I am often asked by despairing parents how can I motivate my child to read? There are a variety of answers to this conundrum, but my first thought is to

remember every child blooms at different times. As I raise my one-and-half-year-old son, I have often been caught in the mom conversations of when will my child start crawling, walking, or sleeping through the night? In some ways, it’s similar to a reader who isn’t hooked on books yet, the answer is every child is a bit different. It’s our job as the parent to be patient but to also provide them the support to get there. Here are 5 ideas to get your reader up and running on book reading.

Are there books around the house for your child to access? Check to see if these books are of high quality and what would be interesting to your up-and-coming teen. Stock them in the kitchen, bathroom, hallway, and living room. Create a cozy reading space just for reading somewhere in your home. The idea is to make books accessible and reading enticing. 

Notice what interests your child. Do they like Netflix teen dramas? Maybe research and find an appropriate book that has a film in the making and read it together. Later make a movie party out of it and talk about the differences between the novel and movie. Maybe they love history. Plan some of your vacations around what they are studying in their books. Carthage and the Romans? Maybe take a holiday to Tunisia to visit the ancient city in person. 

Give them a small budget every month for new books. Let them shop for books that look intriguing. Grow the budget as they’ve shown commitment and follow through with their purchased books. Consider gifting them an e-reader, if you think that would help. Maybe buy second-hand or something basic. As they show themselves committed, reward them with a more sophisticated e-reader or cover. 

Foster a love for a book series or an interest in an author. If a flame of interest begins with a book, it’s a huge bonus if there are books that follow it in a series. It can boost their commitment to keep reading since they’re already sold on the first book. Or, learn about an author, read their books, and perhaps visit the author at a meet-in-greet over the summer. Authors often list their committed speaking engagements on their websites. A child who meets an author builds a personal connection to the author’s books and often that memory will stay with them, in a powerfully nostalgic way, as part of their reader identity. 

Evaluate how much you read in front of your child. Do you model the passion you hope to instill in them? How often do you visit the library to check out books? Set time aside as a family to read. Even just for 20-30 minutes every day. Even if your teen sits bored and silent the first few times. Eventually, with a little luck, you might just see them poking through that stack of books you tucked under the coffee table.

Remember every child develops at their own pace and consistency is key in motivating them to read. Try out one or two strategies from the list and observe how your child responds. Send me an email if anything wonderful happens. I'd love to hear about it. You may find yourself not surprised by how your child came around to love books, but instead, you may be scratching your head wondering how you’ll ever be able to afford such a hobby.

By Alyssa Minaker, 8th grade English teacher