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Is the “Matthew Effect” Affecting Your Child’s Desire to Read?

Does your child dislike reading? Would your child rather do chores than read a book? Does your child avoid reading whenever possible? When it’s time for reading lessons, are there tears or grumpiness involved?

Children who dislike reading are usually struggling readers. Just as nonathletic people tend to avoid exercise, struggling readers tend to avoid books and everything else related to reading.

The Downward Spiral

Reading difficulties can be caused by many factors, including vision problems, learning differences such as dyslexia, or the lack of a solid phonics base. Whatever the cause, when a child has reading problems, it sets in motion a terrible downward spiral.

Downward spiral infographic dipicting the negative Matthew effect

It makes sense: when your child dislikes reading, he doesn’t get enough practice. Without practice, he doesn’t develop automaticity, and reading becomes hard—which leads to even less practice.

The Upward Spiral

Conversely, when reading comes easily to a child, it sets in motion a wonderful upward spiral.

When reading is easy for a child, he usually likes to read – and because it’s easy for him, he reads more. As a result, he develops automaticity, reading becomes even more pleasant, and he has excellent vocabulary growth. The upward spiral continues.

Upward spiral infographic dipicting the positive Matthew effect

After several years, the gap between children who are on the “downward spiral” and children who are on the “upward spiral” can become quite large.

This Is the Matthew Effect

As it relates to reading, the Matthew effect refers to the idea that good readers read more, causing them to become even better readers. Conversely, poor readers shy away from reading, which has a negative impact on their growth in reading ability. This causes the gap between good readers and poor readers to widen.

The Matthew effect comes from a parable told by Jesus and recorded in Matthew 25:29. The idea behind the parable eventually worked its way into the maxim, “The rich get richer and the poor get poorer.” The term Matthew effect was first used in the scientific field to explain how, when two scientists independently do the same work, the more prominent scientist often receives the credit for work done by the lesser known scientist. Later, cognitive science researcher Keith Stanovich1 applied the term Matthew effect to reading when he observed the effect that poor reading skills can have on all areas of a student’s academic life.

Children who are good readers experience more success, and they are encouraged by that success to read more. As they become even more successful at reading, their vocabulary and comprehension grows, which often leads to greater success in all academic areas. On the other hand, readers who struggle at decoding are less likely to want to pick up a book. They get much less practice and fall behind – often way behind – their peers. They fall behind not only in reading and spelling, but also in other content areas such as history and science.

This chart shows how the gap between good readers and poor readers widens as time goes on.

Graph showing gap between good readers and poor readers caused by the Matthew Effect widens as time goes on

How to Help Your Struggling Reader

The Matthew effect has such a strong negative impact on poor readers that the sooner you can intervene, the better. There are three ways you can help your reluctant reader, starting now:

  1. Teach your child how to read using an explicit phonics method such as All About Reading. In Anna Gillingham’s words, “go as fast as you can, but as slowly as you must.”
  2. Read aloud to your child every day. Hearing good literature will help your child develop vocabulary and comprehension, even while he is learning to read on his own.
  3. Encourage reading outside of school. Help your student select books that are at the right reading level for him and contain topics that interest him.

Above all, don’t get discouraged and don’t give up. Reading affects all other academic areas, so it is important to get your child the help he needs. If your child is struggling, please know that we are here to help.

Do you have a child who avoids reading? Let us know in the comments below.

Free report - '20 Best Tips for Teaching Reading and Spelling'

1 Stanovich, Keith E. (1986). Matthew effects in reading: Some consequences of individual differences in the acquisition of literacy. Reading Research Quarterly, 22, 360-407.

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Janice Martinez

says:

I am a teacher for over 30 years and a mother of 6 adult children. I work closely with children with learning disabilities for varying reasons. Any extra insight is always appreciated.

Robin

says: Customer Service

Wonderful work you are doing, Janice! We have lots of information on our blog about learning differences and struggles. Here are some that you may find helpful:
Dyslexia Resources Page
Teaching Reading and Spelling to Children with Autism
Auditory Processing Disorder: 10 Ways to Help Your Child
Dysgraphia: How can I help my child?
10 Tips for Reaching Your Struggling Learner
Signs of a Reading Problem
Break the “Word Guessing” Habit

Let me know if you have specific questions or concerns. I’m happy to help!

Stacy Sylve

says:

Hi,

My grandson is a struggling reader. He is 8 yrs old and in the 2nd grade. He shuts down when he don’t know a word and everything goes out the window. He comprehends very well, but struggles with the reading. He’s a sever hemophiliac and spent a lot of time in the hospital. He’s doing fine in his other subjects for now. When I work with him, I have to catch him when he is in a good mood to learn. Otherwise, he won’t know the words he already knows. For example, when he is in a good mood he can tell and spell words that we’ve worked on, and when he’s not in a good mood, he can’t remember all of a sudden. What can I do?

Robin

says: Customer Service

Stacy,
What you described with being able to easily read words sometimes and not being able to read them other times is somewhat common for struggling learners. It can be a sign that he hasn’t really mastered the foundational skills necessary for reading and spelling words easily, but sometimes he can compensate for those missing skills and other times he is unable to compensate.

The best way to address this is to ensure those gaps in his foundation are addressed. Our “No Gaps” Approach to Reading and Spelling could be just the thing!

Here are other links that may be helpful:
Signs of a Reading Problem
10 Tips for Reaching Your Struggling Learner
Helping Kids Sound Out Words
Placement for All About Reading and All About Spelling

Let me know if you have questions or if there is anything I can help you with.

Tabitha

says:

We the Bible app and follow song in a physical copy. It helps with word recognition and familiarity.

Robin

says: Customer Service

Thanks for sharing, Tabitha!

Khadia

says:

This article was really helpful for me to realize the difference between my husband and I because of this affect. And I’m happy to see scripture being quoted on your website! Thank you for all the resources you provide. I just finished our first week of AAR level 1 with my 6 yr old and I am already seeing her progress much quicker than with previous curriculums, and we are only on lesson 4. I just know this curriculum is going to work wonders for us already.
Signed,
A very hopeful mom.

Robin

says: Customer Service

Khadia,
I’m so excited to hear that All About Reading is making a difference for your daughter at just a few lesson in! Great work! Thank you.

Leah

says:

My daughter is 9 years old, the youngest of 6 children I’ve homeschooled and she is STRUGGLING! I have been doing AAR level 1 for about 3 years with her and she’s still not ready to proceed. She has the basic letter sounds down individually but regularly gets stuck on figuring out correct vowel sounds in the middle of a 3 letter word. She is making slow progress, but I get concerned that I’m missing something.

Robin

says: Customer Service

Leah,
I am so sorry to hear your daughter is struggling so with reading.

Please reach out to us by email at support@allaboutlearningpress.com with all the details you can about what you have been doing, how often, examples of the errors or struggles she is having, and so on. We will work with you as much as you need to help you help your daughter have success with reading! Those of us answering emails have all had personal experience with teaching struggling learners to read and spell successfully.

Sarah

says:

Hi, my 9 year old daughter is on step 8 of AAR3. She can decode pretty well and loves the games/activities, but still hates the reading in the book… Even though she does well. She loves audiobooks and would love to be able to enjoy reading chapter books for herself, but believes she won’t ever be able to understand them. She can currently read many/most words in, say, Boxcar Children, but doesn’t understand what has happened when she finishes the chapter. Help!

Robin

says: Customer Service

Sarah,
How does your daughter do when she reads the All About Reading Level 3 stories? Is she able to read them pretty fluently, needing to sound out no more than a few words on each page? Is she able to fluently read this story, “Rawhide,” from the end of All About Reading Level 2?

All About Reading includes research-based instruction in all aspects of reading, not only decoding skills but also fluency (as well as automaticity, comprehension, vocabulary and lots and lots of reading practice). If a student is not fluent in the Level 2 stories, the Level 3 stories will be genuinely too hard, even if the student can sound out every word easily. It may be that your daughter is struggling with reading the All About Reading Level 3 stories, and is unable to enjoy chapter books, because she is not yet ready for that level of reading.

For a person to fully enjoy reading, the level has to be at least somewhat easy and fluent for them. When a child needs to work hard to read each word, sentence, and paragraph, there is very little mental capacity left over for comprehension and enjoyment.

I’d love to help you help your daughter succeed with reading and learn to enjoy it. However, I need more information about her fluency with the stories, what you mean by “decode pretty well,” and so on. We can continue a conversation here, or you can reach me at support@allaboutlearningpress.com.

Sarah

says:

My 5 almost 6 year old son is struggling to even learn the names of the capital letters. We have done pre reading A, B ,C and D but he can’t remember their names. So I just continue on or do I keep redoing the lesson until he memorizes them?

Robin

says: Customer Service

I’m so sorry your son is struggling to learn the letters, Sarah. Here are some tips I think will make a difference:

Work on one letter for as long as it takes for him to master that one letter. So, since you are doing the Pre-Reading Level, it may be best to restart with Lesson 1 until he masters the letter A. Check out the many free Letter Learning activity downloads we have on our blog. These will give you more activities and fun things to do to add to his learning.

Write the letter in Salt Trays or other stuff like shaving cream, paint, chalk on the sidewalk, whatever. Send him on a search in favorite books for the letter A.

Sing the ABC song to him and have him point to the letter A when you come it. You will likely need to cue him when to point but encourage him to also sing the letter name with you.

Do all of this and more for days on end, until he can write the letter without having to see it or be told how it looks. Do it until he can find the letter easily in a page of writing and until he can name the letter without hesitation when you point to it.

Only then start learning B! But, review the previous A daily. Sing the ABC song and cue him to sing the letter names for A and B, helping as much as he needs. Have him form the B in dough or write it on the window or whatever multiple times a day, but also have him write the A a couple of times too. Again, keep working on the letter until he can write it and find and name it easily, but always reviewing the previous one daily.

Do this for each new letter, taking as much time to master each letter, and reviewing all the previous letters daily. In time, some of the previous letters will get really easy. As you near the end of the alphabet, you can try not reviewing every letter every day. But be sure to review every letter at least a couple times a week. At any time, if he has difficulty with a letter, it should go back into daily review for at least a week, preferably two.

This incremental, mastery-based approach will make all the difference in mastering the alphabet. For some children, all the letters are just too easy to confuse with each other. The names make no sense. Why is a B “bee” and a C “see”? And so many of them look alike. A and H, N and M, B and P, C and O. It’s a wonder more children don’t struggle!

I hope this helps, but please let me know how things go over the next few weeks. I’m very interested in hearing if he is mastering letters with this more mastery approach.

Jessica

says:

Just wanted to say how wonderful you guys are to take time to reply to each comment and give so much help. We’re just beginning All About Reading this year and I’m confident already!

Robin

says: Customer Service

Thank you, Jessica! It is important for us to be available and help as much as we can.

I’m glad that you are feeling confident about reading!

April

says:

My son is struggling with reading and comprehension help please he’s 9

Robin

says: Customer Service

I’m sorry to hear your son is struggling, April. Here are some articles that may help:
10 Tips for Reaching Your Struggling Learner
The “No Gaps” Approach to Reading and Spelling
Helping Kids Sound Out Words
Break the “Word Guessing” Habit

However, if you have specific questions or concerns, I’m happy to help!

Latifah Lynch

says:

My 7-year-old grandson doesn’t like to read. He knows he is not a good reader and he has convinced himself to deal with it. He also believes that it will come eventual. I am an educator. I want to help him.

Robin

says: Customer Service

I’m sorry your 7-year-old grandson is having troubles with reading, Latifah. Very often children do not like reading because it is difficult for them. It is such hard work that they have nothing left for enjoying it.

Here are some resources that can help you help him become better at decoding and then reading with fluency:
How to Teach Phonograms
Helping Kids Sound Out Words
Break the “Word Guessing” Habit
How to Develop Reading Fluency

Theresa

says:

Hi! Yes, my seven year old son can read the Level 2 books well in our All About Reading Lessons. He struggles with fluency so we break the stories up into two-three days. However, after he finishes a story he doesn’t like to read it again. I don’t know if I should instruct him or not because he then will feel like he is not progressing and be discouraged. He feels so proud when he finishes a story. He probably could use another practice run though. Suggestions on how to handle reading a story two times?

In addition, he says doesn’t like to read “outside” of the lesson. I encourage him to pick a reader at the library he likes so he can practice reading something he enjoys. He he doesn’t elect to read on his own. He still looks at the pictures only unless I instruct him to read an “outside” book. I think it is just hard and looking at pictures is easier. Am looking for any suggestions. But will continue the encouragement for him to read “outside” books. Thanks.

Robin

says: Customer Service

Theresa,
It is fine if he does not want to read outside books yet. The majority of books aimed at early readers are written with the idea that students will have memorized lots and lots of sight words, and so they will include words with more difficult phonics and concepts that your son has not yet been exposed to in Level 2. Having lots and lots of words that you can’t read in a book is very discouraging!

We keep a list of books that go along well with each level of All About Reading. If you would like the list, I can email it to you. Let me know.

Your son needs to be fluent with the Level 2 stories before he is ready to move into Level 3. If he is still needing to sound out most of the words in each story, he probably needs to slow down in Level 2 and spend more time reviewing so he can build fluency.

By the way, can he read the Level 1 stories smoothly and fluently, needing to sound out no more than a few words per page and misreading or needing help with no more than a few words total? This page has an excerpt of the last Level 1 story and below it is an audio file that will allow you to hear what fluent reading should sound like at that level.

If your son is not fluent with the Level 1 reading, then he is not ready to be working in Level 2. Level 2 assumes a student is fluent with the Level 1 words, sentences, and stories, and a child that is not fluent in Level 1 will soon find the Level 2 reading to be discouragingly difficult.

It’s is great that you are breaking up each story over two or three days. You are doing great with that! However, consider approaching the story a bit differently in those three days. Try having him read only the odd pages of the story and you read the even pages on the first day, so that he reads only half of the story but he hears (and maybe follows along) with the other half. Then the next day, you read the odd pages and he will read the even ones. Finally, on the third day, the story will be more familiar and he will be able to read the entire thing himself with some fluency. This Buddy Reading approach provides the scaffolding he needs, so that the story isn’t too difficult at first, but it also allows him to successfully read the story with some smoothness before moving on. Being able to read the story like that is so motiving for children that are struggling with fluency!

Also, consider having him reread stories from Level 1, or from many lessons ago in Level 2. Rereading stories from many lessons ago allows for fluency development, but also helps children to notice their own progress. When they read a story for the first time is it hard. But when they go back and reread a story for a few months ago, it is so much easier! The child can then get an idea of how much they have improved!

The fluency pages can be re-used as well. You might enjoy our 16 Ways to Make Practice Sheets Fun. (And check out the comments as well–lots of fun suggestions in there!)

Rereading will help accomplish these goals:
– Increase word rate
– Improve prosody. Prosody is “expressive reading.” It involves phrasing (grouping words into meaningful phrases), emphasis, and intonation (raising pitch at the end of questions, lowering pitch at the end of sentences)
– Improve automaticity (be able to recognize most words automatically without having to sound them out each time)

You can also do a variation of buddy reading called “echo reading.” You read a few sentences with full expression, and then your child reads the same sentences, matching your expression as close as possible. Do this for approximately five minutes a day, or whatever is a comfortable length of time for your child. Add in lots of praise when your child shows even a bit of improvement.

The “Fun with Emojis” article gives an enjoyable way to work on reading with expression too. This can be a great way to make reading fun that also sneaks in some extra practice from the fluency pages or readers. Check out Reading with Expression for this activity and others.

I hope this helps, but please reach out to me if you have questions or need more ideas and help. I’m available here or at support@allaboutlearningpress.com, and I am always happy to help! My youngest child took a long time to become a confident, fluent reader, so I understand.

Lorra

says:

I also would love this list of outside books.

Robin

says: Customer Service

Lorra,
I have emailed you the list of books that go along pretty well with each level of All About Reading.

Also, you (or anyone else) can request the list by emailing us at support@allaboutlearningpress.com.

Rachel Holthaus

says:

Hi Robin, Can I have the outside reading list of books that go with reading Level 1 too?

Robin

says: Customer Service

I’ve emailed you, Rachel.

Lissa

says:

I would love to have that outside reading list please!
Lissa

Robin

says: Customer Service

I emailed it to you, Lissa.

Beth

says:

Great article~ thanks!

Robin

says: Customer Service

You’re welcome, Beth!

Saranya

says:

Yes my daughter is reluctant to read books. Her vocabulary is very poor. Even when speaking she uses wrong words, but don’t have a problem while reading text books. She had taken Montessori method during her earlier years.

Robin

says: Customer Service

Saranya,
It would be very beneficial for your daughter to spend time daily listening to books being read aloud or to recorded audiobooks. Listening builds language skills.

In addition, our How to Build Your Child’s Vocabulary blog post will be very helpful for you.

rakhi jain

says:

yes i want to get those jpurnals

Melissa Franzen

says:

My son has completed levels 1 and 2 of all about reading. We are just starting level 3. My son is 7, and he doesn’t seem to enjoy the more challenging level 3 stories. I notice he is often skipping/reversing words and reading the first part of a sentence and throwing in his own guess to finish the sentences.

Robin E.

says: Customer Service

Melissa,
I’m sorry your son is having difficulties with the All About Reading Level 3 stories.

How well is he able to read the Level 2 stories? Can he read them smoothly and fluently, needing to sound out no more than a few words per page and misreading or needing help with no more than a few words total per story?

If he is not yet fluent with the last few Level 2 stories, then that would be the cause of his difficulties with the Level 3 stories. If students are not fluent in the previous level, the stories will be too long and difficult.

If he is fluent in the Level 2 stories, it could be that he has learned that reading fluently is quicker and easier, so he is trying to read Level 3 “fluently” by guessing. If that is the case, just wait until he finishes a sentence and then ask him to reread it exactly as written. This rereading will slow everything down again, so that reading accurately the first time will become the faster approach.

Also, there is a chance it could be a vision problem. Even if a child has fine vision previously, things can change as they grow. He may be having difficulty because he isn’t seeing the smaller print of the Level 3 stories well.

We have a blog post on Overcoming Obstacles When Reading AAR Stories I think you will find helpful.

Do let me know how fluently he was able to read the last few Level 2 stories. Knowing that can help narrow down the issue. I’m happy to help you help him overcome this difficulty!

Holly

says:

Oh, and another thing! My grandson has ADHD and is a distractible wiggler who also loves to be read to. When I began reading long chapter books to him, I got him a companion plush “buddy” (as he calls it): a small wolf cub for “A Wolf Called Wander,” a dog toy with three little squirrels in a log with holes for “Nuts to You,” and a baby great horned owl (he bought 2 more) for “Owls in the Family.” He can play with them, or snuggle them while I read, and I hope that when he plays with them after we finish the book, they will bring back positive, comforting memories (and maybe some details about the book itself!). Now, at 8 years old, we don’t require a reading buddy, but I may do it again for a treat.

Robin E.

says: Customer Service

What a fabulous idea, Holly! I love that you found toys to go along with the books you are reading aloud to increase your son’s connection and positive associations with being read to! Really, a great idea! Thank you for sharing it!

Holly Camp

says:

I tutor my 8-yr-old grandson (with AAS AND AAR!) We’ve found that each of us reading either every other page or, on his hardest days, every other sentence keeps the book flowing and he’s able to read more “with a glad heart.” I also give him $1 for every little book (Bob-like) and $5 for a bigger book (Cat in the Hat) he reads alone/aloud. When he has his eye on something to buy, his reading reluctance ebbs! When reading itself is not that rewarding, outside motivation helps a lot.

Robin E.

says: Customer Service

I did Buddy Reading with my daughter a lot when she was that age too, Holly! It’s a great technique for helping a student that struggles.

Cassandra

says:

My second grader says he hates reading but at the same time he loves books almost as much as his bibliophile momma. He does struggle with decoding a little and he refuses to be wrong about something so it can be impossible to get him to sound out words. I don’t know if he is too old to start the All About Reading program…he actually reads at grade level now even though he hates it. We are planning to do the All About Spelling program for next year, though. I wish I had found your product last year when we started homeschooling!

Robin E.

says: Customer Service

Cassandra,
Second grade is not too old to start All About Reading!

All About Reading can be started at any level. We have placement tests to help you determine what level your child is ready for. You will be looking for the highest level that he can read the placement test story smoothly and fluently, needing to sound out no more than a few words per page and misreading or needing help with no more than a few words total. That will be the level he is ready to begin.

You may find our Helping Kids Sound Out Words blog post helpful as well.

Mary Bedel

says:

I can’t tell you all how much I appreciate your program. Five of my friends/acquaintances have purchased your program because I praised it so highly. And what’s more important (to me) is that my daughter who struggled terribly is very motivated to learn to read and is keeping pace with her lessons with both ease and enjoyment. Reading quality books is very important in our household and I don’t know what we would have done if she couldn’t ever quite succeed. Thank you so much!

Robin E.

says: Customer Service

You are so welcome, Mary. And thank you for sharing our program with others! It’s the best praise!

Jessica Marin

says:

my son likes to do everything except read

Robin E.

says: Customer Service

I’m sorry to hear that, Jessica. However, often children dislike reading because it is hard work for them. Most people will avoid a task that is hard work! In such situations, building a child’s skill with reading so that it becomes easy will help them to stop avoiding and rather find it enjoyable.

Mildred

says:

I have a child whom I suspect might have dyslexia he struggles with reading and writing

Robin E.

says: Customer Service

I’m sorry your child is struggling, Mildred. We have a Dyslexia Resources page that I think you may find helpful. Please let me know if you have questions or specific concerns I can help with.

Karen

says:

All I can say right now is that some children pick-up reading more readily than others. One of my grandchildren is not that fortunate but because of moms out there that have had the same experience they have found things that work for auditory disfunction and other challenges. Those challenged children when educated properly often end up ahead of children that pick-up reading easier. Thank you for all you do. Language rules are so important to these children. Sounds, decoding is what gets them to read. It is not easy for them but they start reading and grow from there. Don’t push. See when they are tired and quit for some fun time, games, make learning an enjoyable experience for all children.

Robin E.

says: Customer Service

Thank you, Karen! Great points and reminders to make learning enjoyable.

JoAnn

says:

Yes I have a 4 th grader

Cay

says:

Marie Rippel is totally on target with this article. The maxim is true, if you can get them to like reading, they just take off! Our daughter began reading at age 4, and so did our son. It has allowed us to advance them in every academic subject because their vocabulary is greater, and they can study autonomously, with less parental assistance. We begin alphabet familiarity at age 2 with our kiddos, using kinesthetic manipulables like the Teach My Toddler kits on Amazon, then switch to Progressive Phonics (free, just google it) in Kinder, then into regular textbooks in 1st grade at age 4/5. Thanks to the kinesthetic/phonics foundation, our kids are 2 years ahead of regular reading level and in all other subjects except for history. (History has some complex relational concepts that a child just can’t wrap her mind around too early in life.) I did struggle awhile getting our now-5-year-old son to pick up a book and begin reading on his own outside of lessons, and finally hit the jackpot with Batman and pirate readers from the library. (Guess it had to be a subject that he loved.) Marie Rippel is 100% right that a phonics base is critical to strong reading in the early years. And getting them to LIKE reading is also imperative.

Tiffany Lewis

says:

I love how this information is displayed. Is it okay to share this information with parents?

Robin E.

says: Customer Service

We always appreciate when links to our articles are shared, Tiffany! Thank you.

However, if you wanted to print the information or share it in another way, please email us at support@allaboutlearningpress.com with details on how you wish to do so.

Sarah

says:

I am hoping our story will encourage some of you. I have two children with dyslexia. Our oldest struggles mightily with dyslexia while our youngest has a milder form of the same struggles. We have homeschooled from day one, but it wasn’t until 3rd grade that I was able to pinpoint what was going on with our oldest. He compensated in many ways that hid how badly he was struggling, until he couldn’t move forward. I spent that summer reading through The Gift of Dyslexia by Ron Davis and implementing some of the exercises. This was important because we came to realize our son wasn’t seeing punctuation at all. The light bulb moment for us was when he was able to tie the period in a sentence to the stop button on the CD player. We also began All About Reading at the start of his 3rd grade year (we did things in reverse because we didn’t know better and started All About Spelling in 2nd grade). My son’s confidence soared at the start of AAR as he was able to blow through the first level and part of the 2nd. The rest of our ride was bumpy but he graduated from AAR. Now 14 and in 9th grade we are still working through AAS. I love that AAR and AAS use levels and not grades. My son knows he is behind but our focus has always been progress not a grade level. He is ahead in math, so there’s that too! We, as a family, have always used audio books in the car, and we have listened to a wide array of stories. I still group read with all the kids and also encourage reading on their own. Graphic novels are a great way to introduce struggling readers to independent reading. It’s not just potty humor (Dogman I’m looking at you!) anymore either. There are great biographies and non-fiction options being published. Graphic novels have blown me away for many reasons. The pictures help to give visual queues and comprehension for many types of readers and as a child they up the fun content of a book. Many graphic novels were written by dyslexic authors, which should tell us something, too. After years, and I do mean years, of my oldest reading graphic novels because he could tolerate them, and he truly does love stories, I was beginning to despair that he would ever pick up a “normal” book. He is 14-1/2, and he just picked up two historical fiction books that had been sitting on our shelf. He blew through one and is currently reading the other because they are engaging and new. I could not have forced this even half a year ago. I’ve searched for every graphic novel we were okay with him reading and tried to keep options in front of him with no pressure. Oftentimes books go back to the library that he won’t touch. This is a major victory and it has been a long, slow process. He will probably never have the smooth cadence of a reader who doesn’t struggle but he continues to read, daily, and that is the victory I wanted for him more than anything. To enjoy stories for himself. We are in the throes of some of this with our youngest, who also graduated from AAR this past year. We couldn’t afford or travel to the Orton-Gillingham center that is in our area so I’ve had to do a lot of research and trial and error. I so appreciate the additional information that AAR and AAS provide. These programs gave us a big leg up on the things we were struggling with and gave me a springboard to better understand and help my kids grasp strategies to move forward. Maturity after 12 seems to play a big part in reading skills for dyslexic kids, so don’t despair! It’s a slow road but worth the work when you begin to see progress. Celebrate those small victories!

Robin E.

says: Customer Service

Thank you so much for sharing your sons’ stories, Sarah! I am sure it will be very encouraging to many!

We have a blog post on Motivating Readers with Graphic Novels that includes title suggestions, although most are for younger readers. It would be great if you could add some of your son’s favorite titles to the comments of that post!

Mary Anna Coleman

says:

Thank you for sharing your story. I have been using AAR with my son but it has been a slow process, he turned 13 this year and it seems like things are starting to click. If I compare his reading level to other children his age, I can get discouraged but as a believer in Christ – our hope is in Him and we don’t know His purpose in allowing these trials in our life but we know He never wastes what we walk through! This journey is more than being “on grade” with the other kiddos at church, this is character building for my son (and for his Moma, too!) I so appreciate your story. It is great to know I am not alone on this dyslexic road with my amazingly bright but struggling boy that I am privileged to call my son!!

Murielle Vich

says:

Thank you for sharing your story. It is inspiring and reminds me that there is light at the end of the tunnel. I have a 8 years old girl who struggles with dyslexia and who desperately wish she could read… Your story gives me hope.

rajeev sharma

says:

very informative article

Donald Errol Knight

says:

Interesting and clear explanation.

Robin E.

says: Customer Service

Thank you, Donald.

Holly Arthur

says:

My 11yo daughter did AAR4 when she was in 4th grade after testing her, she did great on the test, but had never learned any rules of reading in public school (she was in public k-3rd) and AAR4 was good for her – she few through it in just a few months. She also did AAS1-4 that year too, 5 and part of 6 last year and we are finishing up 6 now about to move to 7. Little brother did start with AAS1 so she has heard much of AAR1&2 and now 3, and she loves them and is so jealous of the games and often joins in the games …BUT!!! Books her own 6th grade reading level she thinks are boring. She doesn’t want to read them. If I read them aloud, she loves them. She can read a chapter to herself and get nothing from it. If I read it aloud she could repeat the whole thing back to me. But I want her to be independent. I don’t even know where to help her. Sometimes I have her read aloud to her little brother from her books and they seems to help her…we just don’t have the hours in the day to do that everyday. Any ideas or suggestions to get her to love reading on her own? I actually know I was in a similar boat in 3-5th grade and I pretended to love to read because everyone thought I was smart (I was really only good at math! Haha!) but at some point in 5th grade it all changed and I read too much! I always had a book in my hand and to this day I love to read. I just don’t know what to do to get it to clock on for her. I know she is a good reader for listening to her read aloud, but I also know something is missing since she does not want to nor enjoys reading books to herself. Help!

Robin E.

says: Customer Service

You’ve received some great suggestions, Holly. I have a bit more too.

The most important thing you can do with your student now is read-read-read! Set a daily reading time for your daughter to read for 20 to 30 minutes at least five days a week. After finishing All About Reading level 4, students often need more practice to build their stamina for reading and to practice the skills they learned for decoding unfamiliar words.

Only when reading becomes so easy that it is second nature does it become truly enjoyable for a person. Before then, it is hard work and when it’s hard work there is little left for understanding what was read. The only way for reading to become that easy is to practice, practice, practice.

Try to choose books that interest her, both fiction and non-fiction. It is preferable if the books (or magazines or articles) are easy or comfortable for her, even if that means below her grade level. Our article What Happens after All About Reading? has a lot of suggestions.

Have your student keep reading aloud a little each day (10 minutes or so, with the rest of the time reading silently). You can use all of the strategies that she has learned to help him decode unfamiliar words. After she reads to you each day, make note of any difficult words and use those as a teaching lesson the next day where you walk through those syllable division rules and other decoding skills she has learned.

I had my students continue reading aloud to me for short periods into high school. I also found it helpful to have my kids read their directions to me for things like math, grammar, or other workbook-oriented work. Then I had my kids explain what they were to do in their own words. This kind of synthesis of directions helped not only with daily school work but also for understanding things like test questions. It cut down on mistakes due to misunderstanding directions (or misreading them) and helped me continue to further their vocabulary with relation to specific subjects.

When you listen to a student read aloud, you can hear what struggles she may be having with reading and then focus your teaching on those things. You may find that she is skipping small words, reading too fast, getting stuck on difficult words, or reading without expression, in a monotone way. The last isn’t just a stylistic issue; it is quite difficult to get meaning from a long passage read without expression.

Have her sometimes re-read passages she has read previously so that you can work on reading with expression too. Do a combination of “cold reads” (things she hasn’t read before) and “warm reads” (re-reading a familiar passage to work on reading with expression.)

Make and use flashcards for review (this helps quite a bit!). Put those harder words on word cards to give her additional review. Here’s a blank word card template you can use, or just use index cards for those words you want to review.

When my kids were in the upper levels of All About Spelling (especially 6 and 7), I often used the word banks for additional fluency practice and also for teaching words that they didn’t know (sometimes they had heard a word but were not sure what it meant).

We recommend continuing reading aloud to her as well. It sounds like you already have that handled well! I read to my kids throughout high school–there are so many benefits, and it helps students continue to develop language and vocabulary skills plus increase their knowledge base at a pace that might not be possible otherwise. Listening comprehension and reading comprehension are related, and there is also a relation between hearing good writing and being able to write well (hearing good writing helps with a student’s own writing even more than reading good writing does). It may seem odd to be reading aloud to a student that reads well, but it is still important. It doesn’t have to be just fiction, however. You could read history books, science, fiction, the Bible, poetry, and the best thing is likely a variety of all sorts of material over the course of a year.

Watch for words in read-alouds and in your student’s reading that may be unfamiliar, and stop to talk about words to help him know what they mean. Here’s an article on How to Build Your Child’s Vocabulary. You’ll also want to discuss unfamiliar situations to keep adding to his cultural knowledge, and so on.

I hope this helps! Please let me know if you have additional questions.

Linda

says:

Some suggestions:
Read aloud together. That way you can read most of it so she enjoys and benefits from hearing the book, and she doesn’t have to work so hard at it. Also, she will hear the words as she reads them, which should help her comprehension. You can adjust how much each of you reads as you see how she reacts. Some people insist on reading everything just right and finishing everything, so that reading becomes a chore. It is alright to stop and talk about the story, what is happening, what do you think will happen next, etc. And, you can stop before it becomes hard and come back to it later. Definitely choose an interesting book, perhaps one she already knows and likes. Reading the same book multiple times has many advantages if she would enjoy that, but not if she balks at that.
There would be absolutely nothing wrong with going back to the levels she loves and is jealous of and working through them at her pace. It could fill in gaps, be fun and build her confidence.
Keep reading wonderful books to them; it builds family bonds, keeps them learning while reading is still hard, demonstrates smooth reading with expression and so much more. It was the best part of our homeschool.
Prayers that she learns to love reading! :)

Courtney

says:

Hi,
I just wanted to follow up on the possible eye concern. You would want to see a developmental optometrist. Ophthalmologist track whether you see, but optometrists track how you see – do the letters look big or squiggly? Just something to consider!

Marlo

says:

My son was diagnosed with convergence insufficiency by an optometrist. Optometrist study the development of the eyes for 4-6 years. Not all optometrist offer vision therapy. Whereas, Ophthalmologist go to medical school for 4 years and then receive 2 years training on the eyes. My son is participating in vision therapy and has experienced much success. It has and continues to improve his quality of life! If you can, please read Jillian’s Story. It’s about a young girl and her journey through vision therapy. It is worth the time and money!

Carol

says:

I must say in just reading this post that I would be VERY CAREFUL here in your advice between an optometrist versus an ophthalmologist. An ophthalmologist is a medical doctor with additional specialty training in eye conditions, diseases, and surgery, including brain function involving vision. An optometrist is NOT a medical doctor, they have some training in eye anatomy, conditions, and obviously technical training for vision correction with glasses, contacts, etc… but please be careful with making claims that aren’t accurate. There is a huge difference between the two and both have their scope and place in eye care. An ophthalmologist has a much broader scope of training as well as much more comprehensive and in depth training in terms of the eye, eye conditions, and vision. The best place to start if you have vision concerns for a child is by seeing a pediatric ophthalmologist which is a children’s eye specialist. Children’s eyes and muscles are developing, and there are certain developmental windows where patching, etc… are critical during certain years to strengthen the muscles of the eye. I would be extremely cautious to go to an optometrist who claims a specialty in “developmental optometry.” I have had friends who have gone to such optometrists and paid a tremendous amount of precious developmental time and money for “vision therapy” that was completely ineffective and to be honest – it was quackery. They lost not only money, but significant time in their child’s development and vision.
Optometrists are very helpful but they need to stay in their lane. I would recommend seeing a pediatric ophthalmologist for any vision concerns as a place to start. Also be aware that what may seem like a vision issue (and it’s good to make sure their vision is good to rule out any obstacles there) if your child is a struggling reader, but then to recognize it may be a brain issue (like dyslexia). I have children with dyslexia who are now in college and thriving and I’m so grateful I did not waste precious time and resources on vision “treatments” when what they desperately needed was educational intervention – and the earlier it’s addressed- the better. I just want to spare any parent of making that costly mistake. Children are so amazingly resilient and capable when given the support and tools that they need like AAR and AAS.

L.L.

says:

Holly, I don’t normally read posts, much less reply to them. But something about your post caught my eye and I’d like to share my experience in case it helps you. I have a now 13 year old with a similar issue. When he read something, he could read the words well, but could not answer any questions about what he just read – even a short paragraph. But if I read to him, the comprehension and retention was incredible.
Our younger child had an eye condition for which we were regularly seeing an optometrist. I decided to make an appointment for this older one to get his eyes checked – even though the “eye exam” from the pediatrician always indicated his vision was great. (This so-called eye exam always tests them from across the room and is very limited.) During the eye exam with the actual optometrist, it was discovered that he is far sighted and he had insufficient convergence. So, his eyes had difficulty focusing on the up close words. His brain was so busy trying to decide where to focus the eyes, it couldn’t retain any information he had read. The child had never complained or expressed this problem. Since his eyes had always been that way, how could he know that wasn’t normal? Some low strength reading glasses made a HUGE difference.
We are also doing vision therapy to train the eyes to track better. His eyes have always “tracked” well during a regular exam (following the pencil without moving the head), but a machine test showed just how much his eyes jumped back and forth between words while reading a paragraph (excessive saccadic eye movements). All that to say, it may be worth considering a visit with an optometrist who is at least familiar with vision therapy to see if there are any vision issues causing the problem.
I don’t know where you live, but this is the doctor who has helped us so much. http://www.brecheenlearning.com.
There is also information on this issue and some exercises in the form of games at http://www.engagingeyes.com.

L.L.

says:

Holly,
Whatever is causing your child’s aversion to independent reading, I have prayed that God leads you in the right direction. I do know this is a frustrating place to be. I so wish I had found out sooner what my child’s problem was. If I may, I would like to say one more thing. Vision therapy is often misunderstood and attacked…it is not merely eye exercises. It is also actually training the brain as vision is 90% brainwork. Many people have seen success with it. It can indeed work if the problem is something that vision therapy can address.

Holly Arthur

says:

Thank you so much! We actually went to the optometrist (? Ophthalmologist? Now I’m not sure which!) just a few weeks ago, but I was wondering if there could be something like this going on too. I will have to see if I can find a doctor like to recommended around here!! Thank you!

Marie Stewart

says:

My grandson(just turned 7) can sound out his words and spell them, but it does not like reading. He says it is because he doesn’t know the book. So I have decided to start reading the book to him first a couple of times and then see if he will give it a try.

Robin E.

says: Customer Service

Marie,
When students need to sound out every word, they usually don’t have enough focus left to understand and enjoy what they are reading. This could be what he is trying to express when he means he doesn’t know the book.

Your idea to read the book to him first, so he does know it, is a great idea! You could try Buddy Reading as well.