When children are swamped with school requirements like school reading lists, it can be hard to keep the habit of pleasure reading alive. Or, quite the opposite, it can be hard for your child to focus on studying when all they want to do is go on adventures with their favourite fictional characters.
If you notice your child struggling to keep the balance between studying for school and reading for pleasure, here are a few things you can do to help them:
Time Their Reading and Studying Sessions
Help your child set a schedule for themselves by setting times for studying and reading. That way, going back to pleasure reading can feel like a reward for studying. This builds excitement for reading but also motivates them to study as well as possible.
You can even turn it into a family activity! Set up a reading hour where you sit down and read together.
Help Them Create a To-Be-Read List
Sometimes your child will struggle with busy periods of time in school and pleasure reading might take a bit of a backseat.
That’s where creating a to-be-read list comes in handy. That way, your child can still keep in touch with their hobby, and have something to look forward to when they have free time!
Help Them Find a Study/Reading Buddy!
Body doubling is a great way to help your child be productive while also having fun. It is considered to be especially helpful for children with ADHD, but any child can benefit from having a study or reading buddy.
This way, they can study or read their favourite books while also building connections over their common interests.
Avoid Making Reading Feel Like a Chore
The most important thing of all is making sure your child enjoys what they are doing. While reading for pleasure is very important, don’t make your child feel like they must do it at all times, or that they have a quota to fill. It can lead to burnout and cause them to abandon reading altogether.
Even if you help your child set up a reading schedule, let them read at their own pace and don’t force them to continue if they don’t want to. After all, even reading a little is better than not at all.
Don’t Underestimate the Power of Audiobooks
If reading for school leaves your child burnt out of reading anything else, we have good news. They can still engage with their favourite books by listening to audiobooks.
Audiobooks provide the same experience of immersing oneself in a fictional world but in a new format. This can help your child stay in touch with their hobby even if the physical act of reading feels too difficult for them.
Reading for pleasure is an important activity for students and needs to be kept alive to build a long-term habit. It fosters a sense of curiosity but also nurtures skills such as tolerance, critical thinking, creativity and language skills.
Help us make sure all children have the necessary resources to develop a love for reading by donating books to local schools through the Books2all app!