Finding Books For Your Kids To Read; Surprising Facts #LearnON [Sponsored]
Hi Chel! Thank you so much for sharing. Have you checked out the Scholastic books? I find they do a…
Do you have kids who do not enjoy reading? The facts from Common Sense Media’s latest research about kids, teens and reading both scared and surprised me. (I am a LearnON Ambassador, but no compensation received.)
Children, Teens and Reading Infographic
This infographic shows the information from the latest research.
Surprising and Scary Statistics
These statistics both surprise me and scare me. I’m surprised because my kids are always reading. When my kids were young, they didn’t like reading very much. I was never the kind to push it on them, but we always had a lot of books in the house and both Jason and I read a lot.
I would let my kids read anything including comic books on their tablet. I’ve found that if the kids pick out the books and enjoy the topic, they are more likely to read.
That reading must have rubbed off because all 4 of my kids now read a lot. My 15-year-old daughter will read books like, The Hunger Games, in a few days. I have a hard time keeping up with my kids’ reading habit.
These statistics are scary because that I know how much joy my kids (and I) get from reading and to think that so many kids are missing out on that fun is scary.
Finding Age Appropriate Books For Kids
Common Sense Media has a great resource for you to find age appropriate books for your kids to read. You will find book reviews and you can sort by genre, topic, age, award-winning and more.
Once you find a book, there is a lot of parent-specific information. The books are rated on
- Educational value
- Positive message
- Positive role models
- Violence
- Language
You will even find topics of discussion for families related to each book.
Have Books In Your Home
And this is what my nightstand looks like most of the time. I guess all the reading has rubbed off on my kids.
Were you surprised by the statistics? Do your kids read a lot? Do you read a lot?
Disclosure: I am a LearnON Ambassador and this post was written as part of that program. No compensation was received.
Hi Michele, I always enjoy your posts. I wanted to chime in on this one. I have 5 amazing kids, all grown now. My baby is 15! Where does the time go? I do have an adorable grandson who is almost 2. Anyway, when my kids were little, there always seemed to be a limited amount of books that were recycled over and over again of the same characters – the same type of characters. I see now through my grandson and my friends with 3-7 year olds, not much has changed sadly. There’s not one bit of diversity out there and when diversity is attempted, we generally end up with a single character of a different culture or race. Why in the world is this? I wish I knew because at those precious ages, children don’t care where you’re from or what you look like. Life is simple. They want to have fun, play, and they are beyond accepting. They don’t think past appearances and wow, how wonderful. This is why I felt I needed to share with you this fabulous children’s series I saw attached to a friend on Facebook. When I say attach, I mean I noticed she liked a few of their posts, and I checked it out. This series is full of diversity! From obvious appearances to their delightful bios, these girls called the BFF Crew, are a fantastic example of how children look at the world – with vibrance, acceptance, and kindness. I instantly fell in love with the images then the bios. My heart I thought would burst. I kept thinking, “Wow, I wish these girls were around when I was little; when my girls were little!” Anyway, I went and downloaded 2 of their books and I was not disappointed. One on self-image, the other on bullying. One of the girls is a bully who is basically reforming! Can you believe that? Teaching kids there are consequences, second chances, and understanding out there. These books were as honest to how kids react as I have ever seen a children’s book written. I was pleasantly surprised. It is said the next book is on autism and I have to say, I will get that one too. It has been a long time since feeling excited about a book series. Ironically, it is a children’s series. I see hope when I look at these girls. Most of all, I see hope for other girls and families. Ok, I’m done rambling. Lol
Hi Chel!
Thank you so much for sharing. Have you checked out the Scholastic books? I find they do a great job of offering very diverse selection of books. I’ll have to check out the BFF Crew books. I wish I could capture that youth way of looking at life and use it now as an adult. Wouldn’t that be great?