Books and me have a long history. We’ve been with each other for as long as I can remember.
Like a kid in a candy store, I still can’t walk past the bookstore without sneaking in to buy a new copy.
The smell when you open a new book. The feel of the page slowly opening up to reveal the treasures within. Pure magic.
My secret wish is to have a bookstore like the ‘Shop Around The Corner’ (you know, that bookstore owned by Meg Ryan in ‘You’ve Got Mail’)
But my experience in the classrooms has taught me that getting kids to read these days is like convincing a cat to take a bath!
Without, as yet, resorting to sorcery, you can turn the little screen addicts into book readers (that’s Stage 1) and finally book lovers (ultimate goal).
1. Take Them to Bookstores, Libraries, or Book Fairs.
The stacks and stacks of colourful books will work their charm, all begging to be picked up and explored. The colourful and enticing illustrations and layouts tempt even the most reluctant reader.
Go through a few books together so they can see for themselves the wide variety for them to choose from.
That’s how curiosity takes the bait. And once curiosity is involved, you’ve won half the battle!
2. Let Them Pick the Book
Let them decide what they want to read. Whether it’s about dinosaurs or cars or rockets or some comic book with weird looking superhero cats.
The key is getting them to choose. If you pick it for them, they’ll likely ignore them like all the other well-meaning instructions of yours.
Yup, like the time I would pick up Enid Blytons for them and they wanted only Thea Stiltons. I gave up and read the Enid Blytons myself!
The most interesting book suddenly transforms into the most boring book on the planet.
Let them choose.
3. Act It Out!
Whether lazing on a Sunday afternoon or reading at bedtime, make it dramatic!
Attend book reading or storytelling sessions at bookstores. They’ll enjoy the experience in the company of other children.
Or if reading at home, change the voices with each character, add effects by altering the pace. You know, like reading softly to build up the suspense or clapping your hands in excitement.
Get creative with accents. Up the game with accessories like a pirate’s eye-patch or a crown (if the book has such characters) or even a blanket-cape for the superhero.
Embarrassing? Maybe. Effective? Absolutely. It’s your secret weapon.
4. Read with Rhythm
If you think acting out was fun, watch how they enjoy rhyme.
Introduce different genres including poetry. Shakespeare and Keats can wait. Begin with Dr. Seuss or Shel Silverstein. Or maybe even look around for other books with some funny rhymes.
The sillier, the better.
If it gets them to giggle and laugh, they’re hooked!
5. Turn Books into Games
Infuse some action by asking them to come up with their own endings. “What do you suppose happens next?” ask them mid story.
This gives a push to their creativity, gets them involved. “Do you think the puppy is the thief?”
It keeps them hooked to the story. Even if you stop reading, they’ll want to read it on their own to know the end.
6. Make Reading a Cosy Ritual
The brave knight needs a fort to conquer. Create a fort with bedsheets and pillows and lamp for more immersive experience, without spending hundreds for that 4-D experience.
Or if wrapped up in cosy blankets, fairy lights and bedtime snuggles sounds better, then go with it.
The objective is for children to associate reading with something cosy and inviting.
7. Bring Books to Life
Bring the experiences from the book to life. Go for a picnic, like in the book.
Prepare that sandwich like they did (Ok, maybe not if the ingredients included worms and eyeballs or the gooey slime!)
Show them the ‘starry skies’. May not be possible in this smog and lit-up cityscapes, but you can take them to a planetarium.
In short, bring the words into their world so they feel connected.
Conclusion
See, you didn’t have to resort to spells or charms to get them interested in some enjoyable reading time.
Some bribery maybe, like that double scope of chocolate ice cream with lots of sprinkles like the one in the book, but that’s a small price to pay.
What’s happening is you’re investing long term into converting your little pirate or knight into a lifelong learner, one accent at a time.
I’m partial to the physical books though audiobooks are also a fun alternative to explore. Try it out and see if your child enjoys that.
So the next time you’re out, take your young adventurer along and drop in at a bookstore. They may surprise you by picking up a few books!
Hope to bump into you at the next bookstore!
