10 Ways Parents (inadvertently) Discourage Their Kids from Being Readers

1. Neglect to make regular family library visits
2. Stop reading aloud (I know parents who still read to their teens)
3. Don’t read books where the kids can see them (this goes for fathers especially, for some reason)
4. Don’t talk about books over dinner
5. Overlook the fact that a good family activity might be going to hear a writer speak at a bookstore or book festival
6. Designate the books in the family library as too precious for little kids to touch
7. Don’t read the books their kids are reading
8. Have a home that doesn’t accommodate reading (too formal, too noisy, not enough good reading lighting, or just no books or magazines around)
9. Schedule so many activities that the kids don’t have time to pick up a book
10. Believe that their childhood favorites are the only acceptable choices and are bound to also delight their children (some fateful examples: Treasure Island, Call of the Wild, Wind in the Willows, Johnny Tremain)

And the reason too important to put in a numbered list: Tell them a certain book or genre is too young for them