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Parents' Great Ideas
 RIF asked for your advice, and you've told us what works! Read the submissions below for tips on getting your kids to read.
- I have a 6 year old boy who loves to help, especially when it comes to building or putting together things. Whenever we buy something that needs assembly, or has instructions, I let him help by reading the instructions to me. He loves helping, and it gives him practical reading experience!
Anita S., Dothan, AL
- Once a week, I take my four year old daughter to our local library for story time. I started this tradition seven years ago with my oldest child. The children become enthralled with the whole event. The librarian reads/performs each book selection, asks the children questions and then follows with a craft to go along with the story subject matter. The library has become a destination of choice for my children. What an enjoyable, inexpensive and family fun activity it has become.
Andrea K., Douglassville, PA
- During the school year when my children's teachers send home book club order forms, I look through them with my kids and let them help select which books they want. (My children are in preschool so they can not read independantly yet.) They are always so excited when the books arrive and want me to read to them right away.
Beth W., Coon Rapids, MN
- To encourage the kids to keep up their reading pace during the summer, we "paid" them for each book they read. The amount was contingent on the page count of the book, but averaged between $1 and $2 per book. The catch is that the kids had to spend the money on more books. They loved the idea of shopping for books with the money they had earned, and by the end of the summer they'd each read a pile of books. (They averaged well over an hour of reading a day--without prompting!)
Sandra S., Saugerties, NY
- My daughters are 3 and 2. I've read to them since birth. Until they were 1, both enjoyed my pointing to the pictures more than hearing the actual book read. They also loved the repitition and would want the same book read over and over. From about 18 months on, I also spent a portion of each day reading them an alphabet book, singing the alphabet song, and playing games that reinforced alphabet recognition and phoenitics (letter coasters, frizbees, hats, dances, etc.) I held their attention span by allowing them to poke each letter, throw the frisbees, and asking them to stomp on the letter D for example or toss the letter F. This worked really well and by 2, my older daughter could recognize all 26 upper case letters. Between 2 and 3, I spent maybe a total of an hour each week (divided in 10 minute increments) teaching my older daughter the sounds of letters and how 3-letter words were formed using letter blocks. Now, at 3 she can read almost any 5 or 6 letter word and I try to get her to read 20 words a day. She's got a huge vocabulary, including words like "multi-colored, actually, extremely, enormous" and many others.
I may sound like I've really gone nuts with the education, however the kids have a great time learning. It's always a fun activity. I stop when it's apparent they have an information overload. Out of any given day, only 30 minutes are dedicated to focussed learning where I have a goal that I'm going to teach them the alphabet or numbers for example. And the constant brain stimulation has helped them to learn more, faster and played a great part in their curiosity, as well as behavior. I think children whose minds are challenged are actually better behaved kids. And better-behaved kids make better parents.
Cheryl P., Silver Spring, MD
- Since my first-grader was starting back to school, my three-year old daughter was a little jealous of him. So, the day before school started we went to the local library and got a library card. Now each week we make a date to go to the library, and pick out a couple books to read at bedtime. She loves having her own "school" books to read.
Loretta G., Kent PA
- When I read to my 6-yr-old son and 3-yr-old son, I read a few lines and they fill in the blanks. If they guessed the incorrect word, then I read what the book actually says. It makes it fun for all of us!
Toni H., Ada, OH
- Try a Hide and Seek reading game:
Materials: Pencil, pictures of relatives, toys, favorite characters, etc., and index cards.
Directions: Glue or tape a picture of a family member, favorite character, etc. to an index card and write the person's name next to the picture. Then hide the cards around the house. Encourage the child to read who they found. If the child is a beginning reader, the card can include a sentence. For example: "You found Aunt Jenny", or "I see Thomas."
Theresa B., Lake in the Hills, IL
- My 2 boys are older, they are teenagers now. In the summer when school is out, they both pick a book from the public library(so do I). About 10pm in the evening we all sit and read for 30 min(or longer if they wish). We then take turns updating each other about what we had read about. The boys resisted the idea at first, but now actually like it.
Barbara F., Kansas City, MO
- I read to my children as soon as they were born. Books such as Dr. Suess and other children's classics. My children became avid readers at a very young age. As soon as I could I got them a library card, and we visited the library often. They chose their own books and this empowered them as readers. They really blossomed as readers for life and became life-long learners.
Polly A., Spanaway, WA
- My husband, my 8 year old son and I are all keeping summer reading lists, and talking about the books we are reading. Right now I am reading a book for my book group, my husband is reading a Mark Twain novel, and my son is busy reading the Fudge series by Judy Blume. We have quiet reading time and also share some of the passages from the books. This is really fun to share, and we talk about how some lists will be shorter, since some books may be longer. Lots of fun and a great shared experience!
Sherri B., Hamden CT
- Most importantly, begin reading to your child as soon as he/she is born. I have two daughters, ages 3 and 6, who love to read. It is second nature to them. For summer break, we have planned to read a book every night. After completing ten books we will go for an ice cream treat!
April G., Troy, NY
- We have a night time ritual that includes reading lots of favorites before bedtime and after bathtime -- they look so forward to reading! It also makes it easy getting them into bed-some of our favs are Goodnight Moon, I Spy books, all Dr. Seuss books, and of course, nursery rhymes!
Kelly A., Paoli, IN
- When we read a story together about animals, we make sure we have a stuffed animal for the children to hold. We retell the story without a book and the children retell it, too. Holding the stuffed animal while retelling the story helps the children remember the story and it zeroes in on the learning styles of all.
Nancy H., Spring Hill, FL
- Children learn from example. If they see a parent reading a book or newspaper and then tell or read the child about the article, then the child will start to love to read, too!
Sharon N., West Grove, PA
- We read all kinds of books as a family. When the boys were younger and just learning to identify words, they would have one or two words to look for and read in each book (like a character name)... it kept them from getting bored. Now we alternate reading pages. It is a great way to spend time as a family.
PB S., Prairieville, LA
- This summer we will allow students to take reading adventures and activities at home with what I call "Lit in a Bag". Children sign out a canvas themed bag which would have up to 6 books, props, writing journal, and promp cards regarding the stories. Parents are encouraged to read to there children and allow the child to express what they liked about the story by either drawing or answering the questions from the card prompt. Parent and child also may do an activity that is themed from the story as well. This way we are emcompassing reading, reading comprehension, and language arts in a bag!
Edith E., Detroit, MI
- Have your children create a scrapbook based on the story they are reading. Collect items that remind them of the characters and/or events that are taking place. Label the items with explanations. In the end they will have a beautiful memory of the book they've read, as well as great comprehension of the story!
Nancy F., O'Fallon, IL
- I create my own stories about our family, our pets, or our adventures. I put the stories into book form and have my children, Armani and Nevante, draw pictures on each page. Each child then tells or reads the story in their own way.
Cynthia A., Blackstone, MA
- My first grader loves to read and play video games. Some days he would rather play than read. On those days our rule for the video game is this, "If he reads for 1/2 hour he gets 1/2 hour of video games, if he reads 10 minutes, he gets 10 minutes of video games." Now getting him to read is no longer a challenge. He gets to pick books that he enjoys to read and gets to play the games that he enjoys. A real win-win situation. Renee S., Batavia, OH
- Every time we go to the dollar store, I help my son pick out a book and then he can get a toy. Since he knows that is the rule, there is no hassle when we walk around the rest of the store.
From Millie R., St. Augustine, FL
- For every 15 minutes my kids watch TV or play video games, they have to read for the same amount of time.
Michelle C., Philadelphia, PA
- First of all, we read aloud every single day, whether it is a picture book, folktale or part of a chapter book. We have made that an essential part of every day. I keep a book journal, so my 8 year old son and I can look back and see what books we have read. Favorite readalouds: Trumpet of the Swan, Henry Huggins, James and the Giant Peach, presently the Wind and the Willows. We make it a special time to read if we have extra time in the morning before school, but always read before bed.
I always allow my son a say in the books that we read, and provide choices. We look for books online, in libraries, on bookstores and often will watch a movie of some sort after the book (if one is available). **For instance, after reading all of Arnold Lobel's Frog and Toad books, we then took out the videos, which are outstanding. Ditto for Morris the Moose, James and the Giant Peach, etc. Also, my husband and I have incorporated quiet reading time for our family, when we all read.
From Sharon C. , North Haven, CT
- Here's a great Read Aloud for Boys (or girls) in first grade: Indian in the Cupboard and the next 3 or 4 books that follow by Lynne Reid Banks. An excellent series about a boy and his plastic indian and a magical cupboard. My daughter loved it and I have given the first book as a gift and they have read the whole series and loved them all.
From Courtney V., Richmond, VA
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