Reading for pleasure?

[Nelleh]

I'm researching why (it appears) young people - especially once they reach secondary school - no longer read for pleasure. I asked my own 15yr old ds. I fully expected him to say it was because he read what he needed to on the internet but he told me 'reading for pleasure' had been destroyed for him because reading (which he once loved) now felt 'like work'. He hates the 'prescriptive' nature of English classes and would prefer if he could choose his own reading material. (I did tell him the teacher couldn't be expected to mark on an individual basis!!!!).

The government blame phonics (amongst other things) for the decline in reading for pleasure.

I would love to hear the views of other parents.

Well, I wouldn't blame the government for this one!

I remember that I went right off reading as a teenager (and I was a real bookworm as a younger child) - largely due to having to wade through various tedious set books. Graham Greene - AAAGGHHHH!!! The Mill on the Floss - turgid turgid turgid. I think I only enjoyed Jane Eyre and The Trumpet Major. The rest were awful and made reading an unpleasant chore.

In my 40s I have become once again a voracious reader. I can imagine, however, that if I were forced to read The Slap or Cloud Atlas and write fawning essays about them I'd throw in the towel again and retreat into Jackie magazine (or Look Now - major favourite of mid-teen years).

Well my dd (14 ) would regularly read for pleasure, in particular if the internet is not working, but also after her screen time is over at night and before lights out. What she reads seems now to be fairly narrow- I don't comment or push anything on her I'm just glad she reads. Terry Pratchett-she's working her way through the discworld series, and, well that's about it really, apart from manga graphic books. I would think the decline in reading is the fairly obvious screen society we now live in, books and reading are too much hard work for many kids.

I never read for pleasure, although I did as a child. I would say I stopped about the time study kicked in big time.

Now I read so much technical stuff for work that I really cannot be bothered to read books in my spare time. I think, if I did, I would probably enjoy them and get back into it, but I can't see it happening anytime soon. Maybe when the children have left home and I have all the taxiing time free again.

Thank you! So, it seems 'reading for pleasure' may never have been the perceived pass time for teenagers! I know I consumed books when I was 16+ but cannot really remember during my mid-teens - although I was put off reading classic fiction at O'Level: 'Far from the Madding Crowd' (yawn!). Books are so much better now - aren't they?

Well mine all read for pleasure - they all read avidly (ds is 15, dd 13, and dd2 is 10).
I suspect it helped that throughout Primary school I never made them fill in those blessed reading diaries. Reading has always been pleasurable for them, and never associated with 'school work'.

Loads of young people read for pleasure, I can assure you! I am a school librarian and have been working for 30 years in schools, so I have the experience. What tends to happen is that it tails off as the demands of exams increase. So many students in years 7 and 8 read a lot - some get through 100 to 200 books in a year. Then it fades a bit in year 9 and drops off sharply as GCSEs kick in.

There are, of course, kids who do not read, but I am not sure that there are more like this than in the past. Maybe. But you would find that kids do read, but not necessarily books, online stuff instead.

What does have a huge impact is the presence in school of a library and a professional librarian. Many secondary schools don't have libraries and even in those that do, they rarely have a professional in charge. We are the people who try to encourage reading for pleasure, although we are lucky if we get curriculum time with older kids. Sadly, many schools are now closing their libraries and sacking their librarians. So, I think we are getting to a very difficult time in terms of reading.

I hated English at school. Partly because I was in top stream, great at Maths and Science, but not the best at English Lit, so I always felt daft in class (we used to get picked on to read aloud or explain what things meant).

I was always the one, when a book said there was bright red blood on the floor, that thought someone must have been injured. Everyone else would conclude that there was some hit-man around with a communist connection (which was obvious because of the emphasis on bright red). I just never got to grips with it (despite an A in Language I got a U in Lit even though I wrote for the whole exam!) and the books and study during O level years certainly didn't encourage my reading.

my so is in year 7 and never has a book out of his hands. he is averaging 2 or 3 novels a week at the moment and not thin light stuff-proper thick books.

DS is in year 9 and he reads novels every day. He doesn't read the kind of novels that are studied at school - 1984 and so on. He reads books for teenagers. He is reading The Hunger Games trilogy at the moment.

I would agree with other posters - firstly, we never filled in the reading record during primary school beyond year 1. Secondly, DS's state school does have a librarian and she did talk to DS at the beginning of year seven about books that he enjoyed and what he could go on to to read next. I think that helped to establish a transition from primary school level books to books for older readers. His librarian also gave him novels to keep when he first joined the school.

DS also has a peer group of boys who read. There are trends in books, and so he hears other boys talking about books they're currently enjoying and then he wants to read them too. I try to read some of the books DS is reading (and some of them are enjoyable for adults) as does my mum, and I hope that establishes in his mind that teen books are valued by adults and we're not all looking down our noses at them thinking he should be reading Austen instead.

Some read for pleasure and some don't- adults are the same. DS1 has always read for pleasure and DS2 never has.

I was a real bookworm until senior school then went off reading and didn't read at all until I was 20, I can remember how great it was when I rediscovered reading.

I went off reading because I discovered crappy teenage magazines like Just Seventeen and rubbish like that, I enjoyed listening to music with earphones and I didn't know what to read. I stopped going to the library and I'm not even sure if we had a library at a school, we must have had one but I don't think I ever went in it.

I used to read a great deal up until 16 - A level English did put me off somewhat. However, I did live in a village with no bus and went to a grammar school witha massive catchment - so had no friends living nearby. And my Mum didn't let us watch telly - so books were a good way of passing the time. I have to bribe my DCs to read. I am fighting a losing battle.

Apart from the obvious contrast between then (few other forms of entertainment) and now (masses of bite-sized distraction, on demand), I agree with your theory of the contrast between work and play. I cannot understand why the DC, who both took English A Level, did not read for pleasure and go outside the set books. I did Maths/science for A Level and I think that I read more than them, but it was all of my choice. The DC say that they compartmentalise: they can read a text to analyse it, whether they actually enjoy it or not doesn't come into the equation.

DD has come through the other side and reads a bit more now. She was of the Harry Potter generation so seems to enjoy 'series' or gets hooked on an author, whereas I will pick each individual book on its own merit.

I read for pleasure. DD (15) is an avid reader. She doesn't read many classics, just the ones that come free on her kindle, but she prefers teenage books. She loves reading, there are even times when we have to tell her to stop!

DD (11) is a good reader, but not as keen as her sister. She just reads when she goes to bed.

DS is in Yr 5, a very avid reader. He just loves books and Waterstones is like a dreamland for him. But I don't know what will happen in teenage years. I've never forced him to read and I always let him drop a book that's disappointing him. I have always resisted doing what teachers tell me: "to improve his comprehension, ask him what this means, ask him why this happens..." Or the usual "expand vocabulary" advice: "make him underline the words he doesn't understand". I will never do any of that because I know it will kill his pleasure! Reading is HIS thing 100%.
A 16 year old girl in a super academic school once told me they didn't have time to read for pleasure. It was all work, work, work.

DD (12) reads avidly and I'll admit that I don't censor what she reads. She darts from adult fiction (which horrifies some of my friends) to books way below her supposed age group.

I don't judge. I just ask what she thought of them.

DS reads less fiction. He's more likely to pick up the paper.

Children are less likely to be avid readers if you censor it or try to control it. The joy is finding books for yourself. Suggestions are fine- but nothing more.

ds 1 (12) always found reading easy and reads loads now. sadly ds2 (9) struggled with reading, it's not that good now, and he doesn't really enjoy reading, although he will for a short time.

How can you not read for pleasure? Reading is one of the most intense pleasures that exist. Positively primal, the joy of texts.

I don't agree with those wretched 'reading diaries' either.

My Ds didn't really start reading for pleasure until he got to year 8.
He has dyslexic problems and use to listen to a lot of story tapes, but he wanted the next book in a series which wasn't available on cd and he took off. I think he did read a lot of factual stuff on the internet and in magazines.
Dd 14 has always been a reader.

Lots of adults don't read for pleasure as I found when trying to get them to join my book group.

DD is currently reading The Battle Hymn of the Tiger Mother. I'm pleased becaue I will look very easy going compared to Amy Chua .

agree with poster above re not trying to make them read something if they're not into it and not making them look up words - while they're reading for pleasure..! Also agree with op - think the constant analysis does partly ruin the experience in secondary school

Though kez - please explain the bright red blood - I'm clearly with you on this I don't get it

Actually I asked DP if he had read Wolf Hall and he had never heard of it and I am seriously having to contemplate Leaving The Bastard.

He has had a lucky escape then. A couple of years ago I was amused to see about ten people with it in an airport lounge. I circled around and - what a surprise - no-one was avidly turning pages. It's one of those books that's on everyone's shelf but the spine is crease-free. I did plough my way through it but I wouldn't say I enjoyed it.