Reading Is Getting in the Way of Other Good and Necessary Things

Updated on December 12, 2009
K.S. asks from Bedford, TX
4 answers

I am looking for some suggestions on how to handle the disciplining of my 8 year old son. As much as some people say "reading is a good habit to have" I am finding myself discouraged about his 'reading issue'. The problem is, he reads constantly which interferes with our daily lives. He needs to get ready for school in the morning, not read. He needs to go outside and play during after school care, not read. I find that all it seems we can do is to take away evening priviledges. I work at the after school care, so he and his sister are with me after school. We get home about 6:00 and they are ready for bed about 8:00. My husband reads with him every night for near 30 minutes. I don't know what to do, that time will allow, in order to help him keep his focus on what he needs to be doing. I took most of his books out of his room, to switch them out every once in awhile. He usually has a fresh stack of books from the library every 3 weeks. Any suggestions that might help our mornings and after school easier?

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A.G.

answers from Dallas on

Both of my boys are big readers too, and I'm an English teacher so I love it. However, I understand the need to do other things in life as well. My boys have to finish other things before they can read - brush teeth, put on jammies or get ready for school, do homework, etc. Also, if it's a pretty day, I'll just say that it's a day for playing outside, not reading, and that's that. No books that day. Once they get outside they end up having fun and forget about wanting to read. It's wonderful that your son wants to read so much, but you're right, life must go on. :-)

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A.I.

answers from Tucson on

If he wants to read in the mornings before school..maybe try waking him up 15 mins earlier to allow him to read for 15 mins...use reading as a privilege ..he can earn extra reading time if he does certain things he needs to do in a timely manner. Hth!!

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T.C.

answers from Dallas on

My oldest daughter was the same way. She earned minutes to read by getting the other stuff done. That way, she got her homework done, got dressed...etc... and got to read too. I made her "check out" her books from me. They lived on the bar in the kitchen or on a shelf in the living room, and she had to sign them in and out. It sounds extreme, but I was at my whits end.

:-)

T.

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A.L.

answers from Dallas on

While it is awesome that he is reading, I wonder if you have an opportunity here to help him with his choices. I mean that you can use this as a lesson of how important it is to have moderation in ALL things. You can explain that he wouldn't want to eat just cookies for his diet because it would make him unhealthy and it would be unbalanced. Same as for reading - it's a wonderful thing but too much of it isn't good for you either. In my mind I think "escapism" "social avoidance" and I'm sure there are more ways we can use something to excess that is otherwise good for us. In grade school I went to the library every day it was open in the summer and would check out more and more books. My home life was miserable, I had nothing to do, and it was so much more fun to "be in the book".
I don't think it's an illness - I think it was a great coping mechanism for me and helped me survive.
Best of luck, God Bless.

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