Helping Boys Become Readers

Many boys struggle with reading. I’ve taught remedial reading twice now (one 4-year stint, and another 2-year stint) and in both cases, boys outnumbered girls big time.

The general profile of a male reluctant reader (teens, in particular), features a student who is very interested in video games, prefers a hands-on learning style, often has a strong mechanical aptitude, and loves outdoor activities (whether that’s sports or simply working outdoors). Many also have ADHD, or some type of specific learning disability, but not necessarily. Most, if you ask them, will tell you that they hate reading, and never read anything they don’t HAVE to read.

“According to the 2010 Kids & Family Reading Report sponsored by Scholastic, fewer than 40 percent of boys said that reading outside the classroom is important.” Looking at that another way, you can assume that 60% of your male students never read anything outside of class that isn’t assigned textbook reading. Given the number of things competing for the attention of adolescent boys, it’s probably best to do reading interventions in settings where they’re a captive audience. For teachers, that’s in the classroom. For parents, that’s at home (to some extent). Here’s a few suggestions for what teachers (and library/media specialists) can do to encourage boys to do more reading:

1. Start a reading club for boys. A good time to do this is during lunch. You can either have a book that everyone in the group reads, or have everyone read their own thing. If there’s a popular film out (based on a book), that’s often a good choice.

2. Recycle! Have a book swap—you can do this casually in the classroom, partner up with another teacher, or do it as a school-wide project. Kids are often interested in reading things they’ve seen others reading.

3. Go on class library field trips. Take your class to the library occasionally to check out books. Often teachers stop doing library field trips in elementary school, so often secondary students often haven’t set foot in a library (to check books out) since the 6th grade! (This is just as applicable to most of the content areas—libraries often have fascinating books about science, history, math, you name it, and you can showcase some of these). Older students may need a refresher in how to find books on topics they’re interested in (as opposed to checking out books to do reports/research). This is a great no-cost incentive by the way.

4. Have as many books and magazines in the classroom as possible, fiction and non-fiction. If you are studying something in particular, check out some books from the library to temporarily supplement your existing collection. The more books you have in the room, the easier it is for students to find something that might work for them. 5. What boys like to read: boys often read the same things as girls (believe it or not, Twilight is just about as popular with boys—although most won’t admit it), but often they gravitate towards different reading material. Some things I’ve noticed my male students reading are books with themes about friendship/loyalty, animals, adventure/survival stories, sci-fi and fantasy novels, and crime/detective stories. Manga (Japanese graphic novels) are popular, as are comic books; and for some reason, National Geographic is almost universally popular. I’ve also had students who wouldn’t read anything other than newspapers or automotive classifieds…but as long as they’re reading something, you’ve got something to work with. For instance, if you have that boy who only seems to read the automotive classified ads, you can gently steer him towards automotive magazines, then possibly a book about the history of automobiles or a story that prominently features a road trip or driving.

What parents can do:

1. Start reading to children as early as possible. It’s a good habit to get into. Aside from the usual storybooks, consider what your boys are interested in, and check out non-fiction books and read those as well. If you have a child that doesn’t sit still for very long, just do short sessions, but do it consistently.

2. Consider joining one of those “Book of the Month Clubs”. Each month, your kid/s get the excitement of a new book coming to your house. Magazine subscriptions are also a good idea, for the same reason.

3. Increase the availability of books at home. Get a library card and use it. Go to used book sale. Take advantage of those Scholastic book sales they have in elementary schools every fall. The more exposure kids have to books, the more likely they are to find something they’ll connect with and enjoy. For example, Trevor Barton notes, “I was in fourth grade, when I discovered Robert Lipsyte’s The Contender. On the cover was a drawing of an African-American kid with a towel draped around his neck and tape wrapped around his hands. He was a boxer. I looked into his eyes and saw a mixture of courage, fear, hope, sadness and compassion. In those emotions, I saw myself, even though I was not African American.”

4. Keep books in captive audience locations: bathroom reading, in the car, when you're going to a doctor's appointment, traveling, etc. Be sure to bring a few books. If you're in a situation where you don't have a lot of other options, this is a good way to get some reading in.

In a New York Times article, “Boys and Reading: Is There Any Hope,” Robert Lipsyte said boys are turned into readers when the stories connect with their lives, "Boys need to be approached individually with books about their fears, choices, possibilities and relationships — the kind of reading that will prick their dormant empathy, involve them with fictional characters and lead them into deeper engagement with their own lives,” Lipsyte wrote. “This is what turns boys into readers."

As a reading teacher, I consider myself to be a “missionary” preaching the gospel of reading and books—my main mission is to get my students to look at reading as more than a classroom activity, but also a potential source of personal development and enjoyment. The best way to ensure that happens is to find something that works for every student in the room, but especially the students who don’t see themselves as “readers”. It’s a lot easier if you can catch those boys before they hit high school, but nobody is ever too old to fall in love with reading (I’ve seen adult non-readers fall in love with various types of literature once they developed some reading skills first).

Quoted material from: “Helping Boys Become Readers”, Trevor Barton, Teaching Tolerance, November 15, 2012