My 10th-Grader Hates Reading and Writing
QUESTION: I have a 10th-grader who hates reading and especially writing. He will read, under duress. But his writing is nonexistent. "Did you like this book? Explain why or why not?" His response is "I didn't like it. Because it was boring." To him that is enough. To the teacher he needs another two pages expanding on his answer. To my son, it's "I answered the question and gave a reason. What more does he want?" I know what the teacher wants, but how do I convey that need to my son?
I can understand your frustration. I have both boys and girls, and it has been my expereince that girls seem to love reading more than boys. My daughters will read all day, but we have to "pull teeth" to get our son to read. One suggestion that seemed to help us is find reading material on topics that he likes. For instance our son likes action and adventure, so we try to get him books on those topics. Also, when he reads we discuss it with him, and ask him opened ended questions to help him elaborate on what he just read. By making this a regular practice, we can monitor his comprehension and articulation skills. And, you can give your son an idea of what the teacher is looking for. Bottom line you need to keep stressing to him that he has to give the teacher what he/she is asking for if he wants to get a good grade. Your high school record follows you for the rest of your life, and you want to make sure it reflects favorable on you.
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