STOP READING NOW!

How many times have you been told to READ MORE with your kids?

How often do you see these quotes floating around Pinterest, Instagram & Facebook?

"Readers are Thinkers"

"Today a reader, tomorrow a leader"

"A home without books is like a house without windows"

And so on....

Don't get me wrong, I LOVE reading. I got so hooked on a novel recently that I literally read it while I was walking from kitchen to car. 

BUT, here's a thought. 

How about those kids that aren't good at reading? They don't enjoy it? They can't sit still long enough? They have run out of books? They cry and argue? Get distracted easily? Reading time ends up in tears and everyone is miserable?

I'm going to suggest something radical! 

STOP FORCING THEM TO READ!

I know...you have to do your reading diary, so go ahead and do that. 

But at another time, try this:

Put the books back in the shelf. Turn off the television. And make up your own stories! Use your child's latest interests. Dinosaurs perhaps? Re-tell interesting events from your past. Act out scenes from your favourite films. Reminisce about when your kids were little and did funny things.

Set aside Time

Find a special time when everyone is home. On the weekend, a weeknight, every day, whatever suits your family. Set aside as much as you can spare, 20 minutes, 30 minutes, an hour? 

Involve Everyone

This is an activity for the whole family! Mum, Dad, Gran if she lives in your spare room, and all the kids. If you've got visitors, get them in on it too. Take it in turns to tell a short story? Make a whole story with everyone acting a part. Sit around the fire place and take it in turns to add the next twist to the tale. 

Voices

Use funny voices, put on accents belonging to your characters or impersonate the people in the story. Does old Uncle Johnny have a funny walk? Does Grandma have a funny accent, or pet names for the kids? 

Use Props

Who doesn't love to dress up for play with props? Use a remote control for a phone. Pretend the couch is Jack & Rose's Titanic. A hula hoop is a portal to another world! 

Film

If you have a mobile phone, a tablet, a video camera, a bloggie, an iPod, a web cam, virtually anything electronic can be used to film your story telling time. Keep these treasures for the most amazing memories. You never know, you could end up with a $500 prize on Funniest Home Videos, or a You Tube Sensation!

If you get really stuck, go back to the books, but find books with "things to do". This Dinosaur is So Big, is one of the favourites in my house! It has huge sturdy pages with bold colours and simple images. But best of all, it has MAGNETS! The kids can place the magnets on the pages to create their own version of the story. "This dinosaur is SO Big it can eat a <car><plane><couch><bus><house> for breakfast!" 

Take a book like this and act it out in the lounge room!

Just like reading, family story telling will encourage your kids to get in touch with their creativity, thinking outside the box and increasing their vocabulary. Using real life to influence fiction can help to learn about history, family upbringing and facts about life. And it just be some amazing time to spend together as a family, recounting precious memories and having fun without the pressure of parent-teacher diaries or homework chores. 

Do it this weekend and let me know how it goes! 
If you photograph or film it, share a link so we can see :) 

Happy Learning!