How to Raise Boys That Read-

I don't think it's a matter of boys not wanting to read Hardy Boys anymore- I think parents don't read, so kids don't read. Then to 'bribe' kids into reading, they cater to their baser desires, since that is what they themselves have done with their entertainment choices.

Kids also will follow the path of least resistance. As the author recommends, if electronic media is severely limited, kids will choose to occupy themselves with what is readily available, so parents either need to have a decent library in their homes, or make frequent trips to the library.

There are websites that can help parents figure out what books to choose for their kids- I've been checking out the reviews at Common Sense Media- even when they recommend a book, the review includes information about what parents might find objectionable.

Here's part of a review of The Adventures of Captain Underpants:

While I don't agree with the last sentence, the first part tells me all I need to know.

Focus on the Family has some book reviews for parents that include many current popular titles, such as the books in The Hunger Games trilogy, the Uglies trilogy, the Percy Jackson series...

With resources like these, there is no excuse for parents not to be able to educate themselves and steer their kids toward decent reading material.

The Book Whisperer blog has had some good posts on this topic- one that came to mind was Parents: Reading Role Models or Victims of Readicide?

But even if parents are readers, schools can actually hinder the process-

At least some schools and teachers are acknowledging that testing focused methods are not really productive in the long run.

The author of the blog, Donalyn Miller, is a teacher who uses more of a 'delight-directed' approach in her classroom to inspire kids to read- but she doesn't go overboard with an 'it doesn't matter what they read as long as they are reading' attitude. I think her posts and her book (titled The Book Whisperer: Awakening the Inner Reader in Every Child) are helpful not just to teachers but to parents as well. I especially recommend her to homeschoolers, and she links to many resources that are helpful.

It has taken completely different approaches to inspire my kids to read. With Seth, all I had to do was tell him that he could stay up at night as late as he wanted as long as he was reading. Noah, however, was a very reluctant reader. I hooked him by a rather convoluted process- first, I checked out old radio shows on cassette and CD from the library- he loved The Shadow, Dragnet, The Lone Ranger and Fibber McGee and Molly. Then I slid in some audiobooks, like the Pendragon series, and from there it was easy. He had to understand for himself that reading really was enjoyable.

Emma Jo never had to be convinced to read, thankfully. And I really needed the break, because now I have another boy that needs convincing that reading is fun. Kenny has no interest in audiobooks, but loves listening to me read, especially if I do voices for the characters. We are reading Dracula together right now (and discussing the current vampire craze)- so just picture the girl with the hillbilly twang doing convincing British and Romanian accents. Yes, it's hilarious.

My parents didn't come across to me as readers (even though I know my dad read alot), but they taught my brother and I to read at a young age, they disposed of the television, there was no such thing as a video game, and a trip to the library was like Christmas where the gifts were free.