mom2denj Posted December 14, 2011 Share Posted December 14, 2011 (edited) Did anyone start reading these to their dc before they were able to read themselves? Did they enjoy them? My dd is 5 1/2 and I was thinking about starting them with her. Edited December 14, 2011 by mom2denj Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
snickelfritz Posted December 14, 2011 Share Posted December 14, 2011 (edited) Did anyone start reading these to their dc before they were able to read themselves? Did they enjoy them? I like these fine and my dd had read most of them, so I'm not bashing them. I limited read-alouds to more complex literature. I purposefully saved the American Girl books for when she could read them herself and I'm glad I did. She is very much into series of books ( I've seen explanations of this phenomena and it has to do with kids that age liking predictability) and is difficult to please. If I had read them to her, she would have had a bit of a vacuum to fill at the 7-9 year old range. As it is, AG, Flat Stanley, Rainbow Magic Fairies, Magic Tree House, and Geronimo Stilton have been the bulk of her free reading choices for the last 1 1/2 to 2 years. She is one that will not re-read books, so YMMV. ETA: I'm running out of series to suggest, so I'm hopeful she's moving past this stage. :) Edited December 14, 2011 by snickelfritz Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mom2denj Posted December 14, 2011 Author Share Posted December 14, 2011 Yes snickelfritz, that is what I was struggling with. I know she would like them now, but I feel like I am being selfish because I am the one who wants to read them. My older dd loved this series and she read them herself. I think that I will save them for her to enjoy herself and maybe I will read them to me now. =) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kathleen in VA Posted December 14, 2011 Share Posted December 14, 2011 I've had two daughters read through these and the thing that I noticed about them is that they use a lot of figurative language - you know, popular sayings that don't really mean what they say literally. If you wait until your daughter is 8 or older to begin reading them, she may understand them better. I'm not sure that a 5 1/2 yo would have the necessary historical and experiential frame of reference to really understand them. I think it would be better to wait and let her read them herself when she's older. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Karen A Posted December 14, 2011 Share Posted December 14, 2011 I'm with Kathleen. I only have experience with the first Kit book, but when I read it to my then 5 yo dd, she didn't understand about the Great Depression and the cultural context. Now at 7 she enjoyed it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
learningmama Posted December 14, 2011 Share Posted December 14, 2011 I've had two daughters read through these and the thing that I noticed about them is that they use a lot of figurative language - you know, popular sayings that don't really mean what they say literally. If you wait until your daughter is 8 or older to begin reading them, she may understand them better. I'm not sure that a 5 1/2 yo would have the necessary historical and experiential frame of reference to really understand them. I think it would be better to wait and let her read them herself when she's older. :iagree: My dd is almost 8 and is now getting into them. Some of the language and context she does not understand though. The sad parts also bother her (like in Josefina's Christmas book and it keeps referring back to her mother's death). DD does love them and is getting several books for Christmas and upcoming birthday. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BigMamaBird Posted December 14, 2011 Share Posted December 14, 2011 I'm reading them to my 6 year old. She's an emerging reader and is coming along very confidently. I figured that she'd like the subject material and it might encourage her to stretch herself skills wise. She does love them! We're working our way through the Kirsten books, Samantha is next. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
K&Rs Mom Posted December 15, 2011 Share Posted December 15, 2011 We did (and dh would bring it down with him after tucking in dd so he could find out what happens:lol:). They both read them on their own now (7 & 9), plus plenty of "better" stuff. Some of them are a little more disturbing than others - I read half the first Addy book and decided we weren't ever doing that one, and let Kaya & Kirsten wait until they were a little older. But Kit, Felicity, Samantha, Josefina were all fine (YMMV). We explained about the history as we went along, and they had no problem understanding the culture, plus recognized it when we got to those times in SOTW. Older dd was just starting to read, and it really motivated her, wanting to read another chapter after what we read aloud. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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