How to get a kid interested in reading

[Anonymous]

Get his vision checked - my son struggled with/wasn’t interested in reading until he got reading glasses in 7th grade and it made a big difference in his ability to sit and read a long novel.

Take a look at his screen time and what he’s watching/playing. A lot of time on screens can decrease attention span, which makes it harder to focus on a book.

Also accept that he might never love to read the way you do, or read the things you like to read. If he likes sports biographies, find more that he might be interested in instead of comparing him to another kid who loves long complicated works of fiction. How would you respond to a friend who said “I love playing instruments but my kid isn’t interested in music” or “sports were my life at his age but all my son wants to do is draw”? You would tell them that it’s okay that their child enjoys different things from them. You wouldn’t tell them to enforce a strict 15 minutes of piano per day or to let him stay up later so long as he’s playing catch. He may come to enjoy reading in time but forcing him to read will make it a chore and have the opposite effect.

[Anonymous]

Take your son to a library and let him select the books he like to read.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:One thing we’ve had success with- if they’re in bed by 8pm they can read to 8:30 or 9. We make it a privilege to read. Otherwise they have to go to bed.

I’ve done this too. I let her have a “ later bedtime” but it had to be reading.
Also letting her totally choose what she wants to read too.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:One thing we’ve had success with- if they’re in bed by 8pm they can read to 8:30 or 9. We make it a privilege to read. Otherwise they have to go to bed.

We did this too. Lights off or reading for last half hour til bedtime

[Anonymous]

to be fair, magic treehouse books are super repetitive, so once you've read or listened to a few they become really boring. Go to the library and let him pick anything that might interest him. Books with short chapters could also help--the wild robot is great for this. Also, books that are more advanced usually have way more interesting plots and storylines, which might motivate him more. My third grader likes to listen to: code name bananas, the nanny piggens series, a series of unfortunate events, etc.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:One thing we’ve had success with- if they’re in bed by 8pm they can read to 8:30 or 9. We make it a privilege to read. Otherwise they have to go to bed.

I’ve done this too. I let her have a “ later bedtime” but it had to be reading.
Also letting her totally choose what she wants to read too.

And make sure there are no toys or anything too distracting in the bedroom.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:OP here. Thanks for the suggestions. He likes biographies of sports figures, mostly baseball, but he will do soccer stars too. I guess, I just feel these are a bit simplistic, at least the ones he is picking. He also likes the "I Survived" books, once again, only in graphic novel form.

It's not that he won't read anything. He likes the Diary of a Wimpy Kid. He's done the Wings of Fire in the graphic novel form. He just flat out refuses to read "chapter books." I just see his friends reading all sorts of complex chapter books and he isn't.

Like I said, he holds it together in school but once out of school he doesn't stop moving. My mom (former elementary school teacher) told me that if he were in her class, she would have let him do his work standing up because he is just a kid that needs to do that. It is very common that kids need to move, especially boys.

I read him the first Percy Jackson over the summer, which he really liked. When I read to him he needed to move around the room. On the occasions where he actually laid down to listen, he fell asleep. We had to go back because he didn't remember what was going on. He told me he liked the book and didn't want to miss anything so he needed to move around.

I was the kid in the corner reading a book and still love reading. I'm just tring to figure out if this is an issue that we need to address, like he is behind academically or if this is a "me" issue and I should just meet him where he is and he will get there eventually. FWIW, my husband and I also recognize that he is a bit immature overall and will, more than likely, be a late bloomer.

Thank you for your feedback and suggestions and for letting me air out my anxiety. Sometimes, I just feel like everyone is doing parenting better than I am.

At this age my DS who sounds very similar spent a ton of time listening to full length audio books while building with Legos.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I think you have to make it fun. Which means he gets to pick what he likes, even if it has pictures. My kids love graphic novels, and when my oldest was in 3rd grade he read every single Wings of Fire (graphic, chapter, AND audiobooks) and every Calvin & Hobbes and Foxtrot collection repeatedly. Two years later he devours YA and some (appropriate and easier) adult sci fi and fantasy novels.

I agree. A lot of kids don’t like to read outside of school. It has to be enjoyable. The worst thing a parent can do is force boring books on these kids. Calvin & Hobbes, Garfield, Foxtrot are good choices for boys who have a sophisticated humor for their ages and big vocabularies.

There’s a new comic strip called Cul de Sac that’s the same idea. I would bring my 9year old to the book store and he would go straight for the comic section. His reading skills were always 2-3 grades above his. He didn’t read chapter books for fun but his school chose excellent books for the students to read together so that was enough.

He’s got a lot of company, don’t worry.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I have a second grade girl like this. Last year she had one series she loved and since then nothing lives up. We do all the things like library. She does read in school because she finishes things early per the teacher. But at home she will do anything other than read. She builds a lot of things like homes for animals with magnatiles and legos and draws and writes a lot. Her grades are good, but I keep hearing about other kids reading so much. I was a reader at that age. I don’t want her to fall behind. She’s also not a great speller so I wonder if that’s because she doesn’t read enough.

We are trying establishing the habit of reading in bed even if it’s just 5 minute. I’ve been inching bedtime earlier so she has more time before she’s tired. We also try for at least one family reading session every weekend where we talk about what we are reading.

Anyway. Solidarity and hoping for more ideas from this thread.

What was the series she loved in first grade?

Spelling isn’t great because they use their computers to write now. When you had to write down words it involved your brain more and you could remember spelling it.

Ivy & Bean! I even tried something else by the same author but nope. And other books about elementary school girls.

Ivy & Bean books are sooo boring. My second grader liked to share the reading with me and we used voices for the characters. We started an Ivy & Bean and it was all I could do not to “lose” the book so I wouldn’t have to continue reading it.

I know some kids love the books and I get it, just not for me or my daughter.

[Anonymous]

I would get him formally screened for ADHD. Mine went undiagnosed until my 30s because I was a studious, compliant kid. I could easily focus on things that interested me, but the amount of energy required to do the same when a subject was boring or difficult was enormous. I was exhausted at the end of every school day.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I have a second grade girl like this. Last year she had one series she loved and since then nothing lives up. We do all the things like library. She does read in school because she finishes things early per the teacher. But at home she will do anything other than read. She builds a lot of things like homes for animals with magnatiles and legos and draws and writes a lot. Her grades are good, but I keep hearing about other kids reading so much. I was a reader at that age. I don’t want her to fall behind. She’s also not a great speller so I wonder if that’s because she doesn’t read enough.

We are trying establishing the habit of reading in bed even if it’s just 5 minute. I’ve been inching bedtime earlier so she has more time before she’s tired. We also try for at least one family reading session every weekend where we talk about what we are reading.

Anyway. Solidarity and hoping for more ideas from this thread.

What was the series she loved in first grade?

Spelling isn’t great because they use their computers to write now. When you had to write down words it involved your brain more and you could remember spelling it.

Ivy & Bean! I even tried something else by the same author but nope. And other books about elementary school girls.

Ivy & Bean books are sooo boring. My second grader liked to share the reading with me and we used voices for the characters. We started an Ivy & Bean and it was all I could do not to “lose” the book so I wouldn’t have to continue reading it.

I know some kids love the books and I get it, just not for me or my daughter.

I think it’s find to force a minimum amount of reading daily. In fact, I think you must if your child isn’t reading at all naturally by 3rd grade.

[Anonymous]

I haven't read all the replies yet, but what's helped with my kids is magazine subscriptions.

The kids get excited about new mail just for them and won't put the issues down even at dinner.

National Geographic for Kids, The Week Jr., and Highlights have been hits with our kids

[Anonymous]

Two words: graphic novels

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Two words: graphic novels

Bad advice. These have hobbled a generation of kids.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I haven't read all the replies yet, but what's helped with my kids is magazine subscriptions.

The kids get excited about new mail just for them and won't put the issues down even at dinner.

National Geographic for Kids, The Week Jr., and Highlights have been hits with our kids

+1. They love getting the mail and they love the new facts. There’s even an online survey each week in The Week Jr that our 11 year old does on her computer now. I will preach this forever but i feel strongly that it does not really matter what your kid is reading as long as they are developing the habit of reading for pleasure.