Daughter doesn't like reading on her own

[Karrot]

My daughter (nearly 6) is a good reader for her age - from what I can work out, she's in the top reading group at school and seems to be improving at a rate of knots.

However, since she's learned to read properly (she only started school this year as we're in Scotland), she has become uninterested in actually reading herself outside of school. Previously, she used to love flicking through books and trying to read what she could.

Now, she refuses to read at home except to power through her "boring" school reading book once in the week (complete with bored sounding tone!), and only when she has to!

She still loves stories and being read to (we read to her every night and also visit the library etc a lot) as well as story CDs, but just doesn't want to read herself.

School only requires them to read the school reading book, although they encourage some reading every night. She won't read the school book more than once and refuses to read anything else herself (either on her own or out loud to us) just for fun.

We don't want to force her as that doesn't seem productive, but does anyone have any other ideas for encouraging her to read? It's not in an attempt to improve her reading, that's fine - we'd just like her to enjoy reading to herself! Thanks!

I would say that now she’s having to do it for school it’s become a chore. Keep doing what you are doing with reading to her etc and she’ll come back to it one day. My dd preferred to read magazines and annuals to actual books as it was totally different to her school book.

Read to/with her for a bit, then work on "I'll read this page then you read that page" and praise enthusiastically. She is very young still. Also, get hold of some funny/silly stories/poetry, try to get some fun back into it.

I would leave it for a bit and just let her enjoy being read to for now. Maybe she's tired. Sometimes I think DS (6y) regresses a bit when things get too much. Maybe that's what happening and if you push it too much, you might push her away from reading.

How about suggesting in the evenings when you’re reading to her that she reads a page or sit down another time and take it in turns as a fun activity.
I think previous poster is right that sadly it’s become a bit of a chore and need fun brought back into it

My DS was the same. Doing brilliantly st school with reading and writing but just wouldn't read alone at home.

He's 10 now and only just started reading for pleasure a few months ago. It was the Harry Potter books that did it! The right story came along and he NEEDS to know what happens next and I wasn't reading enough at bedtime.

I'd just keep doing what you're doing - read to your DD to keep up her love of a good story.

I remember my daughter going through this in P1 as well - she seemed to have a real bee in her bonnet that she could ONLY read her school book and reading anything else was somehow against the rules. I can't remember quite how we got past it, but things like writing in her reading book for school what other books she has read at home etc as well as just signing whatever it is that she has done.
My daughter is in P4 now and is back to being an avid reader - she asked Santa for Secret Seven books and has read through about 6 of them already :D
I'd say just persevere with her and let school know as well when you speak to them at parents night, or if your school is like mine and you get the chance to speak to teachers at school pickup time etc then you might be able to just let them know and see if they can't gently encourage home reading from within the classroom.

Thank you everyone! That's all really helpful (and reassuring!). I loved reading as a child, was never without a book in my hand and I just don't want her to miss out on that!! Will back off for now and see how she goes.

My daughter was just the same. Until the Xmas she turned 7 she had some activity type books for Xmas which she loved, and some of the fairy magic books that have colour pictures in.Some usborne lift the flap fact books and a joke book. She spent the whole holiday reading everything she could get her hands on. She was suddenly fluent enough to be able to access new information and she loved it. It will click when she is ready and finds something that motivates her.

She loves magazines and activity books and I've tried to (subtly!) point out that she can at least read the instructions on the activities etc herself now (which she could do really easily in terms of her reading ability) but she still asks us every one - or just guesses.

Suggesting to her to do it herself just makes her cross and puts her off wanting to do it - she'll often say "oh I won't bother then" and goes off to do something else so I've stopped trying to get her to do it!!