Eclectic Parent

D is a reluctant reader. A very reluctant reader. He read late, reads slowly and never, ever wants to do it. His comprehension is years beyond his ability to read so he listens to audiobooks. When he takes in the written word. He’d much rather see the movie version.

I don’t like deadlines for anything: every child should walk by 12 months, talk by 2 or read by 6. Everyone is different and I think it is very detrimental to tell kids they are behind or push them to read before they are ready. It would be like getting after your 12 month old to walk because everyone else is doing it; if they aren’t ready, the just aren’t. So we’ve waited with the reading. I’ve heard tales of children deciding they were stupid because they weren’t able to read when they were “supposed” to or falling out of love with reading because of timed deadlines.

But waiting and being patient has been hard. Very hard. I’m a reader. I read cereal boxes and stop signs, I read forms and ads, I read. I read young and I read quickly. I am getting pickier about what I read only because, with children, I no longer have the ability to read 4 - 5 books a week. When grumpy I am sent by my husband to a library or bookstore and told not to come home until I’ve spent a few hours reading. So to have a child not love books has been a struggle.

It isn’t that he can’t read at all. But he really hadn’t advanced much since he was 6. And sometimes I feel like he never will if he doesn’t practice. What he wants is Lord of the Rings but what he’s been able to read is Frog and Toad are Friends. And honestly last time I really demanded he read he was still struggling a bit with that. Today I picked up Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone (he’s on his second listen through the entire series) and handed it to him just to see how he’d do.  And he read. He’s still slow and would rather listen to it on cd (have you heard Jim Dale? I can’t blame him.) but he can read it. I’m hoping Harry Potter is exciting enough to convince him to read.