Most parents hope their kids will grow up to be readers. As adults, we know how cool books are, and we also know how good reading is for the development of little brains.
It can be hard, though, to get kids into it, and to sustain a habit when so many other things are vying from their attention – so if you’re looking for ways to motivate your little to read, here are 12 parents with some ideas that have worked.
12. Parents have to be practical.
Kids will be kids, after all.
My parents forbade reading after lights out. They also made sure we always had working flashlights, because once when my older brother took his lamp under the covers he caught his blanket on fire.
— Elizabeth Brenner (@eabrenner) August 14, 2020
11. She will realize it one day.
It will give her a warm feeling of being loved.
Somehow I’ve lucked out and have an 8yo who thinks secretly reading under the covers past her bedtime is an act of rebellion, and it hasn’t yet occurred to her that her flashlights never seem to run out of batteries.
— Robert McNees (@mcnees) August 13, 2020
10. What fantastic parents.
Those are the moments that stick with your kids.
I did this for so long that my dad got a clip on, plug in reading lamp and put on my bedframe one day while I was at school. He told me he would never be mad for my love of reading/learning ❤ I’ve never stopped since
— Nicole Marie 🔬 (@nikki_marie96) August 13, 2020
9. If there’s one thing parents know, it’s reverse psychology.
And it almost always works.
My dad used to check out science books from the library and specifically forbid me from reading them because they were “only for grownups.” Strangely, he always left them out on his desk.
— Rachel Martin (@rachelwmartin) August 14, 2020
8. Sometimes moms really do know best.
This was one of those times.
My mom didn’t care if I read in bed so I didn’t have to hide, except there was this one book when I was 10. She got it from the library & told me I was not to read it, which she never had done before, so of course I read that one undercover. Bad idea. pic.twitter.com/2Bq990zpgq
— Carrie (@CarrieDaivis) August 14, 2020
7. Because who grounds their kid from reading?
What clever parents.
I was such a bookworm when I was little that whenever I got in trouble, my parents would ground me from reading, rather than from going outside to play 😅 I’d hide under my bed with a flashlight and read anyway… just realizing now I that I somehow never got “caught” 🤔
— Chi-Min Ho (@mimi1inh) August 14, 2020
6. Stealing this as a parent.
Let them be mad for a few years.
This tweet is so good! Reminds me of my youth. I was never allowed to have a gamecomputer like a gameboy or Sega (which I wanted badly!). I was allowed to buy as many books and magazines as I wanted. When I got older I understood.
— Sil Aarts (@sil_aarts) August 14, 2020
5. Everyone is happy in this scenario.
The parents are alone, the kid is reading.
My parents explicitly told me when I was a kid that if I was in my room at night and they couldn’t hear me, they would just assume I had fallen asleep, even if a light was on. For many years, I thought I was getting away with staying up late reading, no flashlight required.
— Essential Employee (@amyep9) August 14, 2020
4. From one book lover to another.
We just get each other.
I remember thinking I was so clever doing this. One night I heard my mom coming down the hall and I did that whole panicked “turn off light and pretend to be asleep” routine. She opened my door and said, “honey just put the light on.” #lifelongbooklover
— Elyse Hope (@thehopefulgene) August 14, 2020
3. What a smart mom!
Who is going to stop reading when chores are waiting?
My sister and I thought we were SO sneaky when we’d beg to read “just one more chapter” before doing our chores. Many many chapters later, we’d eventually do them. Years later mom told us that she figured we’d learn to do chores, but she wanted us to love reading more. It worked!
— Abigail R 🌊 (@teacherlook) August 14, 2020
2. Reading is her job now!
Living the dream, people.
I used to do this, using the streetlight outside. My mum knew because I hid the books under my pillow. It was never just one book, but multiple hardcover books. Now I’m finishing a masters in English literature, and have over 3 bookcases crammed full of books + 2 more boxes full.
— Teagan Bowling-Henderson (PartialDwarf) (@ThePartialDwarf) August 14, 2020
1. I bet they never told their parents, either.
Why would they want to risk a new babysitter?
I did this too. 😊
And when I babysat, the deal I always made with the kids was that I’d let them stay up past their bedtime if they were in bed reading. My tiny movement to create a generation of bookworms.
— Layton E. Williams (@LaytonEWilliams) August 14, 2020
I’m putting these in my back pocket for when my kids get older!
Do you have any tips for growing readers? Share them in the comments!