Hello. My name is Patricia and I’m the mother of a 9-year-old reluctant reader.
“Hi Patricia!”
I have to say…I don’t have the most happy-motherly thoughts about having a son who doesn’t enjoy reading the way I did when I was younger. In fact, last week I had received a note from my oldest son’s teacher about how far behind he is on his Accelerated Reader testing for the quarter. He got the most logical, rational, inspirational pep talk I could muster last night.
It isn’t that my son isn’t able to read. He reads really well and is very good at the comprehension assessments when he applies himself. He just doesn’t enjoy it as much as doing math and science work. And when you layer on the pressures of having to read a prescribed amount every nine weeks, it’s become a delicate balance for me: inspiring your son to WANT to read vs. forcing him read to fulfill school requirements.
In late August the GeekMoms received an invitation to receive a complimentary signed copy of Tommy Greenwald’s book Charlie Joe Jackson’s Guide to NOT Reading for review, targeting 9-to-12-year-old reluctant readers. I raised my hand emphatically (okay, so it was an online “virtual” raising of my hand) and proclaimed that I have the perfect candidate! My 9-year-old.
I’m pleased to report that my son really enjoyed Charlie Joe Jackson and this book’s Accelerated Reader quiz took him to his reading goal for the quarter!
Read the rest of how the book worked for Patricia Vollmer’s son over on GeekMom.
