Gifted Issues Discussion homepage Forums General Discussion Picky reader suggestions...5-year-old boy

Just want to throw out that reading to a 5 year old is still a valid thing to do even if they are reading well to themselves. In that way you can cover books they find daunting to read but would still enjoy. My son loved the first few Harry Potter books at this age, read by me.

All of my kids got to a point where they disliked reading out loud to me. The teachers always said the kids should do it, but at a certain point when they were already fluid readers (1st grade-ish???) they each started to hate reading out loud to me. So, against teachers' wishes, I stopped making them do it. I just let them read for fun, to themselves, and kept telling them about all kinds of fun books that they might want to try.

I also still read to them every night (even though they are 15, 12, and 10) from books that hold my interest and have good story lines and good vocabulary and aren't always books they would think to pick up themselves. And also, I am always on the look out for them to read to me spontaneously outloud from things other than "their" books.

Also wanted to note that both my boys love fiction every bit as much as my daughter (although I, myself, prefer non-fiction). But, obviously, the subject matter that generally interests boys can be quite different that what generally interests girls. Some books that might stir your DS's interest are the Dragon Slayer's Academy series, the Chet Gecko series, the How to Train your Dragon series, the Time Warp Trio series, the Hardy Boys, and The Bobbsey Twins series. For a meld of fiction and non-fiction there is the Magic School Bus Science Chapter Book series. And, there is nothing wrong wih level-appropriate picture books. Fun content for an early-elementary boy with a late-elementary reading ability.

Edited to Add: My younger DS, when he was about your DS's age, would only read chapter books that had exactly ten chapters. I think he liked that because he knew what to expect and he wouldn't get sucked into a "long, boring book" that felt like it would never end. He always knew there was an end in sight, just in case he didn't like it, so he was less afraid to try a new book. Although he would also only read books that come in a series, in case he DID actually like it and wanted to read more. OCD much?

BTW: Do you allow your DS to stay up an extra 30 minutes or so after bedtime if (and only if) he is reading to himself? I have seen that incentive be helpful in encouraging a reluctant reader.

Bedtime is reading time (read in bed and wind-down), so we read (whether it is "taking turns" or just me reading) until he's too tired to listen.

Just in case it might work for you, and only because you asked for suggestions (otherwise I know each family's bedtime is what works for them), we have found it to work if I read out loud for a certain amount of time (a chapter or three picture books, or whatever), but not so long that the kids are half asleep, and then we say goodnight to each other and each child is then in his or her own room in bed reading to themselves for a half hour or until they are tired. They still get the reading and bedtime routine from me, but then have the time to read on their own.

Of course, thinking back, I didn't really like to read for fun until my senior year in high school in AP English, and I turned out okay, so I wouldn't worry too much

Thanks, mnmom23...ah, your suggestions would all work great if this were my DD, but, alas, DS is my less-independent child (and this is personality, not just age).

With DD, she cares less if you are there, and you need to threaten her with dire consequences if she doesn't put the book down and go to sleep!

Each child presents their own unique challenges, I guess!

If he enjoys non-fiction, try those Nat Geo books for kids "Crazy animal facts" and the like. Both of my children took a while to warm up to novels.

I wouldn't fret too much about it given his age.
One thought (maybe someone else has posted it) is kid's magazines. Our DS (now 7) loves the National Geographic kids and the Boys Life magazines.