How to Encourage Children to Read?

My son is nearly 10 and I read to him a lot. There are so many interesting things to read and discuss.

You might find a kids magazine like Cricket would be helpful. Find a story, ask them both to read it, and then discuss what you think about it. The newspaper is good for that, human interest stories can often spark some good discussions about values.

I have a quiet time in the afternoon where I go up to my room and read. I also will read on the couch, read aloud while my son is playing. My son has time to read from 9 to 10 in the evenings. (we homeschool, he has a hard time sleeping, I let him read himself to sleep, works for everyone). When that is the only option and such a pleasant one, it's a bit more attractive. Or get into a series together. The Incorrigible Children of Ashton Place is fantastic, we are on the fifth book now. A Series of Unfortunate Events is good. Graphic novels are often a stepping stone to larger books-- my son got into the Percy Jackson series after I picked up The Lightning Thief in graphic novel form.

I read nonstop to my kids when they were toddlers. One ended up being an avid reader and the other couldn't care less. Its probably a personality thing.

I read to my kids a lot when they were younger. We went to the library every week for story time and to take out books. We attended various literacy programs offered by the school division for pre-schoolers. I bought them the Scholastics books they picked out for themselves. I found that both of my boys preferred non-fiction.

ETA: Good point mynewnickname. We modelled reading as well.

ETA: I do not enjoy listening to people read. It is too slow. My kids don't either. Once they could read for themselves they preferred that.

I'm an English teacher.

Read TO them. I or my husband read to my kids as a group every night until they were teens and finally outgrew it. It was an evening ritual, and I miss it.

Good response from Diane. And I agree that you and dad need to model reading. If you aren't readers, don't expect them to be. If they see you sitting behind your computers while you're telling them to read, you will not be successful.

I actually still read to my 10-year old just before bed - not every single night like we used to, but 3-4 nights a week. I tend to read books that are a little beyond his level and which interest us both. By nighttime he is so wiped out from a full day of school plus homework that he really doesn't have a ton of interest in reading to himself, but he will eagerly take in a good story. I like that he learns to value books and use his imagination to visualize a story. I do catch him every now and then reading a book on his own. It's hard when there's so much competition for their attention, but I think demonstrating how important reading is to you can help influence them to eventually value reading themselves.

One other note - my kid will often be doing "busy" work like building Legos or organizing his room while I read to him. I don't discourage that because that is often when he's listening the most intently.

Read to them - even at this age. You take a page, the kid takes a page.

Don't make reading the punishment or chore they have to do in order to earn the fun stuff like TV and screen time. It's like "Eat your vegetables and then you can have dessert" - it makes it clear that dessert is the really cool thing and the vegetables are the necessary evil. As long as reading is the evil, they'll never love it.

Limit the TV to a certain number of hours a week, and they pick the shows (within reason). When they have reached their limit for the week, they're done. No arguments, no earning more by doing xyz - TV is limited. Reading is unlimited.

And whatever TV/screen time they have must end 2 hours before bedtime. The last hour of awake time is in bed with a book. Walking around with a book doesn't count.

See if you can find a series they would love - Harry Potter or something else that has a bunch of adventures and sequels. It doesn't matter what they read - only that they read. Don't be afraid to get non-fiction books on a subject of interest too!

And make sure that they see you and your husband reading - on a gray or cold Sunday, build a fire and have everyone curl up with a book. Do something fun like set up an indoor campground (build a tent with a sheet over a plain old rope, anything hokey is fine!) and crawl inside with pillows or couch cushions and a camp lantern, and read!

When my kids were little I read to them all the time. When they were 8 and 10 (and older) I'd still occasionally read to them even though they were perfectly able to do it themselves. they like being read to while in bed as well. I read constantly and always have. When I travel, I carry both an e-reader and a paper book. We have more books than shelf space.

I have never made them read x-minutes like a rule or presented reading like it was a chore to be endured in order to earn something they wanted more. A love of reading can not be forced, you can only offer the opportunity and tools for it to grow.

I wouldn't personally tie it to a reward. Then that makes it seem like a chore. What you describe sounds like how we get our kids to do their chores (once you finish, you can have ...).

One of mine is not a reader. That's ok. I encouraged him and read to him, but he never took it up. He preferred to look at books that were factual - like Guinness World Records, or River Monsters .. he wants to be a marine biologist, so he'd get books on sharks - largest shark, etc. It was more of a picture book type format with some interesting facts.

I am an avid reader. That didn't happen until high school.

I wouldn't force it. Our kids had to read for school (homework) which we did over snack right when they got home. It was low key and although the books were kind of lame (outdated so kids couldn't really relate to them), combined with snack it was manageable.

I did a lot of reading to my kids - Harry Potter to one of them, in second grade. By the third book, he was so hooked he started reading the series himself. So just continue to read to them - they often follow along.

Some people describe "the joy of reading". No one describes "the joy of reading RIGHT NOW OR NO DESSERT". Don't make reading a battle!

You should consider *why* you want them to read. If it's because you love to read and it just kills you inside that they don't - different people enjoy different hobbies. If it's because they are doing poorly in school - try finding a tutor who will work to direct their reading. If it's because you want to expose them to great works of literature - read TO them.

I read very detailed documents at my job, all day every day. So in my "free time", sometimes reading a Mamapedia post is about the most my eyes can handle! (And sometimes I feel like I deserve a sticker for reading *every* answer to a post!) Sometimes I enjoy reading a great book (especially if I'm looking forward to discussing it with friends at a book group). What makes it fun for me is discussing what I've read - here on Mamapedia, in a book group, etc.

Find the fun for your children. Reading should be FUN (unless it is required for school/work).

We started early - our son was about one yr old when we started cardboard picture books.
His first favorite book was a book of baby faces showing all sorts of emotions - happy, sad, mad, etc.
Reading time was snuggling time and I read to him every time we had to wait 10 min for anything.
I carried a book with me everywhere we went.
One time we were waiting at the doctors office and I started quietly reading to our son - I had 4 other kids come over to hear the story - EVERYONE loves story time.
Once he was learning to read - we often had Dr Seuss books memorized - if I read a story any way in which he wasn't use to it - he would correct me.
By 2nd grade we'd read every other page to each other and his reading really took off by the 2nd half of 2nd grade.
We were reading chapter books by then one chapter at a time for bedtime story.
Any interest that caught his attention, we found a book about it - sharks, fire trucks, dinosaurs, wizards, dragons - you name it!
By 3rd grade he was reading Harry Potter on his own and he won a trophy for getting the most points his first year in a school that had an Accelerate Reader program.
By 8th grade his lexile score was off the chart.
We always made it a fun family thing to do.
Even now (he's 18) near bedtime we'll both be sitting on the couch reading our own books to settle down for bed.
Some days he'd rather read than turn the tv on at all.

Not every kid is going to be an avid reader but if you show that reading is important to you and it's something that you enjoy - they are much more likely to see it that way themselves.
To this day - our son's favorite treat is a trip to the book store.
For good grades and helping around the house and yard - I never tell him 'no' at the book store!

My kids loved to read in bed before turning their lights out. Perhaps that would help.

One of mine likes to read, the other has always been fairly reluctant but neither are the types to sit and read all afternoon like I did or some kids do. But we had a firm half hour before bed of reading time. And I didn't push it beyond that. Fortunately eventually they'd find books they loved and then read more than the half hour. At age 8, I remember the Ivy and Bean series finally got my oldest hooked. So I'd force some time in bed with a book and then just keep trying different books till something clicks. But so long as they're doing ok in school, I'd give up hoping they will spend hours and hours reading voluntarily. My sister has one kid who loved to read so would read anything. Her next only would read when she loved the book. Same parents. Same house. Just different personalities.

That's all you can really do it encourage them to read by setting the example of reading for pleasure yourself. How about starting something new by picking out a book and reading it as a family together? You can read while they eat breakfast in the morning. One child can read a chapter before, during, or after dinner every night. You can talk about the parts you've already read which will encourage them to think about what happened and what might come next.

In the end as long as they have the ability to read that's all that matters. Some people grow up to be readers and some only read the things they have to. You can help set the groundwork but personal preference kicks in at some point.

I am going to ask a strange question?

Do you read? Is it something the kids see you doing regularly? Are you checking yourself some books out at the library?

I LOVE to read and my kids know give mom some down time and she is going to pick up a book. Give dad some down time and he will be reading scientific articles on his phone and sharing cool facts with us when he finds one.

We have always read to our kids from before they could even hold a book until well....now they are 13 and 9. A chapter a night book with both kids.

We have lunches on the weekends or maybe even a dinner where it is a Family Reading Lunch/Dinner and we all bring our books to the table and read while we eat.

After school we try and have a slow down chill out half an hour of reading with all three of us in our favorite spot in the living room with a book...no tv...no phones...just a book. All of us so it isn't a "chore" for the kids it is a "treat" for me.

You are trying to do things right...You are rewarding them reading and trying to find things they like to read...maybe try reading with them too. Good luck!!

My kids have to be bed at 9. At that time, they can either go to sleep or they can lie in bed and read for 30 min. So, in a way, reading is rewarded with a slightly later bedtime. And there is literally nothing else going on to distract them at that time.

Also keep trying different genres. My little one just became a reader because he found the Captain Underpants book. They are ridiculous but he likes the humor and I'm happy he found something he likes to read.

Plus, my husband and I both read a lot. So my kids see reading as something people enjoy doing. Are you and your husband readers?

I agree with those that say to read to them. My kids are 9 and 7 and I still read to them every single night. My 7 year old loves reading but mostly only when I read to him! :) He will read but he is still in the easy books and would rather not work so hard! My 9 y/o is an avid reader and will read to herself all night long after I put her to bed but still likes to share stories with me and her brother and still wants me to read to her.

We mostly just read chapter books together now and it's fun. We find series they both like and read a chapter or two a night.

I would also suggest that maybe you start reading too so you can model it for them. You could even have like a family DEAR time after school or after dinner where you read to them or you all read your own things. I don't think you should necessarily do minute for minute with TV time, that seems like a punishment kind of. I think it's great you are going to the library and letting them pick out books. Books on tape are another good option and I think Amazon prime may let you stream recorded books for free or download some E-books if you have that.

I think you might find that being more directly involved in their reading will spark their interest more and even if they groan about it at first, will probably get into the stories. You have to remember to stay upbeat and excited about it too.

Is there an issue with their reading proficiency in school that is making you make an issue out of this? If they are behind in reading fluency or comprehension and it's affecting their learning, then it is important to practice with daily reading. If there isn't an issue with school, then why are you making this into a power struggle?

Some kids are readers - I have a sister who is two years older than me and I wanted to do everything she did, so I learned to read before Kindergarten. I read everything, all the time, and always had my nose in a book (to the point of rudeness). I consume the written word like air and food and water. I have a degree in English literature. We have books all over my house, in every room, on every topic and for every reading level. I read to my kids from birth, and my youngest are 11 and 12 and I still read aloud to them on occasion (usually over the summer when our evening routine isn't dominated by sports and homework).

Guess what? My kids don't read for pleasure. They'll occasionally pick up something like Diary of a Wimpy Kid or the James Patterson Middle School books but outside of that, many books that I'll pick up while I'm out shopping, that I know they'll like, go unread. They are supposed to have a silent reading book on them at school and more often than not, those books (either from home or ones that they've picked out from the library) just go to school and back each day and don't get opened. It's just not something that they find pleasure in. I'm not going to make a chore of it - they are literate, they can read well enough to manage their school work, and that's really all that counts. If they choose to feed their mind in other ways, that's their choice.

I really would stop making this a battle. If they can read well enough to meet their requirements for school, then that's enough. It doesn't need to be a pastime for them too.

Whether they grow up to be avid readers is up to them, we all start at different ages anyway it's hard to tell how it's going and who's gonna 'be a reader'....

I'd say they are young enough that you should relax and find a good book and switch from solo reading to daily you read aloud only, make it a good read, gotta capture the attention, ya know?! Nothing teaches enthusiasm for something better than witnessing it first hand!

All my kids and nephews enjoyed ALL the books I read aloud to them as elementary age kids & I did it b/c I had a couple teachers who read books aloo the class then & I loved it too!

I make my daughter read out loud to me. We spend 15 minutes 3 days a week reading aloud. The other days she can read to herself. When she reads aloud I will ask questions about what she has read. A lot of kids don't like to read. I try to encourage with praise. Good luck.

I have a friend who has 2 kids. One has a book all the time and the other one hasn't picked up a book in years.

The one that loves to read was exactly like your kids. He absolutely hated to read. His mom kept hunting for that one series that would spark his imagination. He would check out a book and read it with mom and not be able to answer a single question about what they'd read. It wasn't going anywhere. No comprehension of it.

He checked out a Hank the Cowdog book and he read it, talked about it, and fell in love with it. So she got him one book at a time that he picked out. When he'd read it she would go buy him another. He read all of them. Something in that book clicked his reading on.

My husband couldn't read. In first grade he was still not reading. He went to grandma's house in SLC for a summer visit and she read the Book of Mormon to him. When he came back he was reading on nearly a high school level. He loved the stories in it. It sparked his reading and he never had any other problems.

My point is that somewhere there is a book that will spark that connection with the written page and imagination then they will get it.

Another friend read a chapter of the Harry Potter books each night for her kids. When they really got into it was when they heard something different that what the director did with the movies. They'd have discussions about it. They wanted to read it for themselves when they'd read the first book or so. She still read to them though. Every single day until they were in middle school and their little sister was in 4th grade. The girl read all the time on her own. The boys were reading if they wanted to at that point.

I encourage you to visit with their teachers and find out if they are needing to read every night. If there are any issues with their comprehension. Sometimes they need so eye therapy or some.....games or other venues that help the connections grow between what is seen and comprehending it.

Do you read?

I devour books. I could probably read 2 a week. I enjoy reading. In fact, I remember the first book I "fell in love with". The funny part is, I was forced to read it. I remember being forced to read, and hating it. Then one day I was grounded and the only thing I had in my room to do was read the school assigned book A Wrinkle In Time. I was in third grade. I remember starting the book with pouty defiance and the next thing I knew I was on the last page and the whole afternoon was gone!

Looking back now as an adult, I think then I had such a hard time concentrating that I couldn't get my imagination to click on and connect to what I was reading.....I hope that makes sense.

It took awhile to get that concentration so that I could really dive into a book.

I think you are doing a great job encouraging your children to read. Some of the other things I do is to have a home library, I have books in the car to grab quickly if we get stuck somewhere and for any appointments (doctor/dentist) or long car trips they bring a book or look out the window.

My SIL reads the same books as her kids and she makes it a game to stop at a certain page and predict what happens next. But she acts like a girlfriend being all giggly while sneaking in those comprehension questions.

On the other hand, my husband is not a reader. At all. But he is smart, successful, and comprehends things just fine.

So just continue to positively encourage them, be patient and let it happen. Maybe it will and maybe it won't. And if it doesn't they will be just fine.

My 9 and 13 year old LOVE to read. My 13 year old had to go to the ER yesterday and she actually went back in the house to grab a second book because she was half way done with the one she had. My 11 year old really doesn't like it at all. As long as they aren't doing nothing educational or active, we let it be. They are forced to read for school, so we let it be.

Updated

My 9 and 13 year old LOVE to read. My 13 year old had to go to the ER yesterday and she actually went back in the house to grab a second book because she was half way done with the one she had. My 11 year old really doesn't like it at all. As long as they aren't doing nothing educational or active, we let it be. They are forced to read for school, so we let it be.

I've pretty much given up. My 10 year old gets all As, can read and comprehend just fine but hates to read books. She does love graphic novels so I get her those. But she needs to up her game as they will be assigning books next year and she'll have no choice but to get through them.

Continue reading with them. Either alternate pages/chapters or just have a time where you all sit and read together. My boys (8 & 11) liked the Diary of a Wimpy Kid series. They are not award winners, but they are enjoyable. What about the "Who was" "What was" series (there are dozens)...like: Who was Babe Ruth, Who was Abe Lincoln, What was the Civil War, What is the World Series. My kids love these books too. They're about a 3rd/4th grade level chapter book. How about books that have movies? The last two books my 8 year old read were Charlotte's Web and The Mouse and the Motorcycle. We then watched both movies to compare/contrast. My older son just finished Bailey's Story which is coming out on Jan. 27 as "A Dog's Purpose". We'll go see it in the theater. Keep working on it.

My kids had to do 20 minutes of reading at the table after other homework was/is finished every school day. Mostly because our school required reading minutes for every grade up until they hit high school. It made up a large percent of their English grade each year so there was no way around it - they had to do it from Kinder on. They also had to answer questions at the end of each book and turn it in or they didn't get the points. I quickly found out which of my kids were "natural book lovers" and which were not :) By the time they hit high school, everyone would read for pleasure except one (which he will read once in awhile, but the rest of us wouldn't even dream of leaving the house without a book in their hand). I love reading and do so every day. My husband wouldn't read a book for pleasure for a million dollars . . . and he is a well educated, professional, who did fantastic in school and in college.

At some point, you just have to decide that you can't "make" someone read a book. Unless they have some kind of disability/learning issue for which reading is going to help, I'd reward for reading, but I don't know that I could give consequences for NOT reading (for us, it was a natural consequence of a bad grade).

Good luck!