Kids who are super fast readers

[umsami]

DS1 loves to read and reads quickly.  If I take a book for our curriculum (say "Trumpet of the Swans" or whatever) that's supposed to last a few weeks, he'll read it in a few hours.  Goes with almost any book.  He reads it that day and is done.  In full disclosure, I was the same way.  I remember in high school, we'd be assigned "Pride and Prejudice" or what not, and I'd read the whole book the first night.  That lead to problems on some of the quizzes which would involve quotes from that night's assigned reading which I didn't remember...but other than that, I don't think it did me any harm.  I still stay up way too late reading. :)

 

BUT...should I try and slow DS down? He seems to be remembering the books and enjoying them.  Isn't that enough?  

[clemota]

Same issues here with older DD - I don't think I can slow her down.  I've tried, and it merely gets her upset to stop and answer comprehension questions (not discussion, just basic comprehension).   So I don't.  If anything, it gives her a lot of more free time to read her choice lit, not just what she needs to read for her online class. 

 

When she was attending a B & M school in 2nd grade, the "weekly reading" list was a joke.  Instead of "pages read" for each day, I filled out "books read."   The teacher ended up giving her differentiated assignments for whole-book reports, rather than the simplified "What happened in this chapter?" that the rest of the kids were getting.

 

I devour books as well - so I consider it a good thing!

[kiana]

I can't see why it would be necessary. If he's supposed to answer stuff about the book in a few weeks, maybe he'll need to read it again to remind himself -- this happened to me in a course. We were supposed to spend five weeks on the Grapes of Wrath -- I read it overnight in week 1 and reread it in week 5 to make sure I wouldn't miss anything on the midterm.

[boscopup]

My son is the same way. If I wanted to discuss something, I'd probably just have him read a chapter at a time, but we're not really to the heavy literary analysis stage, and it would be fine to read the whole book, then read it again slowly for analysis purposes.

 

I can't read as fast as he can. :tongue_smilie:

[Rachel]

As a fast reader, I don't think it matters much in recreational reading.  I do miss some of the details that my husband catches by reading more slowly.  I had a lot of trouble with comprehension in more technical subjects in college.  Fortunately by reading quickly I had time to go back and reread.  I think it is easier to learn how to slow down than to speed up reading though.  When I really need to focus, I'll cover the next line of text on the page to force myself to slow down.  If he begins to struggle with comprehension or retention, you can work on that later.

[umsami]

Thanks everybody.  LOL@RoyRogers re: "Trumpet of the Swan"  :)

[Alte Veste Academy]

For pleasure reading and most school reading, I don't consider it a problem. Actually, I see it as a strength. However, for some purposefully selected school reading, I limit my kids to x amount per day because, in my experience, reading at a slower pace improves assimilation and retention of knowledge. The more quickly I read, the more likely I am to gloss over important details or to simply let them fall through my brain sieve instead of retaining them. Sometimes getting the general idea is good enough, but sometimes taking the time to soak up the details is better. Even for some fiction, I think time improves digestion of the material, like bread being given time to rise...

[Soror]

Ds is also a fast reader, as am I. I do know that I miss on details from my quick reading and I'm sure he does as well, although he seems to have good comprehension. I imagine as he goes into highschool and such when we move onto analysis he will likely read and reread but until then I let him read as fast as he wants. I know when I read and miss details I go back when I need to and I'm sure he will will learn to do the same.

[shawthorne44]

As another fast reader, I don't think it has ever harmed me.  I remember the only time I had trouble were in College Lit. class I missed some of the who said "blah-blah" questions.  Even then, I did so good in the class my prof. gave me an incomplete in the class.  I was confused.  But, before I could go to her office I ran into her at the grocery store.  She was a little embarrassed and then she said that the incomplete bubble was the beyond the bubble for A and that I deserved better than a A.  Pretty good for a Physics major.

[Chelli]

I read super fast with great comprehension. I don't know that I'd slow him down either.

 

BTW, the most fun EVER was when I went in to take the ACT. On the reading comprehension part of the test I was done super fast, put my pencil down and sat there. The other kids taking the test around me looked at me and started speeding through their own tests. I guess they thought that time was close to expiring. It was pretty funny! I made a 36 on that part of the ACT, speed reading and all.

[umsami]

Thanks everybody for the reassurance.  

[sagira]

Ds9 reads fast too, and in our case I'm trying to s l o w him down, because he misses details and seems/thinks he is incapable of remembering names. He'll know the general sequence of events, but "this guy" and "this war". What I'm having him do is lit and science reading and narrate with a tape recorder, with names. For History, I'm writing names and dates, and he narrates from this. Then I have him copy down names, dates, and add important facts (typed), then at the end of the week turn in a typed narration.

 

In Lit Read-Alouds, I only select 2 classic books to analyze and employ literary terms formally. Otherwise, informally discuss and enjoy whole books.

 

Because of ds' reading speed, our reading lists are long!

[Piper]

My dd - almost 8 - is the exact same way.  As was I before I had children to slow me down. :001_smile:  I don't think slowing her down would be either possible or beneficial.  Remembering and enjoying the books is certainly enough! 

 

The only problem I see is that I just can't keep up with dd!  She's always begging me for a "new book" but it's hard to keep up a constant supply of good quality books that are pitched to her level, when she gets through them at the rate of one (or more!) a day.  One good side of that is that she will sometimes go back to a book she particularly enjoyed, and read it over again.

[twoxcell]

Personally for a book that is being studied as literature I would only allow him/her to read the assigned pages. It is important to learn to slow down sometimes and study things. If he/she wants to read more then that can be done with other books during free time. ;)

[mommaduck]

Don't slow him down! I was a speed reader as a child and teen. Going slowly through a book (aka in class read a louds) were sheer hell on me (and got me into trouble). You may need to combine or shorten the assignments and get more directly to the discussion and tests.

[mom2bee]

The most common sense answer to me seems to be that if he is able to read quickly and with comprehension, let him. What is stopping him from rereading a portion of the book if he needs to? Get longer reading lists from offline if you need to fill some time-gaps created by him reading "Week 2's book" in 1 or 2 days. If you have a literature guide or something, you should be able to easily tell him which chapters he needs to read in order to find out X piece of information.

 

For textbooks in the future, they include all sorts of built in review and indices that he can use to find more information. Heck, he could probably read material from 2 or 3 different textbooks to add some variety and to add variance to his exposure in something.

[Vida Winter]

Be thankful for a fast reader. The knowledge and vocabulary exposure will pay off when he takes college entrance exams.

[Occasionally]

Another vote for not slowing down. DD9 is like this, and I couldn't do a thing about it if I wanted to.

[Chrysalis Academy]

I agree about not slowing him down for fiction - but when he starts reading more complex nonfiction, I would definitely check in to make sure he is reading it with the same level of comprehension.  I really do think it's a different skill set.  My dd10 is just the same for fiction, but she is definitely needing to learn notetaking/reading skills for the "next level" of nonfiction reading I'm expecting from her now . . . 

[dragonflyer]

I am a speed reader as well.  When I read I have almost perfect comprehension.  When I am forced to slow down the pace, my mind and imagination engage with the material in a different way.  I have to think about a character's motivation and what they are likely to do.  I have more time to notice patterns and themes in the book, because I am thinking through the material rather than just retaining it.  I do not think most books are worth slowing down for, but 1 at a time could be good practice.

 

Some suggestions for slowing a kid down:

1.  I notice you have some younger children, tell DS1 that he can only read X book when he reads it aloud to younger sibs.

2.  Challenge him to come up with a comprehension quiz for you to take.  He will be on the look-out for the details that make challenging questions, and doing a better job of noticing and remembering the names of people and places.

3.  Make it a family read-aloud that no one can jump ahead in.

4.  Check out the variety of Charlotte Mason style narrations that can include telling the story back to you, building with various materials, making your own movie....

 

Obviously the board is pretty divided over letting him charge ahead or trying to teach something more through these books, good luck finding what is best for your son.