Tuesday, February 23, 2010

Boys and Books

These are the facts: By fourth grade, the average boy is two years behind the average girl in reading and writing.

Boys make up 70% of special education classes and are four times more likely to have ADHD than girls.

Boys are 50% more likely to be retained a grade than girls and are three times more likely  to be placed in reading/learning disabilities settings.

Boys around the world score less well than girls in reading and writing and have lower motivation to read and write than their female counterparts.

14 year-old boys listed these as their top obstacles to reading:
  • Boring/no fun:  39.3%
  • No time/too busy:  29.8%
  • Like other activities better:  11.1%
  • Can't get into the stories:  7.7%
  • I'm not good at it:  4.3%

What can we do about this? 


Be aware of the differences between boys and girls when it comes to reading.

Boys read less fiction than girls. 

Boys are more inclined to read informational texts. 

Some boys are passionate about fantasy.

Boys tend to enjoy excapism and humor.

Provide boys with plenty of the kinds of books they prefer, from the time they are very young.

Provide picture books that contain messages of positive male values such as cooperation, courage, honesty, perseverance, respectfulness, responsibility and tolerance.
source:  http://www.reading.org/

Books that appeal to boys:


Conspiracy 365 Series







True Adventure Collection





War Stories

















Dinosaurs





Fantasy Quests





Gladiators






Pirate Adventures







True Stories:  Pirates







Improve Your Survival Skills






Bats







Sharks






Knights






Tales of King Arthur







These are just a few of the types of books boys love.  Go to http://www.tonyasbooks.com/ to order these books or look for others.  For personal assistance contact Tonya at dirksen.tonya@gmail.com.

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