Independent reading

[gevs4him]

Are we the only parents with a 6 yr. old ds who does not read independently? He reads fine out loud when told but does not care to read a book by himself. Any thoughts to get him to do so?

Blessings

Lisa

wife of 23 years mother to dd 18 and ds 6 :auto:

[ElizabethB]

It takes time and a lot of practice before they are good enough at reading that they can enjoy reading on their own.

 

I would keep practicing the phonics, eventually it will come.

 

You could also try the 1879 McGuffey Readers, they have difficult words explained with diacritical markings at the beginning of each story.

 

You can see them at Gutenberg books and print out a few pages to see how it works. I would also print out the key at the beginning so you'll have it on a separate page to work from. (You need the pdf version to see the markings.)

[Ellie]

Are we the only parents with a 6 yr. old ds who does not read independently? He reads fine out loud when told but does not care to read a book by himself. Any thoughts to get him to do so?

Blessings

Lisa

wife of 23 years mother to dd 18 and ds 6 :auto:

Why do you think he should?

 

Make good books available. Be sure he has enough time to want to spend it reading. Let the rest take care of itself.

[laylamcb]

Good heavens, no! I have a 6.5yo who CANNOT read yet.

[In The Great White North]

At 6, dc were in kindergarten in a Waldorf school and had not yet been introduced to the alphabet. They were certainly not reading for fun (or at all)

[Faithseed]

My son didn't read until he was 7. He was probably close to 8 before he decided to pick up a book and read it on his own.

 

When I was confident that he could read alone, he really wasn't. About half way into his 7th year, I required him to read 1 chapter out of a Henry and Mudge book every day. Nothing tough :) He slowly gained confidence. I also left out books that I thought he might find interesting, along with Daddy's tractor magazines and other farming journals that may appeal to him.

 

Now, I catch him carefully studying books, magazines, and catalogs. I even busted him reading to his younger siblings :D I couldn't have been more excited.

 

It was a long road, especially after the first born - a girl- started reading at 3!

 

Hang in there. Don't panic :) Keep gently offering. He'll come around.

[RootAnn]

When my oldest was 6, she was completely uninterested in reading anything on her own.

 

At some point last fall (right before she turned 7), she decided to take off reading on her own and surprised the heck out of us.

 

I wasn't interested in reading on my own until I was 8 or 9. Since I come from a family of "readers," my mother sent me to summer school to learn "reading." (This meant I filled out a lot of grammar worksheets and "learn to read" papers.) It was horrid.

 

Try to relax. Keeping reading to him. Expose him to good literature. Be patient. (I repeat this to myself constantly since my almost-6-yr-old doesn't want to learn to read at all.)

[mama2cntrykids]

My 6 y/o is only reading CVC words. I wouldn't worry about it! My oldest son didn't read independantly (sp?) until the very end of 1st grade. Now he reads just as well (if not better) than his 14 y/o step-bro (who reads at his gr. level--8th).

 

What I am trying to say is don't sweat it!

Edited May 5, 2009 by mama2cntrykids
Added something...lol...typical!

[gevs4him]

Well I will say I feel much better about independent reading. Our DD was reading books by herself by 5 and to this day I still don't know when she was ever taught to read she just did - they did not teach phonics at her school they were just learning their ABC's but walla she was reading. And I read on this forum that there are children reading independently by 6 so - this is what had me stumped. Thought maybe I was doing something wrong - we have been doing phonics and site words which he does well at but well he just doesn’t pick up a book to read independently. I never gave it a thought that he needs to build confidence or to take some books out of the book shelve and display them. So many good suggestions -

thank you all :)

Lisa

[dannie]

I could have written this post. I've been concerned that my DD isn't reading independently, but I feel better after reading these replies and suggestions.

 

Thank you.

[Mom-ninja.]

My 8yr old does not read independently. It's hard to admit that around here.

[Ottakee]

Check out these books http://www.teacherweb.com/CA/PomeloDriveElementary/Mrssakamoto/printap2.stm They are very fun for kids and start out very simple and work up. There are more sets but these you can print out for free.

 

[

[elegantlion]

My 8yr old does not read independently. It's hard to admit that around here.

 

My ds is mildly dylslexic. He started reading independently about 8 or 9. He's 11 now and reads slowly, but he is reading.

 

If I had to do it over I would read aloud more to ds. Every time I had the chance I would have read to him.

[skaterbabs]

My DD reads quite well, but isn't read to do so independantly yet. For her reading is still a social experience.

[Whereneverever]

This is really comforting to read! My DD1 is five and can read, but when she's not reading outloud to someone she prefers to just look at the pictures.

[Guest 4boys]

My oldest was 7 in January and has only in the past month or two actually picked up books and read them by himself. I don't think there is anything to worry about!

[PeterPan]

Have you tried comic books yet? Calvin & Hobbes were my dd's first books. No joke! She hated easy readers, so she went right to the good stuff, haha. She just has a comic book personality I guess, because she still reads them. Some kids are like that, holding out till they find something they really want to read.

[Brindee]

My oldest read early. My 2nd was very laid back, and just not interested in reading or letters or numbers. Awhile after he turned 7 a lightbulb suddenly went off and he couldn't get enough of math or reading. Next thing ya know, here's our 7 1/2 year old reading the sports statistics to Daddy from the newpaper! :D

 

If you try to push them, it may make them frustrated, so they don'e want to read. If you go with the flow--read to them, be encouraging if they do read something, they'll come around. Sometimes, especially with boys, things in the brain take longer to connect/fire, so they just aren't ready earlier for that reason. I wouldn't be concerned about a 6 yo! It'll just be all that much more exciting when he DOES read! :D

[Marie in Oh]

between 3rd and 4th grade (8/9). He could read, but it wasn't something he chose to do for fun. Now at 11 he reads like a fiend. I don't think boys especially on average have the interest to read for enjoyment. There are of course some excpetions but I wouldn't worry at 6. :001_smile:

[Suzannah]

DS didn't take off until the end of 2nd grade. I walked past a room on a Saturday and did a double-take. He was reading a chapter book about Star Wars. Ok, so not my choice of great literature, but that was what hooked him. He's just finishing 6th grade and we have worked through selections in VP's Omnibus II including Beowulf, Sir Gawain and the Green Knight, Canterbury Tales and others. He reads stuff all the time for fun too. There are still Star Wars books and Calvin and Hobbes, but he also enjoys selections from VP and Sonlight's reading lists.

 

We worked at reading when he was little, largely following the WTM recommendations, and he was capable of reading for school. But it didn't become a joy until a bit later.

[razorbackmama]

So far I've had 3 learn to read and 1 is in the process. NONE of them could read semi-fluently at ALL until age 7. So there is no WAY they would have read independently.

 

Now that they are 12, 10, and 8...only the 8yo will read a book outside of school. The 12 and 10 yo's flat out refuse, even though they CAN read. DRIVES. ME. BONKERS.:tongue_smilie:

[skaterbabs]

I honestly think it's a personality thing. DS #1 won't read to save his lfe; DS #2 likes reading and DD is all but cleared out our local library.:lol:

[bbsweetpea]

My daughter does not read on her own yet. She will bring a book to read to me but will not try to sit down on her own and read yet. We are still working on phonics though. I think once she gets a little better at it she will do it on her own. She does like to play phonics games and does bring me books several times a day. I figure reading on her own will come when she is ready.

[Dana]

Have you tried comic books yet? Calvin & Hobbes were my dd's first books. No joke! She hated easy readers, so she went right to the good stuff, haha. She just has a comic book personality I guess, because she still reads them. Some kids are like that, holding out till they find something they really want to read.

 

 

:iagree:

I read lots to my son, but I couldn't get him to read to me when we started homeschooling last year. He refused to sound out words and just made wild guesses at words.

 

Then he got hold of my Calvin & Hobbes books. We'd read them to him on occasion, but nowhere near as often as he wanted. I think he learned how to read on his own just so he could read the comics. He's now gone through many of the Garfield books and is currently reading Foxtrot.

[Haiku]

My six year old son reads at a beginning level (he's just starting to be able to read Henry and Mudge, for example).

 

I require him to read for 1/2 an hour every day.

 

I do not tell him what to read. He can read anything he wants, aside from the comic books dh gets him.

 

Frequently he spends the time looking at books, not really reading them. Fine by me. I just want him to spend the time with books.

 

I also tell both my kids that bedtime is at 8:30, but they can stay up until 9:30 if they are reading. ;)

 

Tara

[sadiegirl]

Holy cow!!! My second son didn't start reading well until 2nd grade and I always thought that he would struggle with reading comprehension.

I kept books available that would interest him, kept up with audio books and read-a-louds and hoped he would develop an interest. Finally, he found what I considered to be a series that was "too easy" for him to read...he could finish these readers in a day sometimes but loved them(I think they were called Bailey Street Dogs or something like that) He loves animals so I let him read them. Boasted his confidence and love of reading and away he went! Each of my boys keep a reading journal that they draw a picture about the book, write a review of the book and write the day they started and finished the book. This school year, he read over 15 books(he finished 6th grade!)

So, relax. Oh, and my other son...he has a love of hunting, fishing, and outdoors. My husband scubcribes to several magazines of interest and that really peaked his interest in reading. The books that he reads are geared towards westerns, outdoors, etc. I think finding books that intrigue them get them reading.