Encouraging a reader to read different things?

[Mkrop]

Just to give you guys an update, during the day he has been reading his SI Kids magazines but at night I have him reading a book on mummies (getting ready for his upcomin trip to the King Tut exhibit) He likes it! It is those DK Eyewitness books which are out there on about every subject imaginable and they have lots of great pictures. Of course he has read all the sports ones, but this is his first nonsports one. He is not as excited like his sports books but he says it is interesting and now he is getting excited to go see the real stuff. I highly recommend the DK books! So I will let this count as his nonfiction selection and then he can pick another sports book!

 

[portia9]

I have a 10yo that is an avid reader and I own a bookstore. If your son is a passionate reader of sports books then I would let him enjoy as many as he can. Have other options available but let him read what he loves. My son read nothing but Goosebumps for months but now he is reading The Series Of Unfortunate Events and the Harry Potter books. A reading child is a joy to see

 

[*KeepMovingForward*]

I think a lot of people have their comfort zone with reading. Its definitely good to encourage other subjects, but I wouldn't force the issue either.

My oldest DS reads nothing but fantasy/Dungeons & Dragons type stuff-drives me up the wall, but I guess in the end I have to look at the fact that he must have quite an imagination. Long before Lord of the Rings came out, my son was a Hobbit geek. LOL! I've tried to interest him in other things, but it just doesn't happen.

DD reads all over the board-whatever interests her at the moment. So she has stuff from dog care manuals to Harry Potter to the classics such as Tom Sawyer and David Copperfield. She is like me, she will read just about anything, although my interests lie with the classics, so I'm glad that has rubbed off on her somewhat.

DH is all about spy and special ops type books. He won't read anything else. In the end, I think we all just devour what piques our imagination or interest.

Is your son at all into sports? Does he have some favorite sports figures? My DS is not really sports oriented, but he plays golf. Tiger Woods is his hero (shocking, isn't it? LOL!). Anyhoo...I did get him some Golf magazines with Tiger on the cover and that keeps him interested, but the moment he gets a month where his pal is not on the cover, he loses interest.

 

[Alysa]

If he is liking stuff about Egypt, you could try"THE EGYPT GAME" It's a Newberry Honour Book. Here is a link:

http://www.amazon.com/Egypt-Game-Zilpha-Keatley-Snyder/dp/0808553038/ref=pd_bbs_sr_1/002-9828765-8654401?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1184159993&sr=1-1

 

[Mkrop]

Is your son at all into sports? Does he have some favorite sports figures? My DS is not really sports oriented, but he plays golf. Tiger Woods is his hero (shocking, isn't it? LOL!). Anyhoo...I did get him some Golf magazines with Tiger on the cover and that keeps him interested, but the moment he gets a month where his pal is not on the cover, he loses interest.

He is very into sports and has read fiction books about them as well as biographies, Donovan McNabb, Ken Griffey Jr, Babe Ruth, Joe Montana, Tiger Woods too. They only one I wasnt thrilled about was Kobe Bryant but of course it was a kids book so I tried to let it go, not exactly a good role model.

I dont think he will be running out to buy or borrow more books on Mummies and Egpyt but we will see after the field trip. I think it is good exposure for this so he can understand a little of the exhibit although I am sure some many things may be too much for his age.

I just thought at school you have to read different genres so i thought it might be good to see what else is out there. Like if you dont givea certain genre a chance then how do you know if you would like it or not. I mean he says he doesnt like science fiction but I dont think he really has read a science fiction book so how does he really know.

He was this way with movies too, he kept saying he didnt like action movies, well in prep for WDW we rented POTC, he loved it! And now we have been able to get him to watch Spiderman, and this weekend we rented Raiders of the Lost Ark and he loved it.

I guess my concern is him closing the door on things beofre he even gives them a chance!

 

[*KeepMovingForward*]

I just thought at school you have to read different genres so i thought it might be good to see what else is out there. Like if you dont givea certain genre a chance then how do you know if you would like it or not. I mean he says he doesnt like science fiction but I dont think he really has read a science fiction book so how does he really know.

He was this way with movies too, he kept saying he didnt like action movies, well in prep for WDW we rented POTC, he loved it! And now we have been able to get him to watch Spiderman, and this weekend we rented Raiders of the Lost Ark and he loved it.

I guess my concern is him closing the door on things beofre he even gives them a chance!

I totally understand where you are coming from. Maybe you could try and capitalize on his movie interests and buy him a book about pirates, egypt or even something about the Marvel comics and their creation. We just recently bought some pirate books from both Amazon and BJ's that are for the kids and they both seemed to express pretty good interest in those. DD got into reading books on Walt Disney and animation because of her love of all things Disney. The National Geographic movie, I think it was March of the Penguins (a few years back) sparked DS to want to read up on Emperor Penguins. I will run with an idea whenever it presents itself. DS also wants to go to Italy and I have told him he needs to know about the country before he can visit it, so he has immersed himself in some history there. Still goes back to his fantasy books 90% of the time, but I take what I can get!

Would you believe I was so determined to get DS to try the classics that I was hoping that the shock value of the first page of the Catcher In The Rye would persuade him to read it? It didn't. Oh well...but that's how determined I was to get him to try. I will read everything and anything I can get my hands on when it comes down to it, so I was hoping to impart that to my kids as well-my DS is resistant for the most part. I try and tell them that in college they will have to read plenty of things that they don't like, but they need to broaden their horizons. You do what you can, right?

 

[Mkrop]

That's all you can do, what you can!

Small steps!

 

[Whosemom]

Weird dissenter, here. I have carefully guarded my children's joy in reading. We don't do ANYTHING that makes a chore out of it. Including telling a teacher we would NOT participate in the "read 15 minutes every night" homework, but ensuring that the total number of minutes is always exceeded in a week's time. UGH. Some days are just too busy.

So, if he's loving reading sports, I'd help him find more sports books. Especially since he is reading both fiction and nonfiction. For school, he'll need to know how to gather information from nonfiction, and elements of fiction such as plot, character, setting... He's getting all that.

Free the free reading

 

[Alysa]

Stumbled onto a neat page at the Times.

http://http://entertainment.timesonline.co.uk/tol/arts_and_entertainment/books/article1794683.ece

 

[Mkrop]

for some reason I cant get to the PP link

anyway, he went to the King Tut exhibit and really liked it, my MIL said he learned a lot from reading beforehand and from the actual exhibit.

He asked if he could take a break from reading about King Tut and asked if he could read his Tales of the Fourth Grade Nothing book. It is the required reading so of course I say sure. He finished it in one night. He loved it but I really think he reads too fast, but I didnt say anything, asked him a couple questions from what I had read from it and he knew the answers.

He came home from camp today and is really tired but I just found him curled up rereading the Fourth Grade Nothing book. Yeah, maybe I need to look into some more Judy Blume books.

 

[meandtheguys2]

yay! On to the rest of the Fudge books!! I envy him!

 

[sk!mom]

Teacher and Mom here- Have you tried reading with him? I know he reads well so does my DD11 but we love reading books together. We have the greatest discussions over books.

My DD would read on her own but I didn't care for the low quality(to me) of some of her choices. I love books and wanted to see her read quality literature so we started with Charlotte's Web in 2nd grade and by 4th grade she was asking me to right down some good ideas for her before library day.

We will both read the book independently and then before bed each night DH or I will read a chapter with her. We then will often discuss the books over dinner. One of the funniest things is DH has been introduced to lots of books, as well.

It has kept us reading to her, a practice that I know (as a teacher) many parents stop as soon as a child can read independently.

We did the same thing with DS22.

 

[Alysa]

Oops! Sorry - I did two http's - try now!

http://entertainment.timesonline.co.uk/tol/arts_and_entertainment/books/article1794683.ece

 

[Mkrop]

Oops! Sorry - I did two http's - try now!

http://entertainment.timesonline.co.uk/tol/arts_and_entertainment/books/article1794683.ece

Thanks I wish it has ages.

The one that was a BIG hit with boys and girls this year at library that is on the list is the Guiness Book of World Records, even the old copies were hot! Each week I would check the books in and then put them back, I never bothered with the GB, I would just hold them up and say "who wants them next" saved me the trouble of putting them away!

 

[Mkrop]

Teacher and Mom here- Have you tried reading with him? I know he reads well so does my DD11 but we love reading books together. We have the greatest discussions over books.

My DD would read on her own but I didn't care for the low quality(to me) of some of her choices. I love books and wanted to see her read quality literature so we started with Charlotte's Web in 2nd grade and by 4th grade she was asking me to right down some good ideas for her before library day.

We will both read the book independently and then before bed each night DH or I will read a chapter with her. We then will often discuss the books over dinner. One of the funniest things is DH has been introduced to lots of books, as well.

It has kept us reading to her, a practice that I know (as a teacher) many parents stop as soon as a child can read independently.

We did the same thing with DS22.

I have not tried this. I am trying to work more time reading to DS4 but I will try, I use to be an svid reader, but there are just not enough hours in a day, and I used to love to read a book cover to cover over a long weekend and with kids that style doesnt exaclty work.

DS9 loves to read to DS4 but they are usually DS4's books, he wont sit for anything else yet.