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Posted: Mon Apr 30, 2007 12:17 am
| Quote: |
| From The Times
August 8, 2005 The fickle magic of words Instilling a love of reading in your child can be tricky Julian Gibbs Ten years as an English teacher have only increased my keenness for my children to become readers, because I know it will help them to learn to use language more expertly. I am hardly the only parent thus preoccupied, although not driven quite to the extremes of one mother I know, who bribes her children 1p a page. Are we right to care so much? The fact is we all need stories to help us make sense of our lives. However, children are only too keen to get those stories from television. It’s not that the imaginative fare provided by TV and video is always inadequate, but children's books are part of a literary tradition that takes its moral purpose seriously — children’s TV, by contrast, sees itself chiefly as entertainment. And, arguably, literary fiction is better for developing empathy: when we read we experience, more directly than through any other art form, the inner thoughts and feelings of another person. But my eagerness to see my children reading stems chiefly from a deep desire that they should share my culture. I want them to love the books I loved as a child and, when they are grown-ups, the books I love now. And if they don’t love those books they can love other books. However, my success in breeding bookworm children has, so far, been uneven. My oldest, who is 17, began resisting my literary influence aged 8, when she developed a passion for Elinor M. Brent Dyer’s extraordinarily badly written Chalet School series. She read her way determinedly through all 62 books, saving her pocket money for weeks when I wouldn’t buy the stories the library didn’t have. She still rejects most of the books I tell her she should try. But I have a great consolation — George Orwell is her favourite author. Our 15-year-old son doesn’t read at all — not fiction at any rate. As a child he too ducked my attempts to foist The Secret Garden upon him, returning from the library with books about pirates or ancient coins instead. Nowadays he reads about music. I still plot ways of inveigling him into literature and using his interest in black music recently dropped a couple of African novels in his way. Purple Hibiscus by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie, last year’ s Orange Prize runner-up, was a surprise hit. My efforts were frustrated in a new way with child No 3. She took ages to learn to read at all and it transpired that she was dyslexic. But she would listen to stories for hours on tape. I resigned myself to the idea that this was how she would take her literature — why, anyway, did I want her to read instead? But last week, aged 12, she suddenly picked up a book. Now she is reading at the table, on the trampoline, in the bath. By the time child No 4 came along, I had given up even imagining that my children would develop reading passions mirroring mine. I abandoned my beloved favourites and chose new and exciting works to read aloud this time — Philip Reeve’s wonderful trilogy about cities on wheels, for example. What makes a child into a reader? Gill James, a children’s librarian in a small London library, says an early start is what really counts. “The Jesuits were right,” she says, “except that the real work is done before a child reaches 7, it’s more like 5 or even younger. The children I’ve seen grow up as readers were usually the ones whose mothers brought them in as babies and toddlers and spent time over books with them.” But parental input is effective for older children too; Jacqueline Wilson, the newly crowned Children’s Laureate, emphasised recently the huge importance of reading aloud to your children for as long as they will put up with it. The bookworm children that I know were read to until the ages of at least 10 or 11. Some were even read to as teenagers. But if your 11-year-old rejects the idea that you resuscitate a custom he associates with toddler-hood, try audio books. These work well on any long journey, thanks to the Walkman. As well as being involved, parents must be able to stand back. Children must choose their own reading, even if what they choose is rubbish. Magazines, comics and teen romances build reading stamina and give confidence. Wendy Cooling, children’s anthologist and reading expert, stresses the necessity of allowing children to relax into reading. This is especially true of adolescents. “They are under so much pressure nowadays at home and at school . . . We have to celebrate all their reading even if we have to take a deep breath and say, ‘We hope they’ll move on soon’.” Sometimes, of course, children don’t want to move on. They choose books written for younger children or endlessly re-read a handful of favourites. But try not to scream. They may need help moving on — libraries and bookshops can be overwhelming places, but you can help with books about their interests. When another friend’s 12-year-old stopped reading completely at the start of secondary school, she bought him a set of war stories. The strategy succeeded. Asked what his favourite subject for books is, he says, with relish: “Violence.” But what if parents don’t know what to choose for their children? John Appleton, children’s editor at Orion, publisher of the hugely appealing Horrid Henry books, has a few guidelines: “Strong characters and strong plots are important at every age. For newly independent readers chapters and sentences should be short and easy. Illustrations are helpful too.” Nancy Traversy, founder of the marvellously illustrated Barefoot Books, agrees: “We believe ardently in the importance of colour and design, for older children as well as young ones. Children are often put off by long stretches of print — they need pictures to support the text and awaken the imagination.” This is, oddly enough, as true of factual reading matter as it is of stories. John Appleton explains: “Non-fiction in short chunks interspersed by pictures is especially appealing to older boys.” One last tip for breeding bookworms is to keep space clear in your child’s life for books. In my experience, children who read are generally given only restricted access to TVs, computers and games consoles. In households with adolescents, screen rationing becomes difficult, but if just one slot — usually bedtime — is kept for books, the reading habit has a chance of taking root. For children used to TVs in their bedrooms, offer them audio books at bedtime. If they tie in with current films, such as Roald Dahl’s Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, so much the better. As children grow in confidence they read at different times of the day. Today all my daughters lay tranquilly in different parts of the garden with their noses in books. I used to long for the peace that would bring. As so often with parenting, perhaps I’ve just been in too much of a hurry. |
Posted: Mon Apr 30, 2007 6:45 am
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Posted: Mon Apr 30, 2007 7:46 am
We did, however, make suggestions on the occasions when one or other
came and said they didn't know what to read next. Which is probably how
they both came to read the CS, and I can't deny that I'm glad that they
enjoyed, and still enjoy, it.
It was lovely to be able to talk about the books and characters to
someone after years of solitary appreciation. No CBB then! 
Posted: Mon Apr 30, 2007 8:41 am| Quote: |
| Our 15-year-old son doesn’t read at all — not fiction at any rate. As a child he too ducked my attempts to foist The Secret Garden upon him, returning from the library with books about pirates or ancient coins instead. |
Posted: Mon Apr 30, 2007 9:22 amPosted: Mon Apr 30, 2007 10:08 amPosted: Mon Apr 30, 2007 10:13 amPosted: Mon Apr 30, 2007 10:35 amPosted: Mon Apr 30, 2007 12:58 pmPosted: Mon Apr 30, 2007 1:03 pm| Ruth B wrote: |
|
My parents never banned books, just television programmes. We were never allowed to watch Grange Hill |
Posted: Mon Apr 30, 2007 2:43 pmPosted: Mon Apr 30, 2007 2:47 pm| Loryat wrote: |
| Why on earth would you give a boy who didn't like reading The Secret Garden? Bit of a girly book for the reluctant reader IMO. |
Posted: Mon Apr 30, 2007 5:02 pm| Lottie wrote: |
| Banning a book or an author is the surest way to make absolutely sure that they move heaven and earth to get hold of it. |
Posted: Mon Apr 30, 2007 6:56 pmPosted: Tue May 01, 2007 12:15 amPosted: Tue May 01, 2007 6:39 pmPosted: Wed May 02, 2007 8:16 pmPosted: Thu May 03, 2007 7:16 am| Clare wrote: |
| Does it matter if a book ticks all the boxes for style? I would argue that the enjoyment that a person gets out of a book is far more important than it's writing. Obviously it helps if it is well written, but if it is understandable and it gives you pleasure, where's the harm? |
Posted: Thu May 03, 2007 8:02 am| Tiffany wrote: | ||
It matters to different degrees for different people, doesn't it? Of course enjoyment is important, but my enjoyment of EBD is marred by style sometimes. I didn't like the only Dan Brown I read at all, because I thought it badly written. However much I like the plot and characters of a book, I will notice, and be bothered by, the errors, because that's how I read. |
Posted: Thu May 03, 2007 10:32 amPosted: Thu May 03, 2007 4:56 pmPosted: Fri May 04, 2007 11:46 am| Quote: |
| I think if you want your kids to read you have to be prepared to edit their reading as you would videos. Especially with the wave of True Experience books now on the market - had difficult scene in bookshop recently with daughter's friend as I struggled to explain why Daddy's Girl was not something I was happy for her to buy without her mum's approval (it's a true-life account of coping with parental sexual abuse). Wanted to go and have row with Waterstones staff about why it was in children's section, but couldn't. |
Posted: Fri May 04, 2007 5:04 pm| Loryat wrote: |
|
I am surprised that Roald Dahl was frowned upon - I always thought he was a critics darling. And I think he does write well - though his moral judgements are a bit suspect sometimes IMO. |
Posted: Fri May 11, 2007 2:56 am
Posted: Tue May 15, 2007 9:40 pm| Lisa_T wrote: |
| ...I don't think EJO is too good either, but that's a personal opinion. |
Secrets, Stowaways etc are appalling and nowhere near as readable as the first two or three. /slightly OT
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