Keys to encourage reading in adolescence
Although it is common that when they reach the adolescent stage our children have already discovered the love for reading, there are tricks to get those who have not yet done so to learn to enjoy it. If a teenager is not used to reading, it is unlikely that one afternoon he will change his cell phone for a book. However, parents can be encouraged to join the world of reading.
5 keys to encourage reading in adolescence
Some of these keys may be helpful in awakening interest in reading in young people:
1. Books that interest them. There is a wide range of juvenile literature that, although possibly not going to the history of essential works, is thought and written in terms of the interests of young people. If they want to start with these books, we should not criticize their decision or we risk causing an effect contrary to the desired one.
2. Books in comic format. For teenagers who read very little, a good access route is the book in comics. The production is very varied and allows to find interesting material. Young people who have been born in the audiovisual environment will find an incentive in this format. From here they will move on to another.
3. Books of movies or fashion series. If they already know the plot and the characters through the screen, it will be easier for them to enter the reading.
4. Books that they buy. It is important to allow adolescents to have their own areas of freedom and decision. We can agree with them that a certain gift will be a book and accompany them to buy it without participating in the election.
5. Books in digital format. If they spend a good part of the day near digital devices, they will be more likely to be interested in a book they have available in digital format.
Tips to instill interest in reading
We parents have some tasks to encourage these habits by reading:
1. Recommend but never impose. The book that had an overwhelming success in the previous generation may be a failure in this. We can encourage our children to read what we liked, but we should not force them since fashions and tastes have changed. A book that does not like deters reading.
2. Reading can not be a punishment. If we use reading as a weapon against other hobbies or as a punishment for not carrying out certain tasks, we will only get them to develop a greater aversion to books.
3. Be informed. We need to know the editorial novelties, to be interested in the content of the books, for their suitability for each age and circumstance in order to help our children with the choice of titles.
4. The example of the parents. Education by example does not end in childhood. It is important that parents maintain certain routines for their children to follow. In a house where no one reads, teenagers are less interested in reading.
Alicia Gadea
