland aloud and that's an example of a modern book with complex language. And we did The Invention of Hugo Cabret (so we could see the movie!) and we've been reading all the Penderwicks books, because my boys love them now but my guess is they may not in a couple of years when they could read them independently.

 

Another non-classic author good for read alouds is Anne Lindburgh, who wrote The People of Pineapple Place, among other things, though she's not exactly recent. Or Kate DiCamillio is another example of an author (more recent!) who is good to read aloud. And we've enjoyed a number of Cornelia Funke's books aloud. I can't imagine my kids could have read Dragonrider independently for a long time, but we all loved it last year as a read aloud.

 

I just like to be an advocate for recent books here. But it's true that classics are often a good read aloud because they're so language rich but young kid friendly.

[boscopup]

I just like to be an advocate for recent books here. But it's true that classics are often a good read aloud because they're so language rich but young kid friendly.

 

Thanks! I'll have to look into those! I'm not by any means an "old books only" type of gal. Most of the picture books we get are modern. :D I've been trying to read books with "proper English" mostly, since DS2 has language issues, and it is helping his word order and vocabulary. I do a lot of picture books with him though, so those are more modern.

[stripe]

My kids like fairy tales, too. These are neither modern nor Victorian. I think I've ended up reading a lot of books from maybe the heyday of children's literature (ie Baby Boomers), from the 1950s and 60s or so, and I'm a sucker for anything marked a Dell Yearling. I recently got this books I'd never heard of, but it is a Dell Yearling, illustrated by Garth Williams, called Flossie and Bossie. I looked it up on Amazon, and it's going for $155. (faint)

Edited December 9, 2011 by stripe

[In the Rain]

I think avoid reading anything in the chapter book section is a good rule of thumb. So, no Magic Treehouse, no Judy Moody, no Rainbow Fairies... Also, I think it's good to avoid reading aloud most modern series books, because series are such good hooks for kids. But not all series... I mean, we've read Wizard of Oz aloud.

 

I think the best thing is to read aloud a book that a kid is emotionally ready for but that he won't be capable of reading independently for a good while. Really language rich stories but that appeal to younger kids are always perfect, which is why I feel like we end up reading a good many classics.

 

:iagree: This is pretty much how I choose too. Sometimes I will read aloud the first book (or first few chapters) of a series I think the girls might like. Otherwise, I stick to books that interest me and are a little too difficult for the kids to enjoy reading independently.

[Farrar]

Ooh, I like the idea of reading a couple chapters then putting it in their box! I remember now I saw that idea, but apparently didn't tuck it away for later very well, because now we could totally use it. Thanks!