Reading Ideas

I am often asked for reading suggestions by parents,  mostly for children aged 7-11. I have grouped together some ideas on this page and suggest that parents encourage their children to read a wide range of authors and styles with a careful balance of enjoyment and reading challenge. 

It is so important that children find books to read that they enjoy. This has to come first. Try reading something that you're not interested in, or where the doesn't suit you....it's hard isn't it? Children must be motivated to read first and from there we can build....

Children who are confident and happy readers will have a solid base on which to build their reading stamina.  Stamina, meaning the willingness to read more challenging texts, longer books with fewer chapter breaks, smaller fonts,  more words, longer sentences and no pictures. This will build up layer on layer and quite rapidly in children who've found their niche and love reading.

And once children are up and running with a love of books and a strong reading stamina, the world is their oyster. They will be more open to suggestions of books that they had not previously considered, books to stretch their vocabulary, to inform them about history, to deal with more complex ideas and emotions.