How to Get Children Interested in Reading
Tips and Resources to Encourage Kids to Read
It is easier to get children to read if they are excited about books and reading. Here are some suggestions for how to get children interested in reading.
Tips and Resources to Help Find Good Children’s Books
Children may be uninterested in reading because they just haven’t found books that they are interested in. Libraries are a great place not only to find books but also to get ideas about what kinds of books a child would be interested in. Fiction and non-fiction books are organized in subsections, and just browsing the shelves may lead a child to find a book that sparks his or her interest.
Find out what the child is interested in and try to find books about that topic. Children’s librarians are a wealth of information and are eager to help children find books about a topic they are interested in. The Database of Award-Winning Children’s Literature is a website with entries for thousands of quality children’s books, and has a search engine that allows readers to look for books by topic and genre. If a book is hard to find at the local library or bookstore, try interlibrary loan or finding a cheap copy at a used bookstore.
Once children find one book they like, they may like reading other books like it. Ask children why they liked a book and try to find similar books. Getting a child hooked on a series of books or a particular author is also an excellent way to get children excited about reading.
Talking about and reading about books is also a good way to get children interested in reading. For example, Teen Libris books is a collection of essays about popular teen book series. The website also has suggestions for other books teens may like and a forum where teens can talk about books.
Reading Together
Blocking out family reading time not only ensures time for reading but also prevents distractions while children are trying to read. Children love being read to, but they may also enjoy reading to a parent or older sibling. A parent and child can each read a book to each other, or they can alternate reading pages. Children will look forward to reading time if it means they get to spend one-on-one time with a parent.
Older children may enjoy reading with other kids their own age. They may want to form a reading group with their friends or through school. And many libraries have reading programs that any child can join.
Set Goals and Track Progress
An effective way to encourage reading is to keep track of how many books the child is reading and set goals to encourage further reading. The tracking may be as simple as a list, but it may be fun, particularly with younger children, to get creative. For example, draw a picture and add to it for every book the child reads: add petals to a flower, add bones to a picture of a dog, or add cars to a train and have it grow across the room
Encourage Reading
Children, particularly teens, might be embarrassed or shy about books they want to read, particularly if the book is considered “fluff” or a “light read.” But a book doesn’t have to be a classic or even well-known in order to be worth reading. Instead of trying to persuade a child to read a “good book” that he or she may not be very interested in, try talking to the child or really paying attention to their interests in order to find out what they are interested in reading. The important part is that the child is interested in the book and is excited about reading it.
Children Enjoy Reading Together
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