Struggling to help your middle schooler read? These 5 teacher-tested tips will motivate reluctant readers and reignite their love for books
As a middle school teacher, we often hold parent teacher conferences to discuss how to help a student improve academically. However, the question that I get asked the most from all kinds of parents is how to get their child to pick up a book and read. It doesn’t matter if the child is doing well academically or if they are poor at English classes. Parents are trying to get their child to read. They struggle, but I see the concern in their eyes. Parents read about the low literacy scores, and worry about if their child is succeeding. I see your struggle, and as a parent, I worry too. The following are five things that I tell parents at those conferences when asked the question. They seem simplistic, but most parents are shocked that these simple solutions actually work. Give them a try.
Know your child’s numbers
Many parents I talk to have no clue what their child’s reading level is or how to find out the reading level on a book. You have to know these numbers to help your child. Your child is tested in reading quite a bit from kindergarten to 8th grade. Even high school teachers usually have some testing to show what level your child is at. So ask your teacher! I usually start my conferences off with mentioning where the reading level is. My school district (like many others across the U.S) uses the iReady system. It isn’t perfect, but it is a diagnostic to show where your child is currently on the reading levels.
The reason why you want to know what level your child is reading at is so that you can find appropriate books to read. The fact is that I was an advanced reader, and I stayed reading little kid books for far too long. My third grade teacher noticed that I was whipping through a book in a short period of time. She realized that I was reading below my actual level, and so she assigned harder books for me. Students progress in reading when given books that are at their level or slightly more difficult. Most parents believe that books are done by grade level. That is simply not true. I was a third grader reading at a fifth grade level. If I had continued reading at the third grade level for two more years my skills wouldn’t have increased. Now my cousin read below the grade level. When asked to read a novel, they often struggled and gave up when it was on their grade level and not their reading level. .
If your goal is to get your child to read, you have to meet them where they are at. You don’t assign Charles Dickens to a toddler. You may want your child to read more difficult books, but you have to start at their level and then increase it. Think of it like weight training. If you haven’t gone to the gym in a while, then lifting 40lbs is going to hurt, and you will give up the gym really quickly. However, if you start with the 3 lb weights and work up over several weeks, you can start lifting 40lbs. It just takes time and perseverance, which is the same for reading.
Once you know where your child is at, start investigating books that fit your child’s reading level. You can do this a couple of ways. If your teacher says that your child is reading at a 3rd grade reading level, then type into google “Books at a 3rd grade reading level”. Below is a picture to show you how google shows the result. These books are written at that reading level. The second way is to take some of the books your child is reading and type in the name into google and ask it the reading level. For example, you might type in “What is the reading level for captain underpants”. There are many sites that can help with this as well, but I find it easy to go to google and look at the first page of results to see the basic levels.
The AI Problem with Results
Now, one big caveat, ask your child to be honest with you. I have noticed that some students get so worried about their reading scores being sent home to parents that they have started using AI to cheat the test. Ask your child to tell you if they used AI for the vocabulary section. As a teacher, I can usually spot the student who uses AI because their score is not aligned with their abilities in class. I would also ask the teacher if they think that there was AI use with the test for your child. Oftentimes, your child’s teacher can’t penalize the child for the AI use, or even tell you if they don’t have concrete evidence. So ask them if they think your child’s reading score aligns with what the child can do in class. If your child has used AI to get a higher score, don’t get mad. Explain to your child that diagnostics aren’t tests meant to show how dumb/smart they are. The purpose is to see what they are missing and how to improve. Encourage your child to do the testing honestly. You will be helping your child and their teacher. As a parent, you might need to think about adjusting what level your child can really read at if there was AI use.
Reading Time
In a perfect world, I would have your child reading two hours a day. But I live in reality. Adults and children have a lot of things that they have to accomplish, so asking for time to set aside reading is hard. While it is ideal to have your child reading at least an hour a day, try and shoot for what you and your family can actually do. Look at the family schedule. If weekdays are super busy, then maybe try having kids read on Saturday morning. Kids used to watch Saturday morning cartoons, maybe switch that out for Saturday morning family reading. If your child has long drives to practices for soccer (and they don’t get motion sickness), have them read the book on the way to and from practice. Think about what your family does throughout the week and try to carve some time in. I struggled with getting my toddler to like reading. She is really active. I found that I couldn’t get her to sit with me and read until she ran around ragged and wanted a drink of water. The same principle applies here. Take a look at your child’s moods. Do they come home from school brain dead? If so, asking them to read right after school will make them hate it. So let them go outside and kick a ball around (doesn’t require the same mental load), and then have them read after dinner, but before their homework.
I would also point out that children see no value in reading if they don’t see parents do it. So try and carve out the same time. Maybe read an audiobook on the way to their practice, or sit down with them on a Saturday morning on the couch chewing on Cheerios and reading a novel you always wanted to read. If a kid sees you making the reading important, and that you are taking time for it, then they start to realize that it is a big deal. It is also a great opportunity for you to ask engaging questions about the book. This can be a great connection time for you and your child.
Reading Space
I see so many students struggle with having a space to read. So make your home reading friendly. The fact is, that most kids actually need a quiet space to read that is comfortable for them. Reading is a mental task that requires skill. When you have loud music or tv shows on, it makes it harder for a kid to concentrate. I had a group of three girls who used to stop by my classroom each lunch period to read. They quickly pulled out their books and didn’t say a word to one another until lunch was done. I would see them in the halls talking about the books. I asked them why they sat in silence, and each one pointed out that my classroom was the only real quiet space to read in. As an adult you may be more capable of multitasking your reading. But as a student who is still in the process of learning to read and learning to read efficiently, children need more opportunities to focus on the task. That means having a quieter space to do that.
To do this, try having quiet hours at your house. When the books come out, all the other electronic noise goes off. This will seem strange at first, but over time, it will help your child actually concentrate on the reading.
Along with the noise level, think about what would make your child comfortable reading. In my house, there are multiple chairs, bean bags, couches, carpet floors, hardwood floors, etc. I always read on my stomach, so I need a carpet floor or a couple of pillows for the floor. My brother loved to read in a bar stool chair, while my mother will only read in a recliner. Each child is different, so think about how you can make space that matches their personality. Ask your kid if there was any type of chair that they wanted for reading, what would it be. You might be surprised by the answer. Also, please make sure that the area is well lit. Kids need to see the novels that they are reading.
One last thought on a reading space for your kid, make it homey in a personalized way. I once came back from a hard day at school, and my mom had managed to pick up a new book from my favorite author. My mom knew it was going to be a hard day, but my day really sucked. When I walked in the door, my new book was in my favorite reading spot, with my favorite sweet tea next to it and a plate of oreo cookies. There was a blanket and a pillow in case I wanted to get cozy. It was one of the sweetest things my mom did for me. She made me feel special, and like she really knew me. As a teenager, that meant the world to me. Think how you can make the space special for your child. Is there a special blanket they like? Or a favorite snack, or a Funko POP character that you can put in the corner? Think about making it personal. Your kid will love you for it, even if they never say anything to you about it.
Figure out your Kid’s Interest
I see parents miss this all the time. If you kid loves sports, then please find them a book on sports. If they aren’t into novels, then get them a biography on their favorite sports star. There are tons of great books on sports heroes or inventors or scientists, or interesting people. If your kid loves drawing, there are a million books on the topic. Parents often try to go for the classics, or what kids should be reading. Your kid’s teacher can worry about that. You want to make your kid like reading. That means having them actually like the topic. So if they want to read about a dragon terrorizing a sheep farm and then having to make restitution to a town, let them read it! There are novels on every subject and there is a book out there for every kid.
My brother hated reading (you wouldn’t know that if you met him today). But he had a teacher who saw that he disliked the class books and didn’t want to read R.L Stine (what every kid was reading at the time). That teacher introduced my brother to the Boxcar Children. He loved it, and took off reading from that series. Once he liked reading, he didn’t really stop. When he got to middle school, he struggled to find a new series that he liked. The bookstore owner pointed out that my brother loved Star Wars, and that there are novels on Star Wars. Once again my brother was hooked. In fact, he came to love the science fiction genre because he started reading Star Wars in middle school. It didn’t matter that the books were adult level and difficult. He powered through them because he loved the character and wanted to be in that world. Do the same thing for your child. Figure out what interests them, and find the books that work within those interests. Don’t worry about it being weird interests. Don’t worry about what others will think. Just engage with your kid.
Expanding the Reading
So many parents object to reading graphic novels and manga. They think that reading mostly picture books won’t help their child. One one hand, they are right. It won’t help your child improve reading scores significantly. However, using graphic novels and manga can expand a students vocabulary if a well written manga/graphic novel is chosen, and it can get a kid interested in reading. For some students, manga/graphic novels are a gateway into actual novels.
What you may not realize is that most manga and graphic novels are written at middle school or lower high school reading levels. What may surprise you is that manga and graphic novels have a rich vocabulary. The author only has a small space for words, so each word has to mean something. Mangas and Graphic novels are a master class in word choice. The word choice can help with your child’s vocabulary. Since there is often a visual with the word choice, your child can make a fantastic connection with the vocabulary and the visual. For some students, they improve their vocabulary with manag/graphic novels.
Perhaps the most important way that a manga/graphic novel can help is in getting your kid interested in reading. This can happen in one of two ways. It can be with an expanded novel version of the same manga/graphic novel or it can be on the same topic of interest. For example, I am a huge fan of Fullmetal Alchemist, a graphic novel about two brothers trying to get their life back after a traumatic accident. I read all the manga, and then I discovered that the series had become so popular that there were five in-depth novels written as side stories to the manga. I read those as well. There are manga/graphic novels that also have novel versions of them or are connected with the characters. This doesn’t happen with all manga/graphic novels, but there are some out there. Take time to check to see if a manga/graphic novel your child loves has a novel variation or adaptation.
The second way that manga/graphic novels can help gateway your kid into reading is by providing a connection point. For example, I once had a student come in with tons of manga on vampires. So one day, I showed up to class with several high school novels on vampires. I made sure to point out that you had the opportunity to delve into the characters more with a chapter book. The kid was skeptical at first, but by the end of the school year, he was reading two books a week. I also taught the graphic novel of the famous story Tell-Tale Heart by Edgar Allen. After we read that in class, my students started reading some of Poe’s other great works, and I was able to recommend similar authors. Mangas and graphic novels may not be your preferred reading option, and I understand that. But used thoughtfully, those manga/graphic novels can help your student love reading.
Two things to Avoid
Cell Phone
Have the cell phone be out of reach and silent. A cell phone is designed to addict your child, and when that dopamine fix is nearby, they can’t concentrate on reading. Have the cell phone secured elsewhere if you want real dedicated reading time. I could go on and on about this topic, but just trust me that a book can not compete with the dopamine fix of a cell phone when your child is still learning to read and starting to like to read. If you want reading to work, you have to let the cell phone be out of sight and out of mind.
Your Favorite Novel
Don’t offer up your favorite novel to read as a child when you are just getting your child into reading. It doesn’t matter if you liked Harry Potter as a kid and want to introduce it to them. Kids want to be independent, and books age with each generation. I was the Harry Potter generation. I love the books deeply and unrepentantly. However, when I have reread them as an adult, I see them in a different light. Kids today are different and while Harry Potter is still a great series to read, your child may have a different sensibility. My suggestion is to let your kid like reading, and then buy them a copy of your favorite book. Don’t tell them you loved it, just give them a copy and ask them to try it. They might try it and love it, they might try it and hate it, or they might never pick it up. If they love it, you’re vindicated. If they hate it, then you might need to look at your favorite book with new eyes. If they never crack it open, you might need to rethink what your child’s interests are. The fact is that reading is personal. Don’t take it personally when your child doesn’t like your books, just help them find the books that they will truly love.
