The Library has a weekly column in the Troublesome Creek Times. If you missed it in the newspaper, you can read it here!
August 20, 2008
BOOK NOTES
FROM KNOTT COUNTY PUBLIC LIBRARY
By Audrey Slone
“What can I do to help my child to not only read better but also make it enjoyable?” This is a question parents ask the Library staff in hundreds of different ways. There is no magic potion children can take to cause them to suddenly love reading, but there are several things you can do to encourage reading.
Make reading an enjoyable experience. Many times, parents and caregivers use reading as a punishment or make it seem like work. “You didn’t do your homework, so no recess and you must read 20 pages in your reading book,” for instance. Strategies such as these tend to create a reluctant, not an eager reader.
Read Aloud. I’ve mentioned this in past articles, but I can’t stress it enough: parents and children grow closer through reading together. What’s not to love about doing something together and having your child’s full attention! The time to start reading aloud is when your child will sit and listen for a few minutes at a time. After they learn to read by themselves, don’t stop reading aloud, just get longer books with more complex plots. Or let your children read to you. In doing so, you not only facilitate an important skill, but you may also find you are enjoying it as much as they are!
Let your child read the kinds of books that he or she wants to read. One of the biggest reasons kids, especially boys, are reluctant readers, is that they are encouraged to read books that aren’t interesting to them. There’s nothing wrong with reading comic books, graphic novels, or books about cars or racing. Try suggesting books with a movie tie-in, quizzes, puzzles or logic games. Just encouraging your child to read something can lead to a lifelong love of books. Avoid making judgments about the reading material they do choose. Just because your child devours graphic novels doesn’t mean that’s worse than reading a more traditional book.
Model reading behavior. Another important way to create avid readers is for parents and caregivers to set an example in their own reading behavior. Talk about books you have read, go to bookstores and, of course, the library, together. Let your children see you are happy to read and find it enjoyable. Also, make sure they see the importance reading has in your life. Just saying that it is important doesn’t cut it. We all know that behavior means much more than words. Kids do what we do and not what we say… Your children are watching you.
Be aware of possible learning differences. Have your child tested for vision problems. As a child in first grade, I had trouble, not because I didn’t want to read, but I couldn’t see well enough to read. After getting glasses, I developed a deep love of books.
Other problems such as developmental issues or dyslexia may need to be tested for. There is nothing so frustrating as not being able to make sense of what is on the printed page, not because of a lack of intelligence or desire, but because they have a slightly different way of looking at things.
Certainly these are just a few ways to encourage your child to develop a love of reading. Not only will they be rewarded with a lifelong interest that will take them anywhere in the world, but the child who can read well will do better in school and in life. If parents and caregivers expect and encourage children to do well, with help and positive guidance, they will.
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