Getting Boys to Read
Leanne Italie at AP reports on some proposed solutions to the problem of boys not reading.
The problem:
Boys have lagged behind girls in reading achievement for more than 20 years, but the gender gap now exists in nearly every state and has widened to mammoth proportions — as much as 10 percentage points in some, according to the Center on Education Policy.
“It certainly should set off alarm bells,” said the center’s director, Jack Jennings. “It’s a significant separation.”
Parents of reluctant readers complain that boys are forced to stick to stuffy required school lists that exclude nonfiction or silly subjects, or have teachers who cater to higher achievers and girls. They’re hoping books that exploit boys’ love of bodily functions and gross-out humor can close the gap.
Solving the problem is frustrating, especially for parents who are avid readers themselves but can’t get their sons to pick up a book. One way to get boys to read, it’s been suggested, is to introduce them to books that will hold their interest.
The angst among parents, teachers and librarians has been met by a steady stream of sports and historical nonfiction, potty humor, bloodthirsty vampires and action-packed graphic novels, fantasy and sleuthing.
Butts, farts. Whatever, said Amelia Yunker, a children’s librarian in Farmington Hills, Mich. She hosted a grossology party with slime and an armpit noise demonstration. “Just get ‘em reading. Worry about what they’re reading later.”
Some publishers are connecting books to online activity:
Adding online tie-ins or packaged prizes like the steady-selling “39 Clues” series has publishers meeting young readers halfway.
Patrick Carman has gone a step further with his wicked creepy “Skeleton Creek” series from Scholastic. The upper-grade books use password-protected websites to alternate book text and quick fixes of shaky, hand-held video. To follow the story, reading and watching online are both required.
Then there’s the potential appeal of science and farts:
Farts are Ray Sabini’s halfway point for younger kids. The fourth grade teacher from Miller Place, outside New York City, heard from dozens of grateful parents, teachers and librarians after he self-published his “SweetFarts” in 2008 under the name Raymond Bean.
The book chronicles a 9-year-old boy’s multimillion-dollar science fair invention of tablets that can change foul-smelling gas into the culprit’s scent of choice: summer rose, cotton candy, grape — even pickles, as requested by his little sister. It climbed to No. 3 on Amazon in children’s humor in October on little more than word of mouth and prompted a sequel, “Sweet Farts: Rippin’ it Old-School,” to be released next month.
“Reaching those reluctant boys, it’s a challenge I take very, very seriously and this is what they think is funny,” Sabini said. There’s also history in there. There’s science in there, the problem of bullying, but it’s the humor that gets their attention.”
James Patterson–best-selling author of thrillers and father of a son who, until lately, did not read–has a website–Readkiddoread.com– that’s devoted to the problem and its solution. The site suggests book titles– including nonfiction books his own alien hunter series, Daniel X — and tips for parents, like “12 Tried-and-True Ways to Get Your Kiddos Reading.”
This might work. When I was teaching fifth grade and looking for summer reading books for my students, there were not a lot of good choices for boys. At least not books for boys that weren’t out of print.
H/T: Omnivoracious by way of Instapundit
