Tricks to get kids excited about reading, from an English teacher

I decided not to force him to read anymore

A few years ago, I accepted that the best thing I could do was to stop forcing my son to read. I sometimes felt like a fraud, as if I had forgotten all the tips and tricks behind raising a young readerBut my experiences as a teacher have reminded me of two things: I won't reach every student and sometimes it's better to let things rest.

I didn't give up

Although I stopped forcing books on my son, I never stopped giving him the opportunity to read for himself. I brought him to the library every week and looked for books on topics that he was interested in. For example, if he was interested in snakes that week, I would ask the librarian to look for all the books they had about snakes.

Sometimes his interests were harder to connect to a book, like football or muscle cars, so I went to the adult section and looked for picture books with informative text alongside the photos.

I continued to model the behavior I wanted to see from him

I am a bookworm and my son has grown up watching me read whenever I can, whether it's on a lazy Sunday morning or every night before bed. Sometimes he asks me what the book I'm reading is about or why I like reading so much. Other times he seems interested in the story I'm reading or it gives him food for thought when I tell him I like reading about other people's experiences.

I think a big part of my Growing up to become a reader is because I saw my aunt and uncle reading all the time and I remember asking them similar questions. For a long time I didn't like reading, but when I asked my aunt to help me find books I liked and she helped me, I was hooked. I was hooked and loved sitting around reading with them like I had joined the club.

I always tell parents to read with their children

I have found that many parents do not realize that reading aloud to their children is just as beneficial as reading aloud to a child themselves. If you read to your childThey are still experiencing the story, being exposed to new vocabulary and listening to you read aloud.

I always read to my son every evening. When he gets frustrated and doesn't want to read himself, I find comfort in the fact that he still looks forward to our evening reading. This helps me to realize that maybe there is a bookworm inside him that just hasn't come out yet.

I go to many second-hand bookshops and buy books that I think he will like

Used bookstores and library book sales are great places to buy books for next to nothing. I never feel guilty about grabbing a book here and there and just putting it on my son's bookshelf in his room since it cost me so little. I figure if he discovers it himself, that's great, and if not, at least I tried and it's not like I'm out a lot of money. Plus, these are the same books I often read to him at bedtime anyway.

It was worth creating these opportunities

Recently over the summer, my son stumbled upon the movie Wonder and really enjoyed it. So when we were at a local book sale and I found the book the movie was based on, I grabbed it. Much to my surprise, he read it all by himself and I did my best not to overreact and ruin the wonder that was unfolding before my eyes. It felt like not giving up on getting him to discover reading for himself had finally paid off.

I know the many benefits that reading and writing have brought to my life, and I just want my son to experience that for himself. Although I struggled with his lack of inclination to read on his own, I let him get away with it. Instead of putting pressure on him, I simply put him in different situations where his interest in books can peak or he can choose to read if he wants to. Ultimately, I know it has to be his choice.