My Tweener Won’t Read! Help!

"My child just doesn't like to read!”  “I can't find a book that he likes."  “He used to love to read when he was younger and now he hates it.”  Sound familiar?

 As a fifth-grade teacher, this concern of getting reluctant readers to enjoy a book dominates nearly every parent conference.  Parents and teachers know that effective reading is essential to success in school and in life.  But the fact of the matter is this; a child is not going to read if he or she doesn't have to unless they are naturally great at reading.  But what about the rest of them?   How do we help our tweeners find books that will grab their attention long enough to tear them away from the tidal wave of immediate technological stimuli engulfing them?  

The first thing is to understand the limbo in which a child between the ages of 10 and 12, a.k.a.  a “tweener,” may find himself.  As you are well aware, this age group is teetering between childhood and teenage-hood.  This transition period interferes with all areas of their life, including things as seemingly basic as reading.  Kids in this age group tend to find themselves bored with the kid books that they can read with ease and are seeking more mature topics that engage their curiosity.

 However, their reading ability may not yet match their developing interests.  In teacher speak, their reading fluency, or the ability to read a text quickly, accurately, and with correct intonation and inflection, doesn’t match their maturity.  Reading fluency is what allows books to make sense to us.  When we can read fluently, we can visualize the story because we do not have to struggle over the words.  

“Huh?”  Put it this way, if a child can’t read a book fluently, it is like watching a box office movie on T.V.  Every time it is about to get good, a commercial comes and interferes with the action!  Imagine you are trying to read this article ... and... you... have ... to... sound ... ou t... ---e---ry...word.  What torture!  This is what our children struggle with when they are reading a book that is above their fluency level.  No fluency, no comprehension.  No comprehension, no interest!  Make sense now?  So the dilemma lies in finding a book that matches your child’s ability with his growing interest and maturity.  “But how?”

The Fluency Test Drive

1. Go SHOPPING!  Venture out to a bookstore, a library, or any place where books take commercial center stage.  Taking your child to a place where books are “cool” can help defeat their notion that reading isn’t cool.  
2. Have your child select a book that he or she is drawn to.  The cover illustration strikes them, the back of the book sounds interesting, a friend is reading the same book, or the display in the book store lured 'em in.  Whatever!  
3. Ask them to randomly open to the middle of the book and start reading aloud.  If your child can read it like he is talking to you, it passes the Test Drive.  It is at a fluency level that will not hinder his understanding.  

“But she wants to read the book her friend is reading …” If your child is determined to read the newest, coolest book and it does not pass the Test Drive, no worries.  Try reading that book with your child.  Read it aloud to each other, or read two copies of the same book silently side by side.  The key is talking about the book as it advances.  Talk about it as if it was a T.V. program you just watched or a movie you love.  It will take a commitment from you, but the time spent together, enjoying and talking about the nuances of the story is the best way to increase your child's ability to read and to develop yet another crucial bond with your child at this most critical stage of adolescent transition.

 What’s more, you can have meaningful conversations about the content in the book, which may help lead to some life-lessons that might not otherwise be brought up between you until too late.  Your child will see that you are committed to reading, too, and you acting as you preach is the most valuable lesson of all.     
 
Websites to visit for book suggestions and more hints to help reluctant readers:
http://www.squidoo.com/reluctantreaders
http://www.goodreads.com/shelf/show/tweener

Shelfari is another great website to help encourage your child to share what he or she is reading with friends, www.shelfari.com.  At this website, readers create an account where they can create a bookshelf of books they have read, read what other people have said about books, and blog with their friends about the books they like.  If you can get your child to share the site with his or her friends, they can visit each others’ shelves!  

About this column: Jennifer Luchesi Long, a fifth-grade teacher in the Placentia-Yorba Linda school district, tutors in the Newport-Mesa district enrollment area. Her passion is helping students who don’t necessarily fit the mold of traditional education become successful in traditional settings. She also writes the Academic Pentathlon Language Arts exams for the Orange County Department of Education. Jennifer was born and reared in Corona del Mar.