How many books do your children read in a year?

[TheRollingCrone]

My dd is 9, we read every night together ( currently going through the Anne of green gables series ).

I have a bedside cabinet of books I'm aching to read with her. Next on the list is Goodnight Mr Tom. I'm sick of her bringing home bowlderised versions of the classics, so I'd rather read together and discuss.

How many do your children read? At the rate I'm buying books, she'll be 30. I'm not prescriptive at all for books shite she wishes to read alone
but just feel she needs explanation of " vocabulary "

[Banjopluckface]

I read to my almost 10 year old at night and we do discuss the vocabulary a lot. Since September, we have read a lot of Michael morpurgo, plus street child and Goodnight Mr Tom.

Ds loved goodnight mr Tom and war horse and we bought the film / tv dramatisation after, which he also loved!

[HanShootsFirst]

My girls are book mad. I would estimate my 12yo dd averages 10 books a week and 10yo dd 6 books a week. They will both have multiple books going at once - on different levels of the house, at school, in backpacks.

I was/am a similar reader and find it very satisfying, one of the better traits I've passed on!

[TheRollingCrone]

I can't wait to read Goodnight Mr Tom - hankies at the ready!

[ChaiTeaTaiChi]

Hundreds. Mine can read a book in a day or two, we are all very fast readers.

[TheRollingCrone]

Oh Hans I'm impressed!

[TheRollingCrone]

My dd is a fast reading, but I find she misses so much inference on her own, and her prounciation is chronic at times, especially with antiquated language.

[BackforGood]

At that age, hundreds. But complete mix of books, some challenging, some they virtually knew off by heart as they were favourites, some that were simple, some that were short, some that were long. Definitely not all "worthy", but they devoured books at that age.
We used to go to the library either once a week or once a fortnight - each one could take out 8 books, and then the oldest read all the others, and the middle one read several of the eldest's choices, etc. Plus of course dipping back in to ones on their shelves.

Not a stealth boast in any way - they all have other challenges

[BigWeald]

At the current rate I estimate it would work out at about 200 books/year (excluding school books).

He reads for about one hour/day on average. If he were reading longer books, he would be getting through fewer of them! So asking 'how many books' really isn't very meaningful IMO.

Regarding learning the meaning of words/expressions, we go through phases where DS interrupts his reading to ask, or asks randomly at another time when he remembers; and phases where he glosses over words he doesn't completely understand. I'm fine with this. I figure he learns a lot of vocab through context while reading, just like small children learn words through a mix of hearing them in context, and asking ('what's that?').

He sometimes does mis-pronounce words he acquired through reading, when the spelling allows for various pronunciations and only pre-existing oral knowledge of the word would allow you to decide which one applies. But usually it just takes a gentle pointing out and he learns the right way. Anyway it does show that he is indeed acquiring new vocab through reading, when he uses wrongly pronounced words/expressions in the correct context.

[Witchend]

At that age dd1 probably around 3-4 a week.
Dd2 between 1 and 5 a day (non-stop reader)
Ds reads about a book a week.

[NotAPenguin]

My 2 ds's are very different. DS is 12 and an avid reader, he reads 1-3 books a week (more when he was younger). DS2 (10) is very reluctant and I read to him most nights. Find it a bit depressing how few books we've managed to get through. Recently read Goodnight Mr Tom and Skellig and just started Watership Down which we are both enjoying but it's going to take us weeks and weeks.

He has very recently started to reading to himself a bit on the kindle and recently finished Five Children and it which has filled me with hope! But that is by far the longest book he's managed on his own.

[BackforGood]

Oh, and to reassure those who might not be wanting to post, as their dc read one book a month, I don't see a correlation between how many books they devour as youngsters, and wanting to read / study / revise once they get to GCSE / A Level time. Neither of my older two have worked anything like as much as I'd have liked them to at that level. Chatting with various others who have dc of similar ages, there isn't a pattern that it's one or the other, or that those who read a lot when young study a lot when older, or the opposite or any pattern that I can see.

[BackforGood]

NotaPenguin (love that name btw).
Would he be interested in reading 'fact' based books - Encyclopedias, Guiness Book of Records, 'How to Avoid a Wonbat's Bum', or biographies, or football magazines or a book on minecraft ? Some people just aren't really in to 'stories'.

[Witchend]

Agree BackforGood. In fact for dd2 it's definitely a disadvantage as she's caught reading when she should be doing homework, eating dinner, tidying her room, getting dressed, going to sleep, going to sleep, going to sleep, packing her bags, going to sleep, doing music practice, going to sleep... It's even resulted in an A&E trip at 11pm.

Dd1 is 16yo and doesn't read anything like as many books now, however she's heavily into Harry Potter fan fiction.

[BarchesterFlowers]

as she's caught reading when she should be doing homework, eating dinner, tidying her room, getting dressed, going to sleep, going to sleep, going to sleep, packing her bags, going to sleep, doing music practice, going to sleep

Same here Witchend. DD (11) has bought (paid for my me ) and read 11 books since the start of the Easter holidays and has re read one set of four.

[isthistoonosy]

Can't really answer for my kids as they are only toddlers but wanted to say myself and OH both disliked reading as kids but I'm studying my second masters and he is an associate professor.

[BarchesterFlowers]

I am not sure the OP was linking it to future success/achievements at all nosy, just enthusing about books and wondering how many some kids read.

I am at the time my DD spends reading. I have far too many other mundane things to do to spend more than an hour a day with a book.

[BackforGood]

Not suggesting she was Barchester - just sometimes you get a really skewed view of life on these threads. After I posted how many books my dc used to read, I read it back and realised it could have been read as a 'boasting' post, which wasn't my intent at all, so I just wanted to say..... 'so what' .... if you like. Yup, my dc read avidly as little ones, but that was just a fact about them at that age, so don't be worrying if yours don't, sort of thing

[isthistoonosy]

Yh I was more answering for other parents whose kids don't like reading, as on these sort of post you never get, my 12 yr old read one book in the last 6 week holiday and that was a major breakthrough for her.

[DoorwayToNorway]

My children (7, 11 and 13) go to a school with an enormous library. They bring home a new book every week as they are supposed to do a book study every week or fortnight for the 13 year old. The 7 year old brings home books like The Gruffulo, as they don't start reading chapter books until about year 4, we're abroad. I read him a chapter a night from a chapter book in English (currently Pippi Longstocking) as we have quite a lot and family and friends bring them from the UK. Occasionally as well, the older two will use one of our home books for their weekly literature project.

[TheRollingCrone]

No wasn't linking it to future success at all. I've so many books I remember reading and loved. I have recently bought just because I want to re read them

Goodnight Mr Tom
The Owl Service
A dog so small
Frankenstein
A Wizard of Earth sea
The dark is rising
The Land of Green Ginger
And a few others, I should just read them on my own

We are enjoying Anne series (on book 2) but I think I will have to take a break inbetween. There is only so many "kindred spirits" I can take !