cagirlintexas Posted March 4, 2013 Share Posted March 4, 2013 DS is a young 6. He can read pretty much anything he picks up but we seem stuck at picture book and beginning chapter books. He can read any picture book he picks up. He enjoys stuff like Captain underpants and Ricky Ricatta and Franny Stein but that is where we are stuck. He just prefers stuff with pictures. He is resistant to me working with him on his reading too. He enjoys reading though and I don't want to push him to much because then he pulls back and says he doesn't want to read at all. When left on his own he reads a hour a day. He would read 2-3 hours a day if we had access to a library but we don't and he has read every book at his current level so now he is just rereading stuff. So now what should I do? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Miss Tick Posted March 4, 2013 Share Posted March 4, 2013 Buy him some more books! :-) My dc are also proficient readers who vastly prefer books with pictures. I see them slowly moving away, but very slowly. One thing I started was asking that they have one narrative book going all the time. Do what you are comfortable with, but I wouldn't push too much. Ask for an hour a week? 20 minutes a day? "You can stay up an extra half hour if you are reading your narrative book"... Regards, Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
morgan Posted March 4, 2013 Share Posted March 4, 2013 Sorry I can't offer a suggestion, but I have the same problem at my house. My dd is almost 6 and can read really well, but she really only wants to read picture books and the occasional book like Mercy Watson. I have tried to get her interested in chapter books, since she can obviously read them, but she is resistant. I have decided to just let her read what she wants. Six is still really young and if reading silly books with pictures is a fun way to spend an afternoon I see no harm in it.They'll grow up fast enough. We do have a great library system though, so it's not the same picture books over and over. Do you have a friend or relative you could exchange books with occasionally just to keep things new? My sister and I do this with our books and the kids love it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mom2TheTeam Posted March 4, 2013 Share Posted March 4, 2013 My 7 year old still stronly prefers picture books. It doesn't bother me. Though, he isn't an advanced reader either. Mine loves Easy Readers, both non-fiction and fiction (mine prefers non-fiction) and you can get those on Amazon for $3 or $4 a book or at Costco for even cheaper. So, I'd try to get some new books and then just encourage him to practice. I wouldn't push it either. Good Luck! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cagirlintexas Posted March 4, 2013 Author Share Posted March 4, 2013 Thank you guys. At least I am not alone. I know 6 is young. I have to remind myself of that. I do know that me pushing him made him stop even attempting it so I have backed of. I guess I will buy more books. Dh wouldn't like that but oh well thats life. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ellie Posted March 4, 2013 Share Posted March 4, 2013 You know, he's just six. I wouldn't worry about his hanging out with books he's comfortable with reading, even if you think he can read more. :001_smile: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
blondeviolin Posted March 4, 2013 Share Posted March 4, 2013 Most picture books have higher difficulty levels than beginning chapter books. I wouldn't push it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mom2TheTeam Posted March 4, 2013 Share Posted March 4, 2013 I didn't want to buy more either, but it really helped mine. I bought him books I knew he would LOVE, because of the topic (mine loves non-fiction). I did it to entice him to want to read it. Prior to this my 7 year old was barely reading and complained every time I asked him to read. I bought him some new books and didn't ask him or pressure him to read them. It really worked! One day he brought me one and asked if he could read it to me. Since then about a month ago, he won't stop following me around with his books reading them to me. It's amazing to watch the change and see if finally clicking. He is still somewhat slow, but he is enjoying it and wants to do it. I don't pressure him at all. It sounds like yours already reads better than mine. When my son turned 6, he couldn't read anything. When he turned 7, he was barely reading CVC words and fighting me on it. It has been a rough road to get here. Him being my first has added to that challenge. I expected him to read much sooner. But, at least I can still spell things to his dad if I do it fast and use big words. Ha, ha!! Maybe you can get picture books that are not easy readers. Just because they are picture books doesn't mean the reading in them isn't advanced. Or get level 3 easy readers. He is still young. Just let him build a love for reading by reading what he enjoys most of the time. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LittleIzumi Posted March 4, 2013 Share Posted March 4, 2013 You can also branch out to children's poetry books, easier non-fiction books, and hard picture books. They tend to have a lot of pictures. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Way of My People Posted March 4, 2013 Share Posted March 4, 2013 I think it's fine to just let him keep reading the Early Reader books (but try to get them at the public library!). He'll graduate to meatier materials when he's ready. Do you read aloud to him? My DS loves it when I read aloud to him from chapter books he's not quite ready to read yet. It doesn't bother him at all that there are no pictures when I'm the one doing the reading. Occasionally, I discover him reading ahead in our current read-aloud book because he's caught up in the story and wants to know what's coming next. I anticipate this is what will lead him eventually to wean himself from the Early Readers. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hunter Posted March 5, 2013 Share Posted March 5, 2013 I've learned that just because they CAN doesn't mean they SHOULD or HAVE to. Gifted children often have areas of LD or normal, that are masked by their gifts. They cannot always do what we think they can. The LDs tend to become more evident in the logic level years. I don't believe in penalizing gifted children for precocious talents. I don't believe they should be forced out of typical age social and play experiences. Children have a whole life ahead of them to read chapter books. We didn't have a lot of picture books when my boys were growing up, but...it wasn't because I was wanting to move on to advanced books. It's just that...well...our religion was kind of rigid, and...I don't know; we just read mostly biographies, nonfiction and the Bible. But if picture books are part of a family's library, I see no reason to rush out of them. Childhood is so short! Savor it! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LBoogie Posted March 5, 2013 Share Posted March 5, 2013 Thrift stores!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
laf919 Posted March 5, 2013 Share Posted March 5, 2013 There is more to reading chapter books than just reading level and lack of pictures - font size, page material and how dark the ink is, etc. all can make the shift seem daunting to a young reader. As others have mentioned, I would recommend reading aloud if he will listen to you - let him color or do playdough or something while you read a book that he could but is resisting. Get books about topics he loves. And remember that there are plenty of picture books with harder reading levels - you can search those out as a step forward in reading level that he is more comfortable with. In the long run, he's 6. I think at that age that building a love of reading is more important than what the child reads. Eventually, he will move on. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
eloquacious Posted March 5, 2013 Share Posted March 5, 2013 Hear hear for Thrift Stores. We have a library of hundreds of easy readers, most level 2, 3, or 4 (though what this means can vary by publisher) because I can get them for around $.50-$.75 at Goodwill, or even $.40 at Savers with their Buy Four, Get One Free deal and their 25% off days. Same problem here, and I've decided not to push. He reads dozens of books a day so I figure it works out to the same as reading a couple of chapter books every now and then. ETA: My son has diagnosed vision problems, he's even had a surgery. I suspect if I could get him to figure out the finger thing (he tries, but his finger is nowhere close to where he's reading, it's sort of for show) he might make the switch. As it is, he'll pick up high-interest chapter books (like the Disney young novelizations of Cars or Finding Nemo) as well as Magic Treehouse every now and then, but he definitely prefers the larger text with fewer lines... and of course pictures. ;) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MistyMountain Posted March 5, 2013 Share Posted March 5, 2013 My 6 year old is similar. She is getting to the point where her reading level can handle the easier chapter books but she much prefers early reader books with some pictures and bigger text or picture books. Just a short while ago she only wanted to read picture with one or two lines and now she can handle a lot more lines on a page. She can do the easiest chapter books but prefers me to read them. I figure her stamina will eventually get there and it is OK it isn't there yet. She is working through a magic school bus book and I think soon she will be able to manage easy ones like that. For now I just have her read a page or two and read the rest to her. It is very normal to only like things with some pictures and a bigger font at this age and to only really want to tackle to things that are really easy for them even if they can handle more. I second the thrift store recommendation. I go to thrift stores and just get a bunch of books she can handle for really cheap. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
boscopup Posted March 5, 2013 Share Posted March 5, 2013 My son was an early/advanced reader, but he didn't have the stamina for chapter books until closer to age 7. Star Wars books helped a lot. By that summer, he was reading through SOTW on his own, and now at age 8, he can read a 500 page book in a couple days - he reads faster than I do. :tongue_smilie: So don't fret. The child is young. Picture books are great for that age. Chapter books will come. :) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hunterhomeschool Posted March 5, 2013 Share Posted March 5, 2013 Shop for inexpensive books at thrift stores, yard sales (garage sales) and church rummage sales. Get a variety, stuff at his current comfort zone and some that are slightly above, but not completely out of his reach. The slowly wean away from picture books to books that are incrementally less illustrated. Your boy is ahead of the the reading curve compared to my oldest son who is 9, so congrats on doing a wonderful job teaching him. We are pulling our son from PS this month (after the standardized testing is in place), primarily due to our district's on going horrible scores in reading, math and science on the standardized testing and they're refusal to teach him to really read because he has autism. He should be a 4th grader (was held back in kindy) and is reading on an early 1st grade level (also this far behind in spelling and grammar). His math level at least a year behind his "3rd grade" level... and that is going easy on him level-wise, since the the PS are so dumbed down anyway (even compared to 20 years ago when I was a student.) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Staceyshoe Posted March 5, 2013 Share Posted March 5, 2013 My oldest was an early reader, but there was a big lag before he was ready for chapter books (maybe 2+ years?). He was sensitive to font size and the amount of text on a page. I found that science encyclopedias with a lot of pictures (such as DK Eyewitness or UILE) were a nice bridge. He liked reading the captions for the pictures which greatly increased his reading level and expanding his scientific knowledge as well. He still has a very strong preference for non-fiction. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cagirlintexas Posted March 15, 2013 Author Share Posted March 15, 2013 thanks eveyone. Wish I could find more used books here but that is lacking in Qatar. I put in a big order for more picture books for him and included some encyclopedias and science books. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
morningxmorning Posted March 15, 2013 Share Posted March 15, 2013 Do you have an e-reader? If you still have an active library card from The States, you might be able to check out e-books online. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LynnG in Arizona Posted March 16, 2013 Share Posted March 16, 2013 thanks eveyone. Wish I could find more used books here but that is lacking in Qatar. I put in a big order for more picture books for him and included some encyclopedias and science books. Do you happen to have an Ipad? If so, consider buying a Reading Rainbow subscription . . . around $29 for a 6 month subscription, and there are many wonderful picture books at various levels. I think it's a bargain, all things considered. You can download the app for free and download the first book at no charge to check out how it works. HTH! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
In the Rain Posted March 16, 2013 Share Posted March 16, 2013 My youngest went through a stage like that. Not only did she like pictures, but she preferred the larger font present in certain books. I agree with other posters that picture books have richer vocabularies anyhow. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cagirlintexas Posted April 20, 2013 Author Share Posted April 20, 2013 Just an update...I shipped in a whole bunch of books on different science and history topics along with some fun readers. He has been reading through them like crazy and very excited about them. He has also on his own been picking up some of the harder books that he has previously resisted and trying to read them too. Maybe I was putting to much pressure on him to read harder books and when I stopped worrying about it he was more willing to try it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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