Just some hints for some of my friends who are struggling to help their little ones enjoy books....
1. Read aloud to them - they will come to associate snuggle time on the couch with books.
2. Let them pick out a bunch of books for themselves at the local library. Check them out for yourself to see what caught their eye. Maybe they don't like fiction but get all the books on horses they can find...follow those clues.
3. Now focus some time on that subject and include games, writing projects and readalouds on that subject. Keep the assignments short and sweet.
4. Find books on tape that have the storybook your child can follow along in.
5. Some libraries have books on the computer that have the pictures and text scanned in . For some reason children seem to find things more fun if they are on the computer.
6. There are many free game sites that do grammar and spelling games. Do a search and let your child play his way through the reluctant period. He is learning and you aren't fighting.
7. Don't reserve reading for "school" time. Play reading games in the car or around the house. Have them hunt for words that you know they will likely find.
8. Allow your child to draw or color while you are reading if they want to. This seems to help some children be able to focus better.
9. Talk about what you have read and take cues from your child about what sparked his interest. Follow those cues!!!
Put all of these together and things will improve for you and your reluctant reader. Your most important focus is to keep the assignments manageable (short but frequent) and enjoyable.
Hang in there!
2 comments:
It's true, I grew up hating to read. Now I write action-adventures & mysteries especially for boys 8 - 13, who also may not like to read.
NEWSPAPER CAPER, TERROR AT WOLF LAKE, NORTH WOODS POACHERS, MOUNTAIN CABIN MYSTERY, BIG RIG RUSTLERS, SECRET OF ABBOTT'S CAVE & LEGEND OF THE WHITE WOLF, are compared by readers and reviewers to Tom Sawyer, The Hardy Boys, Huck Finn, Nancy Drew, Tom Swift, Scooby-Doo, Lemony Snicket, and adventure author Jack London.
My blog, Books for Boys, ranks in the top 5 on Yahoo and the top 20 on Google and you can find it at http://booksandboys.blogspot.com There you will also find links to my author's web site and anther blog with 50 pages of reviews. Distributed by Baker & Taylor.
If you have any questions, please let me know.
Thank you,
Max Elliot Anderson
Author
Rockford, IL
http://www.maxbooks.9k.com
Now, from an author who hated to read...comes books kids hate to put down.
Hey Beck,
Thanks for sharing! I'll let Grandma know you've shared and hopefully we can get her down to the computer to spend a few minutes reading your comments. She doesn't see the computer screen print too well. It bothers her eyes.
40 isn't so hateful if we keep it all in perspective. We are God's special creation and we are "Blessed and Highly Favored". He has given us life and life abundant.
Love ya Gal!!
Aunt "T" :) -- VA
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