Navigating Your Gifted Child’s Reading Needs
How do you balance nurturing your child’s reading skills and providing age-appropriate literature?
Is your child beginning to bring home stacks of library books? Are they starting to struggle to find books that challenge and interest them? How do you balance teaching your child to read and providing age-appropriate literature? Here are some ways to help your advanced reader.
Have a Discussion With a Librarian
If you’re trying to foster your advanced reader’s love of books, librarians will be happy to help. They’re devoted to researching and analyzing children’s literature. Thus, school and public librarians can provide reading materials excellent for challenging your child without being age-inappropriate.
Read Book Descriptions and Reviews
Librarians can recommend the most convenient ways to preview a book’s content. Amazon provides well-organized book descriptions that detail age ranges, grade levels, and Lexile measures. Publisher websites usually categorize their books according to age group. You can also browse through reviews on Amazon or Goodreads to see what parents say about a book’s content. Otherwise, sites like Common Sense Media are devoted to reviewing and rating pieces of media for specific age groups.
Let Them Navigate Finding a Book at the Library
Does your child gravitate towards fantasy epics, or are they more interested in historical fiction? If your child is an advanced reader, they’re probably already selecting their books. Consider asking them about what they’re reading and why they enjoy it. Is it because of the lessons they teach? Are there characters that resonate with them? Are they attached to a specific genre? Reviewing books that your child enjoys can help you get an idea of what they might like in the future and how to help them select new books. When you visit the library, allow your child to explore the stacks and chat with librarians about their reading preferences to get recommendations.
Encourage Your Child to Participate in Library Events
Encourage your child to join a book club or participate in library programs with other children. Find out if there’s a program that caters to their favorite genre or advanced reading level. Many librarians provide expert literature selections for your age and reading level. Plus, book clubs and library events encourage children to engage in constructive discussions that analyze the text deeper. They may also meet gifted peers interested in reading and self-directed academic exploration.
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