Great points, Heidi! The ultimate goal of reading is to interact with the content on a deep level of understanding.

This is a great question, Lucia!

The books you list are all higher level chapter books with more complex sentence structure and few pictures. It is quite a jump from picture books to Alice in Wonderland! Instead, consider trying lower level chapter books, more “beginner” chapter books. Here are some books reviews that would be great titles to try: Gooney Bird Greene, A to Z Mysteries, Ralph S. Mouse, and Encyclopedia Brown. Additional ideas that I found to be great first chapter book read alouds for my children are My Father’s Dragon and The Boxcar Children.

Once your son has enjoyed a number of these and other chapter books at similar levels, try Wizard of Oz again. The original Alice in Wonderland and the original translation of The Adventures of Pinocchio are fairly difficult books and may need to wait for a long while. And it may be just personal preference, but I never enjoyed Pippi Longstocking myself.

What does your son do when you read aloud to him? Some children listen better when their hands are busy. If he mostly just sits quietly, take a look at our blog post Reading Aloud to Kids Who Can’t Sit Still for ideas.

Also, instead of asking your son to tell you what happened in what you read, ask him what part he liked and then have a conversation from there. Why did he like that part? Was it funny? Exciting? What happened next? Tell him what part you liked and asked him if he liked that too. Why or why not? The question, “What happened?” can be intimating when you think back over all the things that can take place in a chapter of a chapter book. Focusing instead of favorite parts (or least favorite parts) and then thinking of “what happened next?” or “what happened before?” doesn’t feel so big and isn’t so hard to answer.

I hope this helps. Transitioning from listing to picture books to chapter books can be difficult for some children, but keep trying until you find the books that keep his attention and then move forward from there. Please let me know how it goes or if you have more questions.

Kira,
Listening well is definitely a skill that needs to be practiced in order to master it, but the great news is that it’s never too late to practice it! Enjoy learning listening comprehension with your children.

Heather,
Audiobook books are a great way to grow interest in reading!

Your children are getting so much great listening comprehension opportunities, Roxy! 😊

Sherryll,
Great question. Most books, even children’s books, are being produced as audiobooks today. Start with the books, or the authors, your child enjoys when you read aloud. Does he still prefer picture books? We have tons of Great Picture Book Reviews here. Or, is your child ready to listen to some easier chapter books. We have a number of Great Chapter Book Reviews as well. Gooney Bird Greene would be a great one to begin with!

See what your local library has. Most libraries now subscribe to digital media options that allow you to download audiobooks using your library card. My library has all sorts of children’s audiobooks, including Dr. Seuss, Goodnight Moon, Make Way for Ducklings, and many more.