Encouragement

By --Deb on

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Suggested by Barbara H:

How can you encourage a non-reading child to read? What about a teen-ager? Would you require books to be read in the hopes that they would enjoy them once they got into them, or offer incentives, or just suggest interesting books? If you do offer incentives and suggestions and that doesn’t work, would you then require a certain amount of reading? At what point do you just accept that your child is a non-reader?

In the book Gifted Hands by brilliant surgeon Ben Carson, one of the things that turned his life around was his mother’s requirement that he and his brother read books and write book reports for her. That approach worked with him, but I have been afraid to try it. My children don’t need to “turn their lives around,” but they would gain so much from reading and I think they would enjoy it so much if they would just stop telling themselves, “I just don’t like to read.”

Don’t forget to leave a link to your actual response (so people don’t have to go searching for it) in the comments—or if you prefer, leave your answers in the comments themselves!

Posted in: Wordpress

65 responses

  1. Violet

    Here’s my answer

    Happy Thursday everyone!!!

  2. Jennifer G.

    Here’s mine!

  3. pussreboots

    I’ve posted my advice on how to get kids reading.

  4. pussreboots

    Here’s mine.

  5. crestina

    I’m at a loss so I…

    http://addlife21.blogspot.com/2010/02/let-them.html

  6. Booking through Thursday: Encouragement | Flight into Fantasy

    […] is this week’s question. How can you encourage a non-reading child to read? What about a teen-ager? Would you require books […]

  7. Kim

    Not a lot of advice–just observations from raising my 4 kiddos!
    http://pageafterpage-kim.blogspot.com/2010/02/btt-life-long-readers.html

    *smiles*

  8. Mark A. Swallow

    It’s all about the imagination!

    http://mswallow.typepad.com/the_swallows_nest/2010/02/bookin.html

  9. IceJewel

    Heres mine

    http://icejewel.blogspot.com/2010/02/booking-through-thursday-2.html

    happy reading 🙂

  10. Melody

    Here’s mine.

    Happy BTT!

  11. iwriteinbooks

    Here’s my sincere hope…

    BTT: Early and Often

  12. Jo

    Interesting Question. I think I rambled a bit though! Its here

  13. vampira2468

    mine 🙂

    http://vampira2468.wordpress.com/2010/02/11/reading-for-the-non-reader/

  14. The Literary Omnivore

    I don’t think there’s such a thing as a nonreader! Here’s why.

  15. Michelle

    I might not have the world’s greatest advice, but here’s my opinion on the subject! http://www.michellesmastermusings.com/2010/02/booking-through-thursday-encouragement.html

  16. Phyllis

    I have an opinion too! http://windyridgebooks.wordpress.com/2010/02/11/booking-through-thursday-encouragement/

  17. Michelle

    Good question! Here’s mine:

    http://literarilyspeaking1.blogspot.com/2010/02/booking-through-thursday-encouragement.html

  18. Michael

    Interesting question. I’ve posted by reply.

    Booking Through Wednesday–Encouraging Reading

  19. Jim

    http://www.teacherninjas.com/2010/02/growing-readers.html

    These tips do get them reading more, no question about it.

    Thanks,
    Jim

  20. Jennifer

    My answer: http://www.rundpinne.com/2010/02/booking-through-thursday-encouraging.html

  21. bookeywookey

    Ah, if only everyone were just like us!
    http://bookeywookey.blogspot.com/2010/02/peddling-our-vice-to-minors.html

  22. Marie

    Here’s mine! http://www.bostonbibliophile.com/2010/02/booking-through-thursday-encouragement.html

  23. Lori @ Escape Between The Pages

    LOL. Good question. Mine

  24. Louise

    Well, I’m lucky in that my two (ages 5 and 3) often just go into a corner with a book. They also go to bed with books to look at. I guess what worked for us was to start them VERY young cuddling up and reading together – and I mean while they were still at the breast – I actually mean from the moment they could sit on my lap and focus on the bright pictures. Our house is full of books, and there are childrens’ books in every room. Like this they are part of our lives and so it’s natural that the kids look at them. We also have NO TV and intend to be a no computer-game zone when the time comes. It’s a good foundation, but we’ll see what happens when they get older. ..

  25. mizb17

    My answer is more geared towards kids as non-readers, ’cause it’s what I know, but I tried to answer about adult non-readers, too!

    http://shouldbereading.wordpress.com/2010/02/11/btt-encouraging/

    ~MizB

  26. Barbara H.

    Thanks for using my question. 🙂

    I guess I should have clarified that we read a LOT as the kids were growing up — regular trips to the library, reading every night at bedtime and multiple times through the day. But somehow as they got to older elementary age and above, two didn’t continue on their own, one did. That’s beyond the age of a sticker on a chart kind of reward system, but any encouragement to read or suggestions are met with remarks like, “I’m just not a reading kind of guy.” So I guess what I am asking is, do you just accept that, or keep encouraging, or require them to read as Ben Carson’s mom did in hopes that they’ll enjoy it once they get back in the habit.

  27. Ceri

    Mine’s here 🙂

    http://notinthepink.blogspot.com/2010/02/btt-encouragement.html

    Great question this week.

  28. Cheryl Mash

    Great question…my answer is here

  29. Alayne

    I don’t have any children of my own yet, but if I did, and they didn’t like reading on their own, and refused to be coerced by my affection for all things bookish, I woudn’t force it on them. I think they would naturally develop an interest if they had it in them (which hopefully they do!) and I think, as I’ve heard from other parents, kids develop a interest from seeing others read. My boss’s 8 year old daughter is working her way through Harry Potter because she’s seen the first couple of movies and that’s how she became interested in reading. I have no doubt she’ll move on to other novels after she finishes HP.

    I posted a Valentines related question at The Crowded Leaf that I’d love to hear from people about!

  30. JLS Hall (Joy's Blog)

    Quite a question today! Here’s my answer:

    http://jlshall.blogspot.com/2010/02/booking-through-thursday-encouragement.html

  31. Molly

    GREAT question (although I think my answer got a little bit carried away)….
    Mine’s Here

  32. Amused

    What a great question! http://amusedbybooks.blogspot.com/2010/02/encouragement.html

  33. freda mans

    Too good a question. Is there a RIGHT answer?

    http://fredasvoice.blogspot.com/2010/02/booking-through-thursday-encouragement.html

  34. Ambrosia Jefferson

    Fire & Ice Booking Through Thursday

  35. Tweezle

    Great question!! I had to deal with this with my oldest.
    Here’s my response.

  36. LadyViolet

    OK although I don’t have kids (being 19 and all) I have used my sister as an example of a former non-reader and rambled away happily on that front.

    Here is my post

  37. Alison

    My brothers were not readers, until they were. Sometimes it’s just luck (or a really awesome book)!

  38. Barbara H.

    I didn’t post at first since I had the question and not the answers, but then decided to post after all:

    http://barbarah.wordpress.com/2010/02/11/booking-through-thursday-encouragement/

  39. Rachelle

    I love this question! Here’s my answer:
    http://www.bibliobabe.com/

  40. gentle reader

    It’s a big issue at our house, too:

    http://tiny.cc/9SkrW

  41. Bluestocking from The Bluestocking Guide

    Here is mine

  42. mervih

    Please, don’t make reading a chore.

    Encouragement

  43. fantasylover12001

    First time poster for this site. Here’s my response:
    http://fangirlsview.blogspot.com/2010/02/booking-through-thursday-post.html

  44. Jenny

    GREAT question. Here’s my answer.

    http://booksjustbooks.blogspot.com/2010/02/booking-through-thursday.html

  45. Encouraging Your Children to Read - Ms. Bookish

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  46. Belle

    Wonderful question! I’ve just posted my answer: Encouraging Your Children to Read.

  47. Becca

    Here’s mine:

    Booking Through Thursday -Encouragement

  48. Becky

    This is a wonderful question – I don’t have children yet but I do feel strongly about this.

    Here is my response
    http://pageturnersbooks.blogspot.com/2010/02/booking-through-thursdays-encouragement.html

  49. Rose City Reader

    Here’s mine: http://www.rosecityreader.com/2010/02/bribery.html

  50. Sara Harricharan

    And here’s mine! ^_^

    http://fictionfusion.blogspot.com/2010/02/non-readers-bbt.html

  51. Vasilly

    Here’s my response:

    Booking Through Thursday: Encouragment

    This is a great topic!

  52. Kris P

    my reply can be found here: http://intetextualchronicles.blogspot.com/2010/02/booking-through-thursday-encouragement.html

  53. Melanie

    http://www.cynicaloptimism.net/2010/02/btt-for-211.html

  54. Suey

    Here’s some ideas I had.

  55. aseeofgreen

    How timely. I have been thinking about this a lot lately with my own child. My response is here: http://wp.me/pAjhm-9L

  56. Booking Through Thursday – Encouragement | utter randomonium

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  57. pinaymama

    mine is up!

    http://thefishgate.blogspot.com/2010/02/winter-reading.html

  58. melydia

    http://melydia.zoiks.org/2010/02/booking-through-thursday-encouragement/

  59. Matthew

    My belated response is up. 🙂

  60. Jessie

    Here’s my answer, http://wolcslibrary.blogspot.com/2010/02/btt-encouragement.html

  61. Jessie

    http://wolcslibrary.blogspot.com/2010/02/btt-encouragement.html

  62. Marilyn

    Here’s mine. Better late than never.

    http://thestairlanding.blogspot.com/2010/02/booking-thru-thursday-encouragement.html

  63. Encouragement « uniquely priya

    […] by priyaiyer in Uncategorized. Leave a Comment A recent question over at Booking Through Thursday caught my attention. It is something rather close to my heart, and something I have been pondering […]

  64. the mad momma

    I’ve often wondered how much pressure is too much pressure. I’ve realised that no matter how much you encourage a child to read, he or she will only read if they truly love it. If they happen to be sporty, we’ve got to accept it with good grace and give up the book dream, knowing always that we gave them the choice and they picked what they wanted.

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