Any tips of getting reluctant son to read?

Another thought is dyspraxia- my DS is currently being assessed for it. His problem is coordination and his eye getting distracted. He finds it easier to read a short text on an empty page than say a comic book where the page is full of images and words.

I second the Phoenix comic. Also audiobooks/reading to him so he's absorbing narrative voices.

If he's got any interests like history or something there are some great kids' graphic novels about. My 9 y o daughter's just read the Iliad for kids in graphic novel form and I couldn't get her to read anything this time last last year.

Glad I found this thread, very helpful tips as my DD has a habit of refusing to read new books and would rather read the same books over and over again that she knows by heart lol! It's becoming a problem because im starting to see that she actually struggles with reading unfamiliar books and seems to guess a lot and panic. She also refuses to read non-picture books and always tries to figure out the words based on the pictures. I might try non fiction on her favourite topics with her as at this point I am just desperate for her to get into reading new books properly!

How is his writing?

The only reason I ask is my son wouldn't read at that age and we all put it down to him being a boy and liking non fiction etc

I now realise it was one of many signs that both us and the school missed of him being severely dyslexic. He's a very bright boy and did extremely well in all the science/maths subjects and even did ok at English but takes no pleasure out of reading at all. It's simply not something he will ever do for fun.

He was only diagnosed at age 18 but when I look back now it seems v clear! We are also a family of massive readers so he always seemed at odds with that!

Lots of my suggestions have already been said.

A controversial one - during lockdown DH worked in my 8 year old's bedroom so when he'd been naughty I couldn't send him to his room. Instead I made him sit quietly and read for 10 minutes (book of his choice). 9 times out of 10 he carried on reading for 30 or 40 minutes which was fantastic for him and unheard of.

We tried everything we could to get our son to read, we did all the '10 things to encourage reading' etc. list things

as soon as we stopped trying to get him to read he started to read himself.

Another recommendation for Asterix but also if you can find them - “choose your own destiny” type books used to have my non-reader brother quite hooked. There’s a game-playing element which is quite addictive I suppose.

My two love the Phoenix comic and that got them into reading books by themselves.

Oops fat fingers!!!!

Anything to spark an interest!

Comics
Magazines
Guinness world record books (very popular)
Minecraft books
All very popular at the school I work at. Reading is reading, doesn’t mater too much What form it’s in. Anything yo diary an interest!

Geronimo Stilton
Cows in Action
Dinosaur Cove
The Unbelievable Top Secret Diary of Pig

My son loves the Phoenix magazine too and we've bought quite a few of the Looshkin and Bunny vs Monkey spinoff books which feature in the magazine. He won't stop reading now!

Asterix and Phoenix comic are about all DS2 will read voluntarily!

Yep, mine is the same. Not interested in anything to do with reading. It's so frustrating!

Definitely Beano and Captain Underpants etc...

What does he like?

I read to ds from a young age books that I had liked. I read roughly a chapter a night and leave the book by his bed.
I know if he's really enjoying a book he'll finish it.
But if I catch him reading after lights out, then it's a bit of a "hey, you'll be tired, finish the chapter and light out." So he knows he can get away with reading at a time when putting his phone on is totally unacceptable.

Some of the books he has loved have been ones that I expected him to love (Mystery at Witchend, Cue for Treason), some have been ones I thought he wouldn't be especially thrilled by (Swish of the Curtain).
So maybe he hasn't found his books yet-not all boys are thrilled by "proper silly fart and poo books". Ds in RL thinks those are terribly funny, but not reading, he finds them try too hard and silly.
Have you tried ones like Harry Potter, Alex Rider, Roman Mysteries?

A kindle transformed my non reading children into book fiends! That and not allowing too much screen time, so they get bored and look for something else to do....give them the kindle! Works brilliantly. Make sure you get one with a nightlight. My teens go to bed with kindles and read for an hour before bed. I never thought I would see the day and read all through the lockdown.

Do you read? Because I find the minute I pick up a book, my ds will read too.

And we have lots of silly books too. Like captain underpants and Tom gates. Comic style, not too arduous. Then I read the more noble books (if you will!) at bedtime.

Agree mine also preferred non fiction at around that age. 13 storey tree house series also very good or maybe go a bit younger and sillier Astrosaurs by Steve Cole are funny space going dinosaur space police battling evil carnivores. My hamster is a ... series also good but I can’t remember the author sorry

Another vote for Tintin, also Asterix and the Beano and Garfield books. My son reads these in bed after we've had his bedtime stories. I take the view that he's enjoying the experience of reading so hasn't got it in his mind as a chore. We're a very bookish family, and these mean he feels like he's bookish too and can join in those conversations. I strongly believe that the most important thing is keeping the child's attitude to books positive, so they can develop into more committed readers over time.

Is there anything he enjoys watching that links into a book series? My daughter's 8 and until lockdown she hated reading. She really got into 'horrible histories' on BBC iPlayer (seemed educational so I didn't limit it) and suddenly wanted the books too, and has read the whole series, plus is now devouring factual history books, dorling kindersley etc. She's moved from that to reading the 'worst witch' series and the 'how to train your dragon's books again because she enjoyed the BBC TV series. I could have posted the same as you in February, she just suddenly got the point in reading out of the blue, I did not expect it at all. Go with anything he seems keen on, facts books, comics based on films, but I also wouldn't rush it, I think it just has to click at some point.

My DS enjoys The Guinness Book of Records and Ripley’s Believe it or Not. Joke and interesting/gross fact books, and whatever he’s into at the time. Currently WWE annuals are popular.