Getting your teen to read

It's a common complaint amongst parents: teens won't read.  It's not a matter of them not being able to read but rather that they don't want to read.  Reading is important at any age and with subjects like British literature and American literature calling in high school, it is necessary that they read.

A great way to get your teen reading is to start a book club.  By gathering a group of teens (preferably friends) you can form a co-op/book club where you (the Facilitator) choose books for the group to read and meet either once or twice a month to discuss the book.  As time goes on you can then alternate with letting the teens facilitate the group to give them responsibility.

The choice of books can be a difficult one, particularly if all of the teens in the group are coming from different backgrounds.  For example:  if you have a group made up of all Christian kids, you may want to choose books that aren't too secular and therefore won't offend the teen (or their parent).  If your group is mixed, try and keep everyone's feelings and beliefs in consideration.  The most important aspect to keep in mind to have a successful teen book club is to choose books that deal with teen issues.

With the popularity of the "Twilight" series and the "Harry Potter" series, it was obvious that teens were reading.  In fact, these series became so popular that the parents were reading them as much as the kids!  These books are not for everyone and so be sure to discuss with parents of the teens in your group the kind of books that you would like to cover.  You will not be able to please everyone all of the time so be careful in how you promote your club.

You can check with your local library for a listing of books that are teen appropriate or go to sites like Barnes and Noble and look under teen books or go to Teenreads.com and see what they recommend.  As the adult, you should choose at least the first book, but after that try and open it up to the group to decide what they want to read about - particularly if the teens are taking part in facilitating the group.

If you allow them to read about something that interests them, you can guarantee that your teen will read.  If you set it up that they are getting to discuss the book with their friends and peers, you're adding a little fun in to the mix too.  They'll hardly realize that it's good for them!