I need to ramp up my son's reading...

[Kelli in TN]

My soon to be 8th grader is capable of reading well, but he does not like to read dense material. I am convinced that this is not an issue of ability but an issue of perserverance.

I need to formulate a plan to help him learn to sit still and read dense materials for a long period of time. I want to have him ready for high school reading. Ninth grade is the ancients and that is some dense reading material!!

So, with a year to get him to where he needs to be, how can I improve his reading comprehension and stick-to-itness?

[Tarheel Heather]

Kelli,

Have you looked at The Well Educated Mind. Most of rec. are for adults as far as reading goes, but you may be able to get some tips from it.

I suggest this because you stated it wasn't his ability. There are ideas on breaking up the reading and taking notes and the like.

[Beth in Central TX]

Hi Kelli,

I'd like to suggest the McCall-Crabbs Standard Test Lessons In Reading found here: http://www.bhibooks.net/catalog/item/4154960/4106148.htm with answer key here: http://www.bhibooks.net/catalog/item/4154960/4106161.htm

I think you can find this cheaper at Rainbow Resource, but be sure to get this book. The newer editions have separated the books and "modified" the selections.

Last year, I started this book with both of my older sons who had lower than expected reading comp results on their standardized testing scores. The book is really easy to use. I started at the beginning of the book, and they do one test a day which takes 3 minutes. I've seen an increase in the reading comp in both boys, but especially in my older son's ability (who doesn't read as well as his younger brother).

In addition, I've also seen that my oldest son now reads his literature books faster, as well as, understanding what his is reading better. I think it's a result of the McCall-Crabbs book because the more he understands the faster he reads, and the faster he reads & understands, the less frustrated he becomes as he reads. He has picked up books this year that would have been a battle to get him to read last year.

Of course, this is just a suggestion. You may not think it will be helpful for your situation though, but it has given us added benefits that I never expected.

[readwithem]

Build into his schedule large blocks of time for reading. We tend to have "read to ourselves" time right after lunch. You might have him write some papers/essays to get a feel of his writing strengths. Also see whether your library has Teaching Company tapes for literature. Great Authors of the Western Literary Tradition is currently on sale but still pricey at ~$200.

[Carol in Cal.]

Pick a higher level book and focus on it for 10 weeks, while reading other books as well. I wouldn't use TLP all the time, but for once in a while it is a pretty good program to promote a close reading.

Also, have you done any work on vocabulary with him? Seems to me that I recall that, like me, you are in possession of some lovely but unused Latin materials. Maybe Vocabulary Vine would be a good alternative--it promotes learning Latin and Greek roots, and is a great enhancer to students' ability to figure out the meaning of obscure words. (BTW, they have a follow on VV set that covers science roots specifically--I hear that it's a very helpful precursor to high school biology as well as to general vocabulary building.) TLP also helps with vocabulary--it helps walk kids through figuring out the meaning of words from contextual clues.

Do you still read to him at all? Would he put up with that? I have found that my (kept) promise to continue to read to my DD even after she learned to read has served us very well. She is almost 12, and it still gives us cuddle time, enhances her ability to follow complex, old-fashioned sentence structures, affords me a natural way to teach her vocabulary ("So, have you heard this word before? Well, it means...), and often provides enough of an introduction to a more difficult book that she is hooked enough to take it and read it on her own.

I do like the list of comprehension/discussion questions in TWTM, logic stage. Those guidelines for discussion are really, really helpful.