Making Reading the Norm

Making reading the norm can be far easier said than done and dependent on many factors.

Firstly, there is a child’s attention span, behavioural patterns, concentration levels, and whether they are of the mindset to stop, sit and focus on one thing, never mind seeing it through from beginning to end.

Then, there can be unavoidable factors that influence a child’s behaviour. They can be officially diagnosed or simply that a child has no interest in reading. A visit to a book shop can result in tantrums if reluctant readers are faced with shelf after shelf of what they see as uninteresting content.

With some children, it is possible to move on from this mindset.

They say it only takes twenty-one days to create a habit… a piece of information that parents can use to their advantage. It is possible to bring the world of books to children without entering a books shop or opening a book… although, the aim, of course, is to instil a love and a desire to open every book they can find. We can hope, and we can work towards this.

The Library

This is where our libraries come in to play. Yes, they are an Aladdin’s cave of books. Yes, there are far more books in a library than there are in a book shop but there are also ‘kid’s areas’.

Many libraries nowadays have play areas, toys, and friendly staff who welcome people in with open arms. In Scotland, many have free tea and coffee for the accompanying adults, meaning you would just have to remember a juice for the little ones.

But spending an hour in the play area of a library can give an exhausted parent a bit of a switch off while a child becomes accustomed to being in a setting where they are surrounded by books without the pressure of having to look at them. Remember, Rome wasn’t built in a day, and numerous visits will be needed, but a weekly visit to the library can, eventually, see positive results.

As other children are seen visiting the library, looking at books, borrowing books and taking them home, slowly but surely, a reluctant reader’s attention can be turned. They will see what others are doing, and this is when we want to gently encourage them to join in with their peers.

While a reluctant reader’s attention is taken with something else, their accompanying adult could be opening books relevant to their child’s reading age, hoping to grab their attention. A comment about a character, scene, setting, or anything that might result in a flicker of interest and cause the child to turn their attention to the book. Do not jump right in at this point and start reading; just have a chat for as long as the child shows interest. You want to make out that them turning their attention to the book is NO big deal, you don’t want to scare them off.

Call to Action

This week, decide that this is the week to start creating this new habit and aim to progress from here. If, after several visits, you reach the point where a child will sit and let you read to them. Embrace it, but don’t push it. Just read the book, put it away and hope for a repeat the following week. You want to build up to eventually borrowing maybe one book, then two. It will be a slow process, determined by the amounts of visit and how successful you are in turning their attention. But remember, you don’t have to rush at this. There is time. The main thing is to persevere. Find a regular routine that works for you and commit.

Thank you for reading this week’s episode of Reluctant Readers.

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