My 11yo hates to read. What can I do?

[mo2]

I have tried finding books that might interest her, but the only thing that was even remotely successful was the Misty of Chincoteague series, and even then I still had to make her read it; she wouldn't pick the book up on her own.   There was just less complaining. 

 

She was a late reader and still reads very slowly.  I have her read out loud to me regularly (Well, during the school year.  We're on break right now.) and it just isn't fluent.  It's choppy, and she stumbles a lot.  She still doesn't stop when there is a period, just keeps reading.  So perhaps her dislike of reading is really because she doesn't read well?  We did an online reading test and it said she was at grade level, but I just don't see it. 

 

Every time I assign her something to read, even if it is something she is interested in, no matter how short a passage, she asks me if I will read it to her instead. 

 

What can I do?  Are there exercises for fluency we could be doing, or .....?

[PinkyandtheBrains.]

Has she been checked for vision issues? Dyslexia? A number of issues can make reading difficult and not enjoyable.

 

[mo2]

Has she been checked for vision issues? Dyslexia? A number of issues can make reading difficult and not enjoyable.

 

Vision, yes, and it was fine.  As for dyslexia, I cannot afford private testing.  We had testing done by the school district, and they were of the opinion that she was below grade level and needed to be in public school.  :glare:

[PinkyandtheBrains.]

Vision, yes, and it was fine.  As for dyslexia, I cannot afford private testing.  We had testing done by the school district, and they were of the opinion that she was below grade level and needed to be in public school.  :glare:

 

Our school here is of the same opinion :)

 

 

On the plus side when I had my ds10 tested for "stuff" the psychologist said that homeschooling was ideal for learning differences. She even put that in her official report.

 

Our health insurance covered part of the private testing.

[mom2bee]

I would look into getting books and audiobooks. I would start with something short Frog and Toad short, then maybe do the first several Magic Tree House Books and then go to something like Ramona books. Anyway, get the paper back and the audio book. Co-read the printed book together, one page at a time. Model reading with expression and rhythm. I would try reading several short books together with her, so that you can model and immediately evaluate her performance. Get some read-alongs for her to work with also. Have her record herself reading a passage/page/chapter of simple books and listen to it together and critique it.

 

Also get lots of picture books (I'm not talking babyish picture books, but the really good kind.) and read those aloud to her. Have her purposefully mimic either the way that you read, or the reading on the audiobook. It doesn't matter.

 

Make reading a skill area that gets daily treatment (Personally I advise against going on break from reading, if being on break means you don't have to read at least 4 days a week.)

 

I would also get a grammar unit going with her that focused on types of sentences, pauses, etc.

[Ravin]

Have you handed her Diary of a Wimpy Kid? Those and the Dork Diaries have been DD's favorite books. Once she plowed through them, other things started getting easier--she picked up a Hardy Boys novel at camp and came home raving about how great it is.

 

I would try something like the diary format books, or maybe some graphic novels or manga. Also, giving her external reward incentives might help. My DD is motivated by the summer reading program right now, and in the fall we're going to start doing our own home version with rewards.

[Pen]

I also think you should keep working on the reading without a summer break.  Kids who love reading and do it well will read a lot during summer on their own and not doing so, she'll get more and more behind.   I'd use audio materials both to help her stay or get on grade level as to content areas, and also because it can demonstrate good reading style and fluency.

 

There are special programs for fluency, though daily reading aloud is one of the best things you can do.

 

A children's librarian may be able to help point you to series she might like better.  I used to read beginnings of series to help try to get my son hooked on them.   We still sometime trade reading aloud.  You could try reading aloud to her something she would find interesting to hear, and then having her try reading it after hearing it read through by you.  That way you model fluency for her.  If her level is not even that high to where she really can fluently read what is of interest to her even if you read it to her first, then you may have to choose things that are not of interest, but simply will work at her level to remediate the reading problem.  The sooner you address it the better as it will tend to get harder not easier over time IME.

 

A problem may be that the older she gets the more what she can read easily and what she would be interested in have a disconnect.

 

You may need to seek out books that are easy reading level, but content that would more interest her.   One I recall from some time back was Weetzie Bat, I believe, as the first book in a series, for a young adult interest level but easier reading.  I don't recall it being themes that would be too much for an 11 year old, but it has been awhile, so maybe read first if you try that and make sure it is ok.   HighNoonBooks.com and some other places have books that are particularly for High Interest/Low Level   or you can search books under that term.

[LanaTron]

Your dd sounds just like mine, who is nearly 11.  I don't have any advice, but I can empathize.

 

My other 3 kids are big readers, so it's strange to me that she's not as well.  I think, for us at least, I read to my older kids more than I have her.  And I'm pretty convinced that she has ADHD, or at least has many of the symptoms, so it's hard for her to sit and read for very long.

 

I'm trying the "keep reading all summer" approach, and hoping for the best.  OTOH, my dh isn't really a reader, either, so it could just be a personality thing.

 

Good luck!

 

Lana

[Heathermomster]

Vision, yes, and it was fine.  As for dyslexia, I cannot afford private testing.  We had testing done by the school district, and they were of the opinion that she was below grade level and needed to be in public school.  :glare:

 

Google your local area and seek a Scottish Rite Learning Center.  If available, call them and discover whether they provide dyslexia screening and all associated costs.  My local Scottish Rite tested DS for free. 

 

My 2e DS reads his books off of his Kindle using text to speech enabled books.  He also listens to books with the speed accelerated to about 120%.   His recall is very high when he listens to audio books.

[Alte Veste Academy]

I would get her books below her reading level to build up interest and confidence. Misty of Chincoteague is a great book, but it's relatively dense and intimidating for someone lacking confidence. I agree about trying the diary books, if she would be interested. How about something like the Bad Kitty series (which my kids find hysterically funny)? Or Calvin and Hobbes, which is great for all ages and quickly hooked all three of my kids. The cartoon format makes it approachable, but the vocab is absolutely amazing. Good stuff there.

 

Anyway, I would assign her stuff that is easy, even if it's a little fluffy. (You will probably find more fluff looking at easy stuff still appropriate for her age, but obviously you don't want to offend or condescend by getting stuff that is babyish.) Just because she can technically read at grade level doesn't mean that she's comfortable/confident/fluent at that level. Fluency comes so much more easily when reading slightly below reading level. Confidence can come from reading well below reading level and working up steadily from there, in terms of both skill and fluency. Reading shouldn't be hard. I mean, yes, we have to challenge ourselves sometimes and read challenging material, of course. But day after day, would we choose to do what is so very hard for us for pleasure? For a hobby? Not many of us would. Anyway, I would try to make it easier for her to love reading by making the reading easier.

[Spryte]

 

 

She was a late reader and still reads very slowly.  I have her read out loud to me regularly (Well, during the school year.  We're on break right now.) and it just isn't fluent.  It's choppy, and she stumbles a lot.  She still doesn't stop when there is a period, just keeps reading.  So perhaps her dislike of reading is really because she doesn't read well?  We did an online reading test and it said she was at grade level, but I just don't see it. 

 

 

 

 

I am no expert, but this made me think of DS, who has just been diagnosed with developmental vision issues.  I know you said her vision is fine, but developmental vision issues are separate from standard vision tests.  It's more a question of whether the eye muscles are working together properly to send messages to the brain.  DS's reading sounded the way you describe.  Though he sometimes would lose his place, reread lines, or insert letters to words as well.  His stamina wasn't good either, he'd start out strong then make more mistakes the longer he read.

 

You might check out COVD, and look into convergence insufficiency.

 

And, if I'm totally off base, well, I'm new to the vision issue world.  :)

[Writerdaddy]

I agree with the audiobook suggestion, and would also suggest the visualizing program-- I forget the name even though I used it-- it's not visualizing and verbalizing, but like it, and more of an open and go program, scripted, and consists mostly of games. My reading hater did not hate this program and definitely developed a marked ability to visualize as he reads. He also had trouble following read alouds and audiobooks, but now has a vivid inner experience.

 

This focuses mostly on inner experience which makes reading easier to comprehend and also makes it more enjoyable.

 

Sorry for not searching for the title, but I know someone else has it on the tip of their tongue and will chime in.

[Professormom]

This may sound kind of corny, but you may try asking her what she "sees" when she reads. I see words - the actual letters. Other people may see the picture that the word represents. Both my husband and son are dyslexic, however, it is more of a "right-brained thinker" issue than a true disability. When he reads, my husband translates each word as a picture, but he mentioned that he always had trouble reading because when he came to 'picture less' words, like 'and' and 'the', his flow would be broken. Even today, he is a brilliant man that just reads more slowly than other people. When he was young, he was taught to read with the whole-language method and not phonetically so he feels that really screwed him up as well, because he had no tools to work with to make it better.

 

Again, not knowing the whole situation, and assuming there are no vision issues etc., you may want to look into right-brained children and determine if your daughter might lean more toward that hemisphere. For a generalization, does she seem more artistic? does she think of things in ways that others may not? is she pretty easily distracted by sights around her unless she is absorbed in something she absolutely loves?

 

If she leans to right-brain dominance (which incidentally often - though not always - is connected with dyslexia, you will definitely need to keep practicing with her, even though it is difficult, but there are many resources out there that can help you make it a little more fun and tailored to how her brain works. I have had to do this with my son and it has been a lot of work, but he reads for pleasure now and that has made it worth it. I read a whole slew of books on this a few years ago and there was one in particular that was an amazing insight and practically helpful as well. If I think of the name of it, I will try to post it later.

[mo2]

Thank you all for the input.  I'm looking into all the options.