By Kitty Felde
Admit it. Our attention spans have shrunk in this era of social media. It’s even worse with kids. So how do you get a child to put down the phone and pick up a book?
One solution, offered by our neighbors to the north, is perfect for those of us with short attention spans.
Stop and Start.
Winters in Canada can be long and difficult. Add a ton of humidity and I’d say summers in Washington are even longer and more difficult. Both offer good reasons to stay inside. And both offer the perfect time to share a book with your child. Read one together.
You might find some resistance from a kid who’d rather spend summer vacation playing video games, but give it a try. “It’s okay if your child doesn’t want to finish the book,” says the Saskatchewan Literacy Network.
“Practice opening and closing it. Stop, and start again another time. You don’t need to read it all every time.” Five minutes of reading that first day. Maybe ten minutes the next. It all adds up.
Starting and stopping at just the right moment can create a cliffhanger – a tease that makes the child want to find out what happens next.
Don’t know which book to choose? Our bookclubforkids.org webpage has hundreds of suggestions on our Books We Love page from kids just like yours.
And don’t forget: it’s not too late to sign up for the DC Public Library’s Summer reading program. Swag like headphones, fidget spinners, and Nats tickets are available for those who complete the summer reading challenge.
Kitty Felde hosts the award-winning Book Club for Kids podcast and writes the Fina Mendoza Mysteries series of books set on Capitol Hill.