A large number of very capable young readers fly through school reading schemes and book bands, but as they get older something is lost and a love of reading never really develops. The question is – how does this happen and can we fix it?
A problem in some schools is the lack of suitable reading material and support once children become ‘free readers’; i.e. once they hit the top of the graded book bands within a school and are allowed to read anything they want. Becoming a ‘free reader’ is the target that many children strive for in their early years. Once this point is reached, it can be like dropping off a cliff edge.
From my own experience, the ‘free reader’ section of school lending libraries tends to receive the least amount of attention from teachers and librarians. There may be peer pressure to choose the thickest book with the most pages and the smallest print. In addition, teachers tend not to give as much attention to the ‘free readers’ of a class, especially if there are still less able readers to focus on.
All of this contributes to an increased possibility that children will choose inappropriate books, which might be too difficult to understand, or too long to maintain their interest. Comprehension and enjoyment is lost. Expression disappears and children end up reading like robots. Before long, reading has become a chore rather than a pleasure.
Becoming a fluent or free reader is a critical stage of development and more support and guidance needs to be given by teachers and parents at this time. It is important to give children access to a wide choice of good quality, age and ability appropriate books. Children will have developed their own reading preferences and this should be nurtured.
If children haven’t yet discovered a favourite author, series of books or style of writing, then additional guidance and suggestions are needed. If nothing is forthcoming from a class teacher or school librarian, then get recommendations from friends. Those with older siblings can be particularly helpful. You can also find some great reviews and ideas from websites such as the children’s books sections of mumsnet.com and theguardian.com/childrens-books-site.
A book club is a great way to encourage children’s reading – where a group of children all read the same book and meet to talk about it (either in person or in an online forum.) Children love to take ownership, so try to get them to organise their own after school or lunch time book club.
Another crucial part of keeping the love of reading alive is for parents not to stop reading stories out loud to children. This will give them access to books and authors that they might not necessarily have chosen themselves, as well as broadening vocabulary and increasing general knowledge.
Audio books are also a brilliant way to keep children’s interest in books going. Long car journeys are the best place for a captive audience! These can either be bought as CDs or downloaded from websites such as audible.co.uk.
If children’s motivation in reading has already dipped, it might be hard, but not impossible to get it going again. The easiest way is to inspire children when they are still early eager readers. This is the time when it is really important to give children a good choice of books and continuous encouragement and guidance. Hopefully, more children will then develop a love of reading for life, rather than thinking that learning to read is a ‘job done’ once they reach the acclaimed ‘free reader’ status.
By Liz Walker, Founder of Reading Chest
For more reading advice and to access a wide range of reading schemes visit ReadingChest.co.uk