To what extent do you police your young child's indepdent reading?

[bozza]

DS is 6, nearly 7. He is a fluent and keen reader. He is not actually reading all that much fiction just now because he received 4 football annuals for Christmas and he is spending a fair amount of time studying these and comparing and contrasting the different stats in each book, also doing the word searches, quizzes etc. Although I think this will settle down soon.

For various reasons we have decided to let him have 20 minutes or so on a night reading in bed after DD has gone to bed, so the idea is school reading book, then DH or I read to him (alternate) then 20 mins reading to himself. But I said he had to read proper fiction books and not flit between one and another.

Got a book off the shelf (it was a Jamie and Angus one by Anne Fine from the library) and he said he had read it, but I had no idea that he had. So then I got him a sprinter (pack of 20 from the book people) off the shelf, but he read all the 5 chapters in the 20 mins. So he has read two books and I have no idea of the content of them. Is this bad? Or am I being uptight? He has previously read Horrid Henry and Capt Underpants books to himself, but having inititally read previous ones I am sufficiently aware of the content just to breathe a sigh of relief.

What do you think?

have you watched every TV programme that he has watched?

no - let him read whatever - encourage curiosity - I read the entire contents of my parents bookshelves as a child

It's not bad. Unless he's getting hold of some dodgy adult reading material I wouldn't worry. Part of the pleasure of reading as a child is being able to grab anything off the shelf and dive in. Such possibilities.

yes, obviously don't leave anything within reach that is totally unsuitable

Similar situation here, with a 7yo book-gobbler. I police very slightly what he reads, in that I will flick through his books if I am unfamiliar with them. I generally consider that, if he is reading something aimed specifically at primary-school age children, I don't need to check in any great detail. Unless it is potentially frightening. I know my LOs are very easily scared, so I don't want them to read anything 'horror'-like, not even if it is aimed at children and is very tame. If I have any suspicions about that sort of thing in a book then, yes, I will read it and somehow move it out of his way if I consider it necessary.

I am gradually reorganising my bookshelves, so that the less suitable books (IMO) are higher up the wall. A very subtle sort of censorship, I hope.

I believe in letting children please themselves with choice of books and how they read. This is because it's what I had and it worked for me, and because I am lazy.

DD1 is a keen reader, but often seems to be reading 3 books at once. She also reads incredibly fast, and I wasn't sure she was taking it all in. However she's nearly 9 and feedback from the teachers implies it's doing her a huge amount of good, whether she's doing it 'right' or not.

I've only removed one book from her, and that was a 'goosebumps' book about zombie children that I thought would give he nightmares. (Funniest thing was when she was reading a bodice-ripper at 7 because it was the only thing she could find when we were on holiday.)

Almost never tbh. I do suggest certain books from time to time but wouldn't insist she reads them (my dd is the same age as your ds btw).

I do occasionally try to steer ds (nearly 4) away from yet another book about cars, diggers, trains etc though.

DD at 7 did get hold of Northern Lights which I think might have scared her a little. However she got bored with it before she got to any frightening bits. I am now reading it with DS#1 at 11 and he is loving it and galloping through it in a way which brings joy to my heart (previous reluctant reader to say the least).

Mine is the same - particularly about football annuals. I don't insist on fiction, by the way, becaus ehe much prefers non fiction. But I do make sure that he's got a range of books that I have at least skimmed on his shelf. His all time favourites are by Cressida Cowell, by the way - Hiccup Horrendous Haddock the Third is his hero!

Ds1 (7) gets most of his books from the children's section of the library. I have a quick read of the back cover to make sure that it's not a book for teenagers/adults that's been put in the wrong section but otherwise let him choose for himself. It would be impossible IMHO to go through every book before he does.

redadmiral the reading at bedtime thing was only because I want him to be settled for bed and relaxing rather than having Match, Shoot and Match of the Day laid out side by side and comparing who each one thinks is the fifth best goalkeeper in the premiership for instance. The rest of the time, I let him do what he wants.

But my query was rather more a general one about his reading at any time and the extent to which I should keep tabs on it. And the general consensus seems to be to pretty much let him get on with it, with children's books. He can be quite sensitive, didn't want me to continue reading the Twits for instance, because he thought Mr Twit was going to shoot the monkeys. And doesn't like Narnia (the film) either. OTOH DH has read the first Harry Potter to him.

LOL yes coppertop I was rather alarmed that if I did pre-read his stuff I would be left with no time to read anything of my own choice....

Didn't mean to sound critical - as I said most of my parenting decisions are based on taking the easiest route...

Was thinking after I posted (as usual). I think at 7 I did still try to check the content a bit - it was after that the sheer volume of books she was getting through overwhelmed me. My DD is a sensitive soul too, but now she seems to be able to separate reading from real life. Worst things are the dying animal stories now.
(Harry Potter is fairly full-on, but she loves them.)

No, I didn't think you were being critical. I think I didn't explain v. well in the first place.

I also think that you can't always tell what will or won't upset your DCs. A few years back my DCs discovered a video of the cartoon of Animal Farm. Thet all watched it and DS#2 loved it because of the animals. DD was OK with it. DS#1 cried and cried about Boxer and still can't watch the film now.

Actually I think I was quite traumatised by 'The Yearling' and would probably not let DD read that! Hopefully it's out of print now.

My dd was/is an avid reader and I would usually limit my intervention to a mild 'I think you might find this a bit scarey' or 'I think you will find this is more for older people'. She was reading bits out of the Lord of the Rings when she was 6- simply because she was pig headed and had decided this was what she wanted to do. I let her get on with it. She always reads 4 or 5 books at the same time. So do I for that matter.

I feel books are different to films/tv programmes etc as it is easier to put a book down and it's not so much in your face. Her TV viewing I did police, and still do.

I still read her library books though, not because I think she needs too much protecting at 11, but because I enjoy the good ones as much as she does and I enjoy discussing books with her. She grumbles, but I think in her heart she likes being able to talk about books with me; she just wants to be sure that I understand she doesn't need policing. She has complained bitterly about school policy which meant she has only been allowed to borrow the "right" books for her year from the school library- and those are always the ones that are a couple of years too babyish for her.

I have fond memories of being let loose in my parents' library from a very early age. Some of the books I read were hardly age appropriate (Kazantzakis book on St Francis springs to mind) but I did learn a lot (including what type of book I am really not going to enjoy).