Pages

Wednesday, June 16, 2010

One-Track Reading

note:  This story has many great comments. For some technical reason they are not showing up in the counter below.  

It wasn't until the middle of third grade that my son finally got the reading bug.  Now finishing fourth grade, he is a voracious reader.  I get vicarious pleasure watching him devour books. (Wish he wouldn't read while walking to the bus stop, though!)   I remember that feeling of being completely swept away when I read The Hobbit as a kid.  I also feel melancholy--as an adult, there seems to be so little time to lose myself in a novel. 

The only problem is that my son just reads one genre--fantasy-- and nothing else.  I suggest other types of books--sports novels, biographies, history--that I think he would really like, but all my selections are swiftly rebuffed.  "I like fantasy," he says.  When we aren't able to get to the library and he can't find the appropriate fantasy series to read, he just rereads his Harry Potter and Lightening Thief series.  Enjoying them as much the second, third time around.  

As much as I like the fact that he reads,  that he reads only one type of book really bothers me.  It's like he's eating nothing but cheese sandwiches.  Nothing wrong with cheese sandwiches, but well, eating only cheese sandwiches is so unbalanced and not really that good for you.  He's missing out on so many other great books.  I sometimes wish a teacher would give him a list of books that he had to read.  But it seems as it the trend is moving away from "required" reading to "suggested" reading.

I was wondering if any parents or teachers had any insight on this.  Is this a phase?  Will he grow out of it? How do I encourage him to read other things,  especially now, as we move into the summer when there will be more time to read?
Posted by Moina Noor

15 comments:

  1. Moina, thank goodness your son loves to read! Let him eat those books up. His motivation fuels his comprehension at this time. There will be many years ahead with required reading lists and reading those will be a snap for him. But, yes... I really would love to sneak a good Roald Dahl book into his hands myself! Why not read aloud to him from BFG or The Twits just for fun? Everyone loves to be read to. Have him read to you one night, then switch off. And time is something you make; it is rarely found. Good luck!
    ReplyDelete
  2. At this point, just be happy that he is enjoying reading! I think some kids just really get into phases - reading one type of book or genre and then moving on to another. As a child, I remember spending one entire summer devouring the Nancy Drew series, and when that ended, moving on to the Hardy Boys. That was all I read for the enire summer, but I eventually moved on, discovering Judy Blume at just the right time! His choice of books may also be fueling something that he emotionally needs right now, escapism, feeling powerful, growing up...it's a tough age for kids and his choice of fantasy might be helping him through it - just a thought.
    ReplyDelete
  3. As a teacher, let me celebrate that he loves reading, and that you support it! Bravo! Sometimes going to a movie made from a book and then bringing the book home (I like the idea of reading it to him) gets children interested in other genres. Don't forget to discuss what he's reading with him - you might get some insight into what he likes - and then have a chat with local booksellers or librarians to find books that might pique his interest. Good luck, and thank you for a wonderful blog. You've made a number of teachers very happy!
    ReplyDelete
  4. The accomplishment here is THAT he is reading, not WHAT he reads. Fantasy can be great as it involves the imagination as well as reading skills. As for your cheese sandwich analogy, eventually he will tire of them and move on. At least he is reading/eating. While eating only cheese sandwiches can be a nutritional and thus health issue, there is no such risk in reading words.
    ReplyDelete
  5. Hey Moina
    During this school year there have been 2 "lock down" procedures instituted at the Norwalk Schools. One affected Columbus and Side by Side only, while the other was for the entire district. What are these procedures exactly and how can we prepare our children for and answer their questions following such incidents? My 1st grader came home from school this week telling me about the "lockdown" and while that was handled beautifully by the school and her teacher, on the bus ride home an older student told her it was because of a "murdered family". What an interesting dinner table conversation this was.
    ReplyDelete
  6. Let him read. He will discover the genres he likes on his own. We all go through phases e.g. once I was big into reading biographies, then I was into thrillers, now I've read 3 US history books in a row.
    ReplyDelete
  7. I am a children's librarian and I can tell you that this is a common trend right now. There are many parents who come in exasperated because their child only reads fantasy. I disagree, though, with the idea that it is like he is only eating cheese sandwiches. There is such a colorful array of books in the children's fantasy section that I think he can get a taste for many different styles of writing and learn so much from this genre. The Lightning Thief series has turned many children on to learning more about mythology, for example, and Harry Potter uses a wonderful blend of mythology, folk and fairy tales, as well as other fantasy novels. At this age I feel it is important to nurture their love of reading. A time will come, eventually, that he will try different books but for now let him enjoy the books he loves.
    ReplyDelete
  8. One way that I branched out a focused reader was to try to find an author who had several books in fantasy and also in other fields. In the case that I dealt with, Anne McCafferty has a few earlier books that are not science fiction/Fantasy and that bridge the gap for my reader, who happened to be a girl. While she hasn't really branched out too much, she is still reading, despite the work involved for her.
    ReplyDelete
  9. I'll chime in as a librarian and say the important thing is that he's reading, not what he's reading. Nothing turns me off more than being required to read a particular book, and many kids feel the same. Let him read what he enjoys over the summer. As long as you keep making other genres available without pushing them, eventually he'll be ready for a change. And, I agree with 7.39 that the fantasy genre is so large these days that there's a wide variety of books to choose from within that one category alone.
    ReplyDelete
  10. Moina, has he read From the Mixed-Up Files of Mrs. Basil E Frankweiler? He may be too old but it is great for imagination and also local details... And off topic but compelling, I too wonder about the lock down protocol. We got no news about lockdown from our principal, but heard other elementary schools did. So my child heard grapevine info before I had a chance. Are you privy to the chain of command..do the police inform the schools individually, by phone (you can not get a human at ours), or internet.. and what about the area preschools..ours didn't know about it. Thanks..
    ReplyDelete
  11. I am so glad to hear that your son loves reading! I agree with most of the comments above—let him read fantasy! However, I am not entirely sure if the above assurance that he will “grow out” of fantasy is entirely correct. I started exclusively reading fantasy when I was his age. The fantasy genre is the reason I got into reading. Maybe one day I will have a different favorite genre but at twenty-two I am not sure if it will ever happen. When I want to read for enjoyment, I always run to the YA fantasy section. Now my taste has expanded slightly-- at first I only read Arthurian fantasy books. To extend the grilled cheese analogy, fantasy is my comfort food. I consider myself well read and I enjoy many types of adult books especially when I am reading for information. However, other genres of books rarely get tangled in my quilt at night.

    When I was growing up the community of those who read fantasy books was amazing. You can generally find other fantasy lovers at youth book clubs, on the teen advisory boards at your public library, and volunteering with literacy initiatives (we want other people to read too). Fantasy readers rarely have a difficult time finding people of mutual interests to engage in passionate book discussions with.

    By the way, to keep up with your son’s book consumption, you might want to look into Book Mooch. It is a great site where you give your old books to people who want them and get books in return It’s sort of like Netflix but free and for books.
    ReplyDelete
  12. Hey, Mary Shelly's Frankenstien caught me but that just wet my lips. Now I cant pick up fiction at all, so much great non fiction available.

    I used trips to stimulate interests, for instance one daughter became interested in horses after a ride, another when she rode a sailboat a son started following nascar score after a race. Museums, civil war battlefields monuments and espescially forts all can stimulate interests. It is correct, for now its not the subject, any subject will work as a hook. If they have their noses in any book, thats a great start. Maybe you can discover some spin off and kinda direct to other subjects. But hey,
    "wacha talkin bout, Monia"?
    Your kids READING. Thats more than half the battle right there. Rejoice.
    ReplyDelete
  13. Has anyone noticed that the summer reading lists required by NPS have not changed in the last 10 years? Perhaps a few books have been added - but it is very difficult to engage the relucant reader in the same books year after year - particularly in the nonfiction category. If he is not interested in the book in year 1, will he really be interested in the same book in year 3? In middle school, the child is able to choose one book not on the list. Reading becomes a chore and yet another fight for the parent to engage in with their child. Not a positive educational experience.

    While I do believe in encouraging children to read classics, has it occured to anyone that a vorious reader may have already read all the books on the list- particulary, if the parent uses this list as a guide throughout the year.

    Yes, I suppose you can tell your kid to throw the list away and read what they want (which is truly the important thing) but then what are teching our kids about discipline and authority?

    Anyone have some thoughts on this topic? Hope someone from CO will comment.
    ReplyDelete
  14. The list is four years old, not ten. Well, a few of the books may have been on there for ten years, but there was a massive overhaul four years ago. It threw the public library for a loop, having to purchase and prepare hundreds of books for the summer reading collection in a matter of days from receipt of list to beginning of summer. A complete revamp every year or every other year gets to be pretty expensive. If I ran the world, I'd shoot for every three to five years.

    @5.38, there's no need to be undisciplined or anti-authority if you don't want to be. If your children are avid readers, congratulate them on their good taste and foresight in having read the school's suggested titles already. Let them read whatever they want all summer long. Just before school starts, have them do a quick refresher scan of two list books they read way back when and fill out the homework forms with those two oldies and their freshly read, off-the-list book.

    And, there are several nonfiction books on the middle school list specifically targeted at reluctant readers - Shelter Dogs, Spiders in the Hairdo, the Jackie Robinson bio, the Hitler bio, the volcano book, the dinosaur book, the Ellis Island book, and the Holocaust book. Never mind the rest of the nonfiction list, that's eight high-interest books; surely one per year is feasible for three years.
    ReplyDelete
  15. Please, parents! You don't get an "F" for summer reading!!! Think outside the box, outside the rote lists. Check the internet. Amazon! Barnes and Noble! Borders! By age, by genre, by interet...Then check them out online, or at the library. Just look around you... infinite choices. Grad your kid, take them for a drink at the book store and spend an hour or two and make notes on what they are interested in. Quality time will be your bonus.
    ReplyDelete

Subscribe to: Post Comments (Atom)

ShareThis