Please recommend books for sudenly reluctant 6yr old reader

[Kitsilano]

My DD is just 6 and was doing Oxford Reading Tree at school, desperate to be a free reader so racing through the books.

But since she was made a free reader in Feb she just doesn't seem to be interested in reading at all. The books she brings home are either way too hard (IMO) ie densely written no picture eg The Worst Witch or way below the level at which she was reading before.

She tries to put off doing her school reading, doesn't read in bed anymore which she used to and seems very discouraged.

So can you suggest some great stories that still have quite a few pictures but would be suitable for a 6 yr old?

I'd get her some comics to start with and also these books about fairies might catch her interest.

Suddenly not sudenly clearly

Both of my big 2 love The Beano and The Dandy. It is their treat!

We like the Jeremy Strong ones

The fairy books mentioned earlier are loved by kids..also Roald Dahl is brilliant!

Thanks for the suggestions - I'm getting an amazon basket going. I've always been put off those fairy books cos they look so...girly - but if it'll get her enjoying reading I'll give them a try. I draw the line at "Kate The Royal Wedding Fairy" though which just came up when I searched.

Dr.Seuss books. This Winnie the Witch set are beautifully illustrated:

www.thebookpeople.co.uk/webapp/wcs/stores/servlet/qs_product_tbp?storeId=10001&catalogId=10051&langId=100&productId=214956&searchTerm=witch

The easier Roald Dahl like The Magic Finger or The Twits.

These have half piccy half text per page: www.thebookpeople.co.uk/webapp/wcs/stores/servlet/qs_product_tbp?storeId=10001&catalogId=10051&langId=100&productId=202745&searchTerm=mermaid

I would recommend a trip to the library (public or school) just the two of you, leave a good hour or so to flick through books together, rekindle her interest and enthusiam for reading, and guide her gently to some books that will hold her interest.

Good luck.

ps if you are getting the fairy collection you won't beat this price:

www.thebookpeople.co.uk/webapp/wcs/stores/servlet/qs_product_tbp?storeId=10001&catalogId=10051&langId=100&productId=185321&searchTerm=daisy

Ds1 was the same as there were few chapter books that were really suitable. He would (and still does) read a mix of factual type books (encyclopaedias, see inside, brainwaves ....), comics, poems, usbourne young readers books, banana series of books and stories like the ahlberg series of books (the cat that got carried away etc) - loves the silliness of these and the pictures are great. We also got into reading roald dahl with him and alice in wonderland etc There are also quite a few picture type books which tread the middle ground with the pics giving a lot of hints on the story. Where's Wally was also popular. What is she interested in? Ds1 always loved space and science. We also bought how to draw books as he used to spend any time he wasn't reading doing art.
Is there a bookshop with a coffee shop in it near you? Could you go for a treat and have a read of a selection with a promise that you'll get her one?

Thanks mungogerry - those are some great suggestions. And the library trip too. It's all become a bit rushed and chore-like.

Thanks yomellamoHelly - non fiction might be a good place to look - she's quite interested in science and space

What has worked brilliantly for us is buying everything second hand at boot sales/school fetes etc (usually 10 pence a book) and just having them all on bookshelves in his bedroom to select from at reading time. I got loads of sets of non fiction, flat stanley, dinosaur cove, beast quest, goosebumps, dick king smith, roald dahl, horrid henry, enid blyton etc etc. Then it is his choice and chances are any sets he doesnt like one of his younger siblings may.

This works much better for us that visits to the library and probably cheaper than bus fares or car parking as he can choose what to read at the time he wants which is extremely important for him to be in control. When I want to steer him away from non fiction or onto a new author I read the first chapter for his bedtime story and then of course he wants to know the ending so continues whereas he may not have tried it himself. Also in our case it works better if he thinks you want lights out rather than more reading time and that he is having to ask for more time.

My DD loves Rainbow Fairies, Little Miss Books, Pippi Longstocking, some of the easier Jacqueline Wilson (Sleepovers) and Roald Dahl (The Twits). She too is 6 and has become fluent in the last few months, however she adores reading. I also tend to read a book to her that is beyond her RA, such as Charlotte's Web, Heidi and Anne of Green Gables - it seems to keep her motivated.

Thanks, these are all such great suggestions!

The 'Daisy and the trouble with...' books are a big hit here, think they are by Kes Grey, DD had them but DS2 (6) is reading them to himself now. Charity shops are also a good source of cheap books.

dd (7, in Y2) still prefers books with pictures, even though she's been a free reader for a year now - she can read just about any vocab, but wants pictures. Many already mentioned, but can add Tiara Club books (fairly dire, so I get them from the library only - but she finds them an easy bedtime read), Usborne Books do Shakespeare for kids and other Classics which she loved in Y1 - well illustrated, also tales from other lands, fairytales, etc.
There are some great information books about animals, science, etc well illustrated that dd enjoys too - the variety of text is good for her reading, and makes a change.
I did discover something else you might want to just check out: dd said her eyes 'jumped about' when reading densely worded text - especially if stark black on white. I read about something called Irlen syndrome here, and checked it out with the SENCO at school - she has referred dd to someone as she probably has a visual processing difficulty that could be easily fixed. Her actual vision is fine - its a brain/eye thing Doesn't stop her reading well - she's one of the best readers in her year - but does stop her enjoying reading for more than short bursts of time, or enjoying dense texts.
Unlikely to be your dd's problem - far more likely to just have the wrong books! - but thought I'd mention it in case it helped anyone else.

Another vote for the Daisy and the trouble with series. My 6 year old dd is able reader but doesn't want to read books without pictures. They are irreverently funny and have kindled in my dd a wish to go fishing - a strange yearning for a vegetarian with a dislike of wormy things.

Thanks again - we've got one of the Daisy books I think and it's very popular.

Shakespeare for kids sounds good too

Take her to your local library, then she can enjoy choosing the books herself. it will give the opportunity to experiment at bit and for you both to find out what she enjoys without having to spend anything!

I recall when I was six I utterly loved the Milly Molly Mandy books - a bit twee, but still in print even now. Ladybird books have reprinted all theri classic fairy stories, my DN loves reading them.

Hi, my ds age 6 enjoyed 'The enormous crocodile' - Roald Dahl and is reading/ having read to him 'Charlie and the choc factory' etc.
If your daughter enjoyed 'The magic key' books ORT try 'The Time Chronicles' -ORT. They are a continuation of Magic key with the same main characters and similar pictures. Got them cheap from 'Book People' [I think] - 13 books for £9.99 instead of about £56.

I picked up half a dozen easy chapter books for 49p each in Oxfam the other day - we're lucky as there's a big one near us. Also I sometimes go to the library without DS. Far easier to find books and leave them around for them to pick up imo.

The classic ORT books are designed to get children reading through multi-cueing strategies (memorising whole words and guessing using first letter, context and picture clues). It often happens that children with good visual memories can get a long way through such a scheme but once the pictures disappear, their memory bank for whole words becomes filled up and they have no phonic decoding strategies to read new words, they will struggle.

I would check that she knows the alphabet code and can decode nonsense words. If she struggles with these tests then you've found the answer for her reluctance to read.

ontrackreading.com/assets/pdf/CodeKnowledgeTest.pdf
Alphabet Code Knowledge Test.

www.rrf.org.uk/pdf/Ruth%20Miskin%20Nonsense%20Word%20Test.pdf
Ruth Miskin's nonsense word test.

HTH

Thank you maverick - that's very interesting. I will try these tests. I know she used to do what you describe at the beginning but now she does sound out words she doesn't know immediately so I think she is reading them rather than memorising visually

My dd loves Enid Blyton 'Twins at St Clare's' etc/Famous Five etc. There are some sort of "easy read" versions which have less dense text, are shorter and are less forbidding. We found them in the library. I really liked the format. I found with dd that once she had tried the easy read, she was quite happy to pick up the older version Enid Blyton's which are dense and picture free, because she loved the school stories.

'Daisy and the trouble with..." is great fun, the rainbow fairies will drive you dotty, but 6year old girls love them.

DD1 preferred non fiction. Anything and everything about sea life especially dolphins, but both girls have a soft spot for seals and penguins too. Also as she's got older history and light hearted science facts.