Tips to Get TEENS to Read More

Turn Your Teens into Readers: 5 Handy Tips to Encourage Teenage Reading

Most parents want their teens to become avid readers.One poll found that three-fourths of parents with kids between the ages of 6-17 agreed with the statement, "I wish my child would read more books for fun." Getting a teenager to read is often more challenging than getting a 10-year-old to read. By the time your child is a teenager, they're more interested in screen time than book time. Not every kid is going to stay up late reading books, and that's okay. You can encourage teenage reading by choosing the right book for your kid, read on for five of the best tips to get your teen to read more.

This post contains Amazon affiliate links.

How to get your Teen to Read.

5 Tips to Get TEENS to Read More

1. Take Teens to Bookstores and Libraries 

Bookstores are far less common now than 20 years ago. The bookstore shortage is even affecting highly cultured cities like New York. Many people who buy books do it online.

Buying online isn't the same as having a world of books that you can reach out and touch with your fingertips. Bookstores and libraries are great places to discover new authors and get recommendations while fulfilling those bibliophile needs. Smell the pages, caress the covers, see the beauty of the illustrations as they were meant to be seen.

2. Encourage Fun Reading

Sure, you may wish that your teens would read Jane Austen or Charles Dickens.These days, if they're doing that, it's probably for a class. Reading a book for a grade can suck the joy out of reading a good book. 

What does that mean for parents? It means that you should encourage your teens to read for fun, even if "fun" looks different for you than it does for them. They should read what they want, even if it's just a magazine or a comic book.

A few years ago, some parents freaked out at the idea of teens reading the Twilight novels. But vampire romance novels, no doubt, made some kids into lifelong pleasure readers. Raising our hands here! When a kid that never reads gets addicted to a book series, you jump for joy!

Books for Teenage Boys: All Quiet on The Western Front

3. Create Screen-Free Zones

These days, both adults and teens are constantly on their smartphones. One way to fight the technology craze is to create zones where screens aren't permitted.

For instance, let's say dinner starts at 6 pm. Want to eat? Have everyone in your family, including the adults, drop their phones into a basket outside the dining room before sitting down to eat.

The more you look at your phone, the harder it is to look away. Taking a break from screens can make it easier for kids to pick up a book and start reading. 

Or Encourage Kindle Reading: Whatever works, right!

4. Encourage Teens to Write

A teen interested in writing is more likely to get interested in reading. That's because trying to write a book gives you a different perspective on the books that you read. 

If your kid has a story to tell, give them the time and space to write it down. It can be anything from short-form fan fiction to a full-blown novel. Grab some cool writing journals and encourage them to get creative. If you want, you can even customize your book cover. 

5. Talk About Your Own Reading

Make reading a family priority. When you sit down with a book, you're sending your teen a message. Your teen may not think you're cool, but they're paying attention to what you're doing. 

If they ask what you're reading, tell them. Encourage them ask questions. They may tease you, but you're still showing your teen what it looks like to enjoy reading, even when you have a job, kids, and other obligations.

Get Your Teenager Reading

The idea of trying to get your teenager reading can feel impossible. But it's possible, and you don't even have to nag. In fact, nagging is more likely to backfire. Remember that, you know how it felt.

Of course, reading is great, but we've also got plenty of other ways to keep your kid entertained at any age. Bookmark our site to stay up to date on the latest parenting teens articles.

Recommended:

Writing Journals for Teens

Book Recommendations for Teen Boys

Ways to get TEENS to Practice Writing and Journaling

More posts about Kids Reading from Kids Creative Chaos

Have a Spooky Sleepover and Pajama Reading Party with Halloween Books from Scholastics

Have a Spooky Sleepover: Pajama Reading Party with Candy Corn S'mores Recipe

It's easy to plan a spooky sleepover with a Scholastics story and EVEREADY® Gold batteries in your flashlights! We decided to plan our spooky pajama party around fun Halloween books for kids! "We picked some fun spooky books and decided on a Candy Corn S'more Recipe as the perfect companion snack! There was an Old Lady who Swallowed a Bat" by Jared Lee, "Splat the Cat" by Rob Scotton, and "Ten Timid Ghosts" by Jennifer O'Connell. Read on to learn more about the best sleepover ever!

*This is a sponsored conversation written by me on behalf of EVEREADY®. The opinions and text are all mine. It contains affiliate links.

Have a pajama sleepover with spooky Scholastic Books and EVEREADY® Gold.

Spooky Book for early readers, Scholastics, Ten Timid Ghosts.

Before the party, we gathered supplies for our craft, snack, and pajama party tent. The kitchen nook worked best, because it has room for a large, family-size tent. We used the walls and bench to construct a tent from one of our favorite blankets. Mommy filled a basket with books, juice packs, popcorn, and flashlights. Then, we created some, super cute edible crafts- with a ghost theme of course. Candy Corn S'mores!

Candy Corn Smores Recipe: Make S'mores with candy corn and candy corn marshmallows.

For our Candy Corn S'mores recipe, we used graham crackers, candy corn marshmallows, candy corn, and chocolate chips to make our S'mores. They were the best S'mores we ever had! Messy, but delicious.

While our sleepover snacks were baking in the toaster oven, we started the spooky ghost craft. We used cheesecloth, Styrofoam cups, and buttons to make a Halloween Ghost craft.

Spooky ghosts from Styrofoam cups.

After reading the story, Mayhem wanted to make a bat too. So, we cut out a pattern that looks like the bat on the cover of the book. To make our bat you only need scissors, construction paper, and glue. If you want to make an outdoor Halloween decoration, before cutting, cover your paper with Duct Tape in coordinating colors. The duct tape will make a durable Halloween decoration for your door.

While we enjoyed reading stories to each other and making shadow puppets on the walls, we had some surprise guests! They wanted to hear about Splat the Cat, and they wanted to chase the lights from our EVEREADY® Flashlights!

Curious cats crash our pajama party!

Educational Element for Homeschooling

We wanted to count this experience as school, so we found a free printable story starter and Lesson Plans for, There Was an Old Lady, on Scholastic's website. From the list of lesson plans, we also chose to try the edible estimations. This is a fun math lesson for kids where you compare the things the old lady ate with similar weighing objects around the house or classroom and then calculate the grand total of everything she ate. The EVEREADY® website has free printables to help plan for a disaster.

Grab your favorite Scholastic books, and EVEREADY® flashlights and get reading! When you purchase 2 special marked packs of EVEREADY® Gold Batteries or EVEREADY® flashlights, you can redeem them for a free book. How fun is that?

It must be time to go to sleep, our guests are yawning!

Hey lady, don't shine that light in my eyes!
Where are my pajamas? Those stories made me sleepy!

This is a sponsored conversation written by me on behalf of EVEREADY®. The opinions and text are all mine.


Recommended Reading:



There Was an Old Lady Who Swallowed a Bat!


Splat the Cat Storybook Collection

Homeschool Resources: Varun's Quest Review

Great Resource for Homeschoolers

Homeschooling help for parents: Looking for a great resource for homeschoolers? Our website offers many educational resources for homeschoolers. Below is a review of Varun's Quest a wonderful book for homeschoolers of any age. Keep scrolling because we've also added links to our favorite homeschool resources. Enjoy!

This post contains Amazon affiliate links. If you click and make a purchase, I get a small commission.

Jake's Journey in Art includes Language Arts.
Here he reads the beautifully illustrated Varun's Quest by Timothy Goldsmith.

Science Books for Homeschoolers

• We were given the opportunity to review Varun's Quest, which is a wonderful science book for homeschoolers. Varun's Quest is a fictional tale depicting non-fiction science. The story is fun to read aloud as a family or in a group setting with the ideal audience being 2nd - 5th grade. Older children will enjoy reading the story themselves and then sharing the details with "the class."  The author of this creative tale, is Yale Biology Professor, Timothy Goldsmith. Get your copy here: Buy Varun's Quest.

An elf leads children through the story quest while he shares all about the science around us. It starts with an informative science lesson on bees. Jake, enjoys the way the stories unfold and likes that the stories are based on reality. Whenever he isn't sure about something, he Googles to find out more, so these stories have evolved into a full blown science curriculum. He'll write questions in his daily science journal and then look them up later on Google. What a great way to teach science to your homeschooler! For a fun activity, pair this book with Bee Movie.

We used the book as a catalyst for making scientific posters, doing science experiments, and of course, to practice creative writing.

• Our all time FAVORITE Science Books for Homeschoolers are the Life of Fred Science books. These books are great for kids of any age. Parents will enjoy them too. Anyone reading Life of Fred will learn something new!

• Gail Gibbons Encyclopedia Series are a wealth of information for anyone who enjoys reading. All of her books are beautiful illustrated. They cover science, history, and art. While these books may be at a higher reading level for early elementary students, younger children will enjoy looking at the pictures while listening to the stories.

• More Science Stories for Kids.

Homeschool Resources

• Weird Unsocialized Homeschoolers is a homeschool blog full of homeschool advice and curriculum.

• More Homeschooling Helps and Curriculum from Kids Creative Chaos.

• TeacherSherpa is a website that offers free printable worksheets in every subject.

• Make Corn Muffins as a Science Project with your Homeschooler

• College Level Entrance Exams for Homeschoolers

• Teachers Pay Teachers is full of teacher created materials for teachers and homeschoolers.

• MobyMax is an online educational app for homeschooling with curriculum that adapts to your child's learning to find and fix gaps.

• Acellus Power Homeschool can be used as an app or as full school with access to teachers.  Check out Acellus Curriculum for Homeschool Students. We currently use the middle school courses. There are lots of classes to choose from including music and art!

• Science and Health Curriculum and Resources for Homeschoolers

• Fair Trade Science Lesson for Homeschool

• Dr. Seuss Resources for Homeschoolers

• Open Letter to Future Homeschoolers

• Homeschool Curriculum Resources and Supplies

• Lewis and Clark online Homeschool History Lesson

• For more homeschool resources follow us on Pinterest!

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Recommended Reading:

Cave Science Project Model

The Complete Book of Maps and Geography, Grades 3 - 6

The Everything Homeschooling Book: All you need to create the best curriculum and learning environment for your child

Things to do in Indianapolis Indiana: Downtown Central Library for Kids

Central Library's Learning Curve in Downtown Indianapolis, Indiana has Free Things to do that are Fun for Kids

Recently, we took a trip to the downtown Indianapolis Central Library. I've been meaning to do this for sometime, but after several years of summer day camp and kid's misplacing books or videos, we have quite a hefty library fine. I plan to chip away at it slowly. If you also have a library fine and are under 18, keep reading. We found out the library has a program where you can "pay off" your fines with good behavior! More info about that later. In the summer, we are always looking for FREE, FUN, and EDUCATIONAL things to do in Indianapolis or other parts of Indiana. This futuristic architecture, in the form of a public library, fits the bill perfectly.

Central Library Funnel in Reading Nook. It plays a little movie.

This year, my goal is to treat each week like summer camp with my own kids - Less the getting up at 5:30 a.m., the toting 12 other kids everywhere we go, the need for epipens, a change of underwear (and a bag for the previous soiled pair), the waivers, the checklist, and the stress! We are on a mission of discovery. Anything within 2 hrs. of our home is up for an impromptu field trip. 

In this Futuristic Library, you can lounge and read, listen to a story, or watch one.

The Central Library is very cool. If you are looking for a futuristic library, you've come to the right place. You enter the library through an old, historic building with an incredible view of the American Legion Mall which is really just a large, green space with war memorials. Be sure to turn and enjoy the view as you enter. Then, you enter a breezeway where you'll find the info desk and a small, reasonably priced cafe. Keep going, and you'll be whisked into the children's area, better known as The Learning Curve. 

The Learning Curve: A Children's Area at the Central Library, Downtown Indy.

The Learning Curve is housed in the modern, glass, curved building directly behind the main entrance. Don't be intimidated, just keep walking. The librarian help desks are mobile carts that float throughout the large children's area. Don't be shy. They are happy to help. Don't have a library card, (or have one you can't use) but you want to use the computers? Ask the librarian for a guest pass. No pressure, they don't try to upsell to a library card :) The passes are good for 1 hr. from the time you log in, but you can get another passcode as long as computers are available. This is a safe internet zone. The kids can play and share games with other kids within the library.

Study Pods, Think Tank, Kid's Activity Wall for Preschoolers, Pacer's Rent a Bike Program, and See-a-story spinning seats at The Learning Curve, Downtown Indianapolis, Indiana in the Central Library.

We went to see a FREE DISNEY MOVIE in Clowes Auditorium, Tinkerbell's, "The Pirate Fairy". It was awesome. During summer camps, we visited our local branch of the library and watched the movies in a large room while sitting on the floor with a bunch of sweaty kids and little or no air conditioning. At the downtown Indianapolis, Central Library, we sat in comfy, purple seats in an acoustically correct, air-conditioned theatre.You can rent the 300 seat Clowes Auditorium space for special events too.

After that, we headed to the children's theatre. When they aren't having puppet shows or reader's theatre, the kids can jump up on the stage and enjoy some creative play in front of a large green screen. While bouncing around, they can watch themselves on one of the video screens. They might walk on the moon or climb a mountain!

On the opposite end of the Learning Curve, you'll find the Think Tank.This is an enclosed space (it's stuffy in there) with whiteboard walls and a table full of dry-erase markers. Brainstorm an idea, solve a math problem, or just draw a cartoon. You can be noisy, because it is somewhat soundproof. 

There is also a tinkerlab, a preschool activity area, a techlab, a wall to learn braille, study pods, futuristic, spinning chairs where you can listen to a story, and (my favorite), a super comfy reading lounge with a central animated funnel. I sat down and did not want to get up. Next time, I'll work in this area while the kids enjoy the library. They couldn't sign up for the summer reading program or check out books because of those nasty aforementioned library fines. The library now offers an amnesty program. I need this too, dear Indy Library. 

So, what is the take away? Don't stress, get cool, stay out of inclement weather... Wait, there's more. The library has a parking garage- find the rates here. We parked in the street at the fancy, modern parking meters that accept credit cards (now there's a learning curve) and walked. At the front entrance of the library, you can rent yellow, Pacer's bicycles- but they are all adult size, no kid seats, or tandem bikes... hint hint.

There are so many fun things to do in Indianapolis! We hope you'll join us (virtually, of course) as we discover the wonderful things downtown Indianapolis has to offer. We will feature some of our favorite things soon:

Mass Ave. 

Toy Store, Flying Cupcake, Hot Dog Cafe, Fair Trade Market

The Circle

Ride or climb to the top of the Monument, Candy Store, Chocolate Cafe

Recommended Reading:

Things to do In Indiana

Architecture: The Art of LEGO Design

Magnifier Lamp for DIY Crafting, Sewing, Drawing, and Reading

Magnifier Lamp for Intricate Art and Sewing DIY Projects

I was given a magnifier lamp for review. All opinions are my own.  

This post contains affiliate links. Click, make a purchase, and I get a small commission.

Brightech is an LA based lighting company that specializes in awesome magnifier lamps. Who needs a magnifier lamp? You do! Your grandma does when she's quilting, you do when your trying to thread a needle, artists do to make intricate designs, homeschoolers need one for science investigations, jewelers do when doing beadwork, your grandpa does when he's trying to do his favorite crossword puzzle, the possibilities are endless. No more magnifying glass. A magnifier lamp is the perfect tool for DIY crafting, sewing, drawing, and reading!

If you have a budding artist, this magnifying glass lamp is the bomb! The light is adjustable. Just grab the handy handle and move it to the desired position. The light flicks on with the press of  a button on the top of the magnifier lamp. Get your own lamp here: Brightech Magnifier Lamp.

Whether it's light or dark, your magnifier lamp is there to help! We currently use it for artwork, but we are anxious to try it for homeschool science investigations and when my tired, old eyes need to thread a needle. You can even get these magnifier lamps with a rolling base. Wish we would have made that choice, because they are sturdy, durable, and somewhat heavy.

Pin it!

So, how would you use a magnifier lamp? Tell us about it in the comments. 

Recommended:

Homeschool Art Projects

For ambient lighting try this Amber Glass Sconce.

Get your own lamp here: Brightech Magnifier Lamp.

Still Life Art Projects

10 Top-Notch Ways to Motivate Students to Study and Learn

10 Ways to Motivate Students to Study and Learn

Students who are inattentive or put little effort into their school work are unlikely to benefit from better instruction or school curriculum. So, how can teachers help students become motivated? From putting students in control to offering rewards, motivation can be both encouraged and provided. Here’s an in-depth look at ten ways to motivate students to study and learn more effectively.

This post contains Amazon affiliate links.

An in-depth look at ten ways to motivate you students  

1. Put Students in Control of Their Learning Experience  

Education makes some kids feel like they’re being controlled. When a student feels that lack of control, they generally withdrawal from learning. It’s important that students are given control over their learning experience. 

A good way to do this is to give students options. For example, when assigning math questions, allow students to complete either the evens or the odds. That way, they can choose which one they want to complete. 

Students that are given more control and can have direct input in respect to their learning experiences, activities, and environment, become more engaged and even want to learn.  

2. Develop an Atmosphere for Reading  

It’s known that students who develop a love for reading also love learning. The two are interconnected. Reading, not only helps students develop a wide vocabulary, but it allows their brains to learn how to process formal communication. 


Enrich your classroom by providing students with a variety of quality outside information. You can find reading materials from sources like the New York Times, Forbes, or Science stage.

You can also assign students a book report related to one of your key objectives. That way, students can learn more about an essential topic from an expert in a field. 

3. Focus on Student Interests 

To engage students, focus on topics that they find interesting. Not every objective is interesting to every student, however, you can relate lessons to current trends to reach more students. For example, when coming up with a math question, you can ask students about the latest internet challenge. For the ice bucket challenge, you might pose a question regarding the volume of the bucket.

4. Make Learning Entertaining Through Game-Based Learning  

Game-based learning has been around for a long time. In fact, game-based learning has many beneficial qualities. It not only provides opportunities for extensive learning and development of non-cognitive abilities, but it helps students want to play the game which, in turn, teaches them a new skill or some other aspect of your lesson plans.

When a child is actively playing a game, their mind experiences the joy of learning something new. This is true whether the game is considered entertainment, like a video game or it has a more serious tone like a military simulator. Games that are entertaining have an added benefit of being engaging, thus motivating students to learn more. 

Game-based learning is a successful motivation tool for team-based learning. Since students generally become more competitive in order to win, they may perform better in the learning portions of the game to earn more points. 

Game-based learning is a perfect way for teachers to introduce new concepts or ideas into the classroom. Start with a fun game like classroom jeopardy, or allow students to visit an interactive website and compete online with other students at their grade level.

5. Encourage Communication  

Students should feel encouraged to express their opinions about what’s going on with their education. They should feel comfortable to express their likes or dislikes. Often, when students feel like they can’t speak up, they withdrawal from the learning process.  

It’s best to create an open atmosphere where all students know that their opinion matters. Students should know they won’t be judged, ignored, put down, or discouraged. Instead, students should know you're paying attention and listening to their concerns. That way, students will communicate better if any issue arises. 

 6. Allow Students to Learn Outside of the Classroom  

While book work is important, students sometimes become frustrated at the amount of book work that is required. It’s essential to provide students with fun activities that they can do outside of the classroom. 

Provide students with a list of educational activities they can complete outside of the classroom with friends or family. Activities like baking and shopping allow students to relate what they've learned in school to the real world. Homeschoolers can include these activities in their daily instruction. Measuring and finance are great future skills. Kids find these real world ways of learning math more enjoyable. Math makes more sense when we see the applications as useful.

7. Set Attainable Goals   

It’s important that you set attainable goals for all students. Most students like to feel challenged. Stimulating students helps them to want to set and achieve goals. When they find the expectations attainable, they're more likely to strive to reach the goal.

8. Use Positive Competition 

Competition isn’t always a bad thing, sometimes it motivates students to work harder to achieve a 100% score. One of the best ways to use positive competition is to allow students to take part in a friendly math competition. That way, students get to work together to show off their knowledge and help others that might not understand higher math concepts. Teachers can add math concepts that are relevant to their lesson plans. 

9. Track Students Progress  

It's sometimes difficult for students to understand just how far they’ve come in a particular subject, especially when they find the subject hard to comprehend. Tracking a student’s progress, motivates students, allowing them to visualize how much they've achieved as the year progresses. This is especially important for homeschool learners. Keep track of their progress with programs like, MobyMax, which tracks progression by finding and fixing gaps in learning through relevant grade level, online lessons.

10. Offer Rewards   

Rewards are an excellent source of motivation. Everyone likes to earn rewards. Students will study hard and aim for success in hopes of winning the top prize. Rewards can be large or small, depending on the grade level of the class or age of the students. Older students may not find a lollipop reward very motivating.

For example, choose rewards like a pizza party, ice cream party, or even a donut party or extra credit points for older students. With younger students, simple rewards like a piece of candy, a sticker, or a small toy will provide motivation.

Have you tried any of these ways to motivate students to study and learn more efficiently? 

Student motivation is essential in every stage of education. Focus on student interests, encourage communication, track a student’s progress and offer rewards at every stage. Since every student is motivated differently, make sure to customize your motivation strategies for individual students. 

Check out the recommended reading below for additional ways to motivate students to learn and study. 



Recommended:

Futuristic Architecture for Kids

Simple Math Games 

Lessons for Homeschoolers