How did you get your kids to like reading?

[lovinmyboys]

I am getting sort of frustrated with ds8. I never thought he would hate reading, but it seems to be turning out that way. I read to him a ton when he was little and he always loved it. He started reading at 3 and read all the magic tree house books when he was 4-5. Then he got a real attitude about reading. I have continued to read aloud to him and he really likes it. He listens to lots of audiobooks (but given the choice he will pick one he has listened to a million times).

 

In kindergarten I let him read as little as he wanted to. Then, in first grade I required 15 minutes of reading whatever he wanted to each day. In 2nd grade he had to read 30 minutes of whatever he wanted to each day. Now, In 3rd grade, I have been having him read1/2 hr after lunch and 1/2 hr before bed. He fought me about it at first, but then I thought he settled in and was sort of enjoying it (even if he didn't admit it). He even said he liked two of the books he read. Today, he started crying when I told him it was time to read. He says he doesn't know why, but he hates reading. I have been putting books on his shelf and he can choose from those. So far, he pretty much says he doesn't like them all.

 

I worked for 8yrs in the childrens department of our library and we always told kids that they didn't hate reading, they just hadn't found the right book yet. I am starting to think that isn't always true. I really tried to not push and let reading be all fun and no pressure, but that doesn't seem it have worked. He has to read..it isn't negotiable. But, he is a really good, reasonable, cooperative kid. He has never told me he hated something before, so I do take it seriously when he is crying over reading.

 

So, are my expectations unreasonable? Is it time for the life lesson of sometimes we do things we don't like? Are there any books that 8yr old boys are sure to love?

[Arcadia]

Does he gets to pick books from fhe library to borrow and read?

Sometimes at the library I pick a stack of books for my boys while I look for books for myself. About half would get rejected.

My 9 year old rather read non-fiction and so far the only fiction he pick to read was Calvin and Hobbles. He likes National Geographics (not the kids version), Make magazine, New Scientist magazine but does not read cover to cover.

 

Reading what they may not like is for their literature. They were with a K12 VA so they had to pick four books from a assigned list per year.

 

We spend plenty of time at libraries and bookstores reading books, magazines and newspapers. My kids see me reading news on the tablet. So reading is not restricted to just books.

[J-rap]

This is similar to how my daughter was.  She began reading fairly young and seemed to enjoy it.  My husband and I read to our children a lot, and she did enjoy that.  But around the same age as your son, she started to lose interest, only reading what she had to for school.  We regularly went to the library, once or twice a week, spending lots of time looking through books and bringing home piles.  It was like a candy shop for me and the rest of my kids!  I would encourage her to just browse on her own, but she would just kind of sit and twiddle her thumbs, even when I pulled out a variety of books for her to look through.  I did keep trying, and finally realized she was just not interested in fiction.  I began to get children's biographies  and other non-fiction books and she enjoyed those.  So at Christmas when my other kids were getting Harry Potter or Wizard of Oz, she was getting books on growing up in New York City as a child immigrant. 

 

When my other kids would fill their travel backpacks with books when we went on vacation, she would bring one non-fiction book but then enjoy just looking out the window the rest of the time.

 

She is now 21 and is the same way.  She enjoys non-fiction books where she learns about interesting events and ideas and people.  She also spends quite a bit of time browsing news sites every day on her laptop.  But even now, she doesn't usually carry a book around.  She doesn't like to play games either.  When all the rest of us are playing a game together, she'll be in the kitchen cooking and baking up a storm.  She is also a musician and a songwriter, so the fact that she doesn't read as much as my others hasn't taken away her interest in words.

 

She's doing fine without that love of books that the rest of our family has.

 

But, I agree that trying out non-fiction, magazines such as National Geographic, etc., is something he might be interested in.  Maybe you could take a break for a week or two, and then try a few things like that.

 

ETA:  I just thought of something else.  Does he enjoy movies?  Sometimes when we have watched a movie that was especially good, I'll look for the same or something similar in a book, and my kids will want to read the book since they enjoyed the movie. 

[blondeviolin]

My seven-year-old is a non-fiction kid. Science books, magazines, etc. NatGeo Kid's almanac is always a hit. Joke books and comics go over okay. Maybe a kindle fire with immersion reading would bridge the gap a bit?

 

I'd probably drop the 30min before bed requirement. Put him in bed at that time and tell him he doesn't have to sleep, but he must be in bed. Provide books and a book light. He chooses if (and what) he reads.

[Sherry in OH]

Probe a bit to see if he really hates reading or just doesn’t care for the types of books you are selecting for him.   If you are selecting based on reading ability it could be that content just doesn’t interest him.   I have found this to be the case with some fiction and my boys. They want action not pages of teenage angst. 

 

One of my sons prefers to read non-fiction, science specifically. Until recently, the only fiction he would read was the chapter or two a day I required for reading lessons.  He has discovered Minecraft novels.  Those he will read. My other son likes illustrated works.  He prefers picture books, Basher books, and graphic novels.   Both like magazines, Boys’ Life and Ranger Rick, especially.  Lego, Minecraft, and Star Wars themed works are also popular.  They both like to revisit favorite books.

[Minerva]

Is it possible that the books you are selecting for him don't match well with his reading level?  I know that it is easy for kids (and parents) to pick a book for their child that seems interesting from the book jacket (and maybe is matched by grade level), but the reading is difficult and slow going so not much fun. Perhaps when you make the selection shelf for your son, you could choose easier books for a while, and then do some read alouds with more complex literature. Actually, since your son seems to really be unhappy with reading right now, maybe back off a bit and have him read silently for only 30 minutes a day and then you read out loud or do an audiobook the other thirty minutes. If the goal is to have him love reading, making him do it too much, probably won't have the desired effect. I also agree that he might be someone who likes nonfiction  better. Good luck!

[ByGrace3]

My ds is a non fiction guy. I bought a lot of the Usborne non fiction books on animals and other topics and he reads them every night. I make him read either to me or two chapters a day on his own of fiction or a reader. It's not much, but it is where he is. For my dd I have her read the Sonlight readers and american girl books. She SAYS she doesn't like to read, but she also claims "I lve my book!" and "i dont want it to end!" To most of her readers. Yeah. Hates reading. Uhhuh. :lol: I imagine in her mind its nit cool to love to read. Though I love to read, her dad doesn't. Also be is in school (phd) and has to read a lot and doesn't display a love for it on a regular basis. ;)

 

Just keep offering different books.

 

Are you assigning what he reads? If so maybe assign only one of those time lots. Take him to the library to pick out his own? When my ds has Lego Star Wars books he devours them.

 

Maybe but it to 30 minutes a day only? If you are reading to him or having audio books on top of that, I think 30 minutes is ok...

[DoppeltGemoppelt]

If your son loved reading with you when he was little, but is now disinterested in reading by himself, I would not have him read 30min twice a day by himself. It may feel to him as if he's been put in time out, now that he has managed the very hard task of being able to read by himself. He may just be trying to hold on to his own personal mommy-time. My suggestion is that you popcorn-read, so him a page then you a page, for about 20min once or twice a day. Any selection of literature will do, sometimes he gets to choose, sometimes you will choose for him. After the time is up, leave him be. If he likes the book, he will keep reading it on his own, but don't expect this to happen magically every time. Don't ever stop this reading routine, unless he asks you to. Keep the popcorn reading at a maximum of 20 minutes, as it can be very exhausting on your son, and you want him to have the stamina to continue on his own after you leave his side.

 

I have twin boys(7) and they love to read, but I do feel your pain as it can be very trying to keep the fire going.

[Kfamily]

My older daughter was like this when she was younger. She is a huge reader now. But, what I learned from her was that the issue was really not the act of reading but rather the requirement to read for a specific amount of time. Once I let her read however much she felt inclined to read for that day and also allowed her to choose when she would read, she turned the corner and began to enjoy reading. I too kept books around, I bought any book that she seemed interested in reading, I took her to the library regularly and I read aloud to her. Books that we needed to read for school we read together. I let her pick a book for independent reading and allowed her to read whenever she wanted that day and for as long as she wanted. I explained to her that as long as she was making reasonable progress in her book that she could read however much she wanted. This meant that sometimes she might read for 40 minutes and other times for 15 minutes. Reasonable progress just gave us enough of a structure to prevent a book from lying around for weeks and weeks. I also gave her the rule that as long as she gave a book a reasonable try, then she could change it out for a different one if she found that she really wasn't liking it.

 

[FriedClams]

At the risk of being a blog pusher, I wrote a long post about raising readers here: https://friedclamsandsweettea.wordpress.com/2014/12/10/5-tips-for-raising-readers/

 

I think, particularly for boys, that minimizing electronics is HUGE. For us it was any screen - tv or game. For a long time we used them on weekends, or in very, very small doses. I read a lot about flicker time and minimizing kid's attention spans, so we limited it very early.

 

I agree with PP about picking a variety of books - including nonfiction. I would make sure that when they read nonfiction they're actually reading all of it, and not just checking out pictures and moving on.

 

Charts, motivation, and fun reports can also help.

 

HTH!!

[lovinmyboys]

At the risk of being a blog pusher, I wrote a long post about raising readers here: https://friedclamsandsweettea.wordpress.com/2014/12/10/5-tips-for-raising-readers/

 

I think, particularly for boys, that minimizing electronics is HUGE. For us it was any screen - tv or game. For a long time we used them on weekends, or in very, very small doses. I read a lot about flicker time and minimizing kid's attention spans, so we limited it very early.

 

I agree with PP about picking a variety of books - including nonfiction. I would make sure that when they read nonfiction they're actually reading all of it, and not just checking out pictures and moving on.

 

Charts, motivation, and fun reports can also help.

 

HTH!!

Thanks! I liked your blog. My son is actually reading Mr lemoncello's library right now. (It was in your picture at the top of the post).

 

Now that I am thinking of it, part of the problem may be that I totally upped the expectations when he started third grade. Before, we did "it is quiet time..you may read if you choose too." Now it is reading time-not a choice.

 

Plus, I only give him a limited choice of books. When I let him choose, he picks calendar kids mysteries or encyclopedia brown. That is fine with me, but he still complained about reading and never read unless I made him. I still put encyclopedia brown books on his shelf some, but I mix in lots of other books. If he is going to complain no matter what, he might as well read a good book.

 

I'll try some of everyone's suggestions. Thanks!

[Mergath]

Are you allowing twaddle?  Totally let him read twaddle.  I see a lot of parents on the forum here who essentially don't let their kids read anything published within the last hundred years, and then wonder why their kids never want to read. :P  I was reading at a college level by first grade and ended up going to college to study literature, but let me tell you, if I had only been allowed to read vintage classic children's books as a kid, I would never have become a voracious reader.  I was all about the Sweet Valley Twins and Goosebumps for years, and it didn't hurt me one bit.  My dd is currently going through a "Rainbow Magic Fairy" book phase, and I couldn't be happier.  They're easy books, and the twaddliest twaddle you can find, but she reads five or six of them a day, and she LOVES reading.  

 

So when you bring him to the library, let him pick out whatever he wants to read.  Even if it's four grades below his reading level or an absolutely idiotic graphic novel about boogers or something.  The point is to get him to read.  Classics and all that "living book" nonsense can wait.  There is absolutely nothing wrong with modern children's literature.

 

Also, make sure he sees you reading for fun, too.  If you make him read but he never sees you reading anything more taxing than FB, he's going to catch on pretty quick. ;)

[Ellie]

You must stop requiring him read. 

 

I read aloud from good books to my children, the books I wanted to be sure they would experience in case they didn't read them by themselves. We went to the library weekly, and they were allowed to check out as many books as they wanted, or no books at all (with the understanding that all books would be returned every week whether they had been read or not), and I never questioned them on their reading choices. I also never noticed whether they were reading the books they brought home.