Children

[Anonymous No.1804835]

When/if you have children, what would you have them read? Would you let them read whatever?
Teach 'em how to read early? Push your kid to read, even if they hated it?
Would you have "reading rules"? As in, you can't read this because it has sexual content or explicit language.
Thoughts?

[Anonymous No.1804839]

I'm just going to make sure I start reading to my child early and often when he/she is young. Once they start reading on their own, they can read whatever they like. It seems to me that the literature with questionable content does not really appeal to younger readers anyway, as it deals with a lot of other stuff that juveniles don't find particularly interesting.

[Anonymous No.1804849]

I've thought about this quite a bit. Honest, I'm double-minded about it. On the one hand, I want my kids to read, but I don't want to force it on them so much that they hate it for life. I will read to them when they're young though. When they're too young to request anything I'll just read what I'm reading at the time. When they're a bit older I'll definitely read them the Narnia series, the stories of George MacDonald, and all five of Dickens' Christmas novels (during December, of course). Aside from that, I know I want my kids raised on fairy tales, and if they're anything at all my wife and I, they won't complain.

[Anonymous No.1804854]

I really don't know. It's a really sticky situation. Don't press them enough to read, and they become brainless TV addicts. Push them too hard to read, and they end up resenting literature for life. My parents didn't really try to read to me at all, they were much more comfortable letting me play the Sega Mega Drive or watching TV, but I'm a pretty prolific and enthusiastic reader now.

[Anonymous No.1804865]

>>1804849
>>1804854
They say that making books available is a good thing to do, which I agree with. If they're bored in the car, in the doctor's office, in the store, at school, at home, at Grandma's house? Read.
I grew up with books all over. You know how you go in some people's houses and the parents just have laundry on the kitchen table and extra toilet paper on the bathroom counter? We had stacks of books in those places.
I got lice when I was 10 because I was reading in the shower instead of washing my hair..I crossed a line there.

[Anonymous No.1804868]

It's hard to say. My parents didn't really push me too much to read. I just sort of liked being smarter than everyone when I was younger, and when you're 6 about the only ways to do that are be the best at the simple math you're doing and be the best reader. To that end, I read a ton of books, albeit simple ones, when I was younger, and didn't really need much motivation from my parents.

[Anonymous No.1804869]

[Anonymous No.1804870]

>>1804865
I like this. I think it avoids the idea of forcing books on them. It just makes books the preferred option, which is what I want.

[Virginia W00F !!GThm5VqxqDi No.1804872]

They'll get healthy doses of Fitzgerald and Hemingway.

Mostly they'll be too busy to read, though. Y'know how a father will play basketball in the driveway with his son and then when the son finally beats him it means he's sorta become a man or something? Well, I plan to do something similar with my child but in my version I'm gonna take him out to a windswept cliff side on his 15th birthday and hand him a rapier which matches the one in my hand. I'll shout at him "KILL ME IF YOU CAN, BOY! KILL YOUR FATHER"! and of course he won't be able to because I'm a good fencer with a lot of reach, but I want it to be sporting so much of his youth will be spent training for this day, hence the lack of literature.

[Anonymous No.1804884]

Not entirely relevant, but they're getting rid of the school library where I'm at. Thank God I'm in Year 13. I think it's partly because of the budget cuts and partly because there's no concrete evidence it helps children
achieve or some such nonsense. Honestly...

>>1804865
Availability of books is important, but also make sure to show them that books can be fun. We had a shelf of books (not books everywhere admittedly), but until I was 11 or so and read Northern Lights books were always something separate from me, even a boring inconvenience that stopped my older brother from talking to me.

Make books available definitely, but show them the joy of books as well.

[Anonymous No.1804895]

C.S, Lewis said his father's entire library was available to him. He said most of the books were not appropriate for his age, but he said he just devoured words. He turned out fairly well.

[Anonymous No.1804896]

I'm going to try and make my child as nerdy as possible (without making them that weird kid at school who nobody talks to). 10 years of bullying pales in comparison to 60 years of successful careers and being an intellectual. I want them to have a childhood as well, there are actually children nowadays at 12 who are going out drinking and smoking grass. I don't want that for my child.

[Anonymous No.1804917]

I'm a 28yo attorney. I have 2 boys, ages 3 and 2. They absolutely love books. We have nearly every Dr. Suess and also they typical kids' books such as Goodnight Moon, 5 Little Monkeys, Hungry Hungry Caterpillar, etc. They love to watch TV also, such as Mickey Mouse Clubhouse, Sesame Street, Imagination Movers, etc, but we limit the time that they actually sit in front of the TV and drone. Most parents like their kids to watch TV in excess so that they don't have to deal with them. When my kids aren't watching TV they are reading or playing outside (something else that most kids don't do anymore). Either way, we have made books fun for the kids from the start and they still enjoy them and even put them back on the shelf. My oldest knows some words simply from recognition and repetition of reading. The TV programs help with vocabulary as well, so I can't say that TV is altogether bad. As with anything, only bad in excess. We also look at picture books like I Spy where I can ask them "where is this/that?" type questions.

Kids are as smart as you let them be. Most neighbors have been in awe at my 3 year olds intellect and vocabulary in contrast to their own kids' but are slow to realize that they inhibit their kids with too much TV and crappy content at that.

[JD No.1804923]

>>1804872
Vdubby, didn't know you fenced. I do too.

[Anonymous No.1804941]

trick em'
when i was a kid i couldn't play vidya or watch tv

however, i was allowed reading rabbit and some math computer game with aliens

in any case i now am an engineer and love to read.....

nature vs. nurture hmmmm

[Virginia W00F !!GThm5VqxqDi No.1804972]

>>1804923
I'LL KILL YOU BASTARD

Unless you're:
1. Left handed and quick or
2. A girl because of tit plates.

>>1804917
>play outside
nigga don't you remember John Walsh?

[Anonymous No.1804982]

>>1804917

Your three year old sounds like he has asperger's syndrome, or a similar form of mental problem

[JD No.1804989]

>>1804972
I'm right handed and quick. I have a mean parry. Also very light on my feet too.

God, I hate fencing with lefties. They always beat me.

[Anonymous No.1805233]

>>1804972

I'm very familiar with John Walsh. As a matter of fact, his son, Adam, was kidnapped from within a store. All they ever recovered was his head and no one was ever formally charged. The one guy they think did it died in prison... So yeah, about playing outside.....

[Virginia W00F !!GThm5VqxqDi No.1805243]

>>1805233
>>1805233
>>1805233

[Anonymous No.1805244]

i started reading at a very young age and my parents encouraged it for a while, but from the age of maybe 10 until i was in my early 20's i don't think i read a single book that wasn't part of school. my mom read oprah's book list and my dad read business books, and i didn't really care about either and didn't know there was a whole world of books out there.

i'd expose my kid/kids to everything and let them choose what they liked. i'd rather have a kid reading about adult content than watching multi-million dollar productions of it on a screen.

[Anonymous No.1805258]

When I was a kid I loved fantasy like The Hobbit and Lord of the Rings but my favorite author was RA Salvatore. I read every book by him. Whenever my parents made me go shopping I sat in the grocery cart and read my book till there was no room left for groceries and I had to get out. I also read a lot of the Great Illustrated Classics.

I will make my kid try to read some books and if he likes it then great if not what can I do?

I also will refuse to let my kid read shit like Twilight or whatever else is the popular piece of shit book out at the time.

[Anonymous No.1805263]

My parents encouraged my reading at an early age by reading to/with me. All through high school I barely read except for works for my courses, but after my a-levels I picked it up again, started reading the "classics" then when I started my Literature degree (Hahaha) I read the more "challenging"/PoMo stuff.
I would say encourage it but don't press too much if they don't like it, that said some employers in the UK claim kids are leaving school without sufficient reading skills LOL

[Anonymous No.1805265]

Obviously I'd have them read everything I've read. When they get good enough to be able to tell what is worth reading on their own, I release them to go read whatever they choose.

After a time I call them back to make recommendations for my own reading or to teach me things that they now know but I do not.

[Anonymous No.1805267]

Oh yeah, I'll push my kid into becoming a good reader until the second or third grade, Then they'll be fro to choose whether they want to keep it as a hobby. I'll read them bedtime stories, and maybe let them read to me at night. And ANY book they want to read will be okay by me.....unless it's a book on Kama sutra,with pictures. I might take that away from them, just because it would be inappropriate for them to share that with other kids.
Anyway, my parents made sure not to put a cap on what I could read at what age, and I think that's part of what made me love reading so much. Being able to read and enjoy "big books" from a young age felt like an accomplishment, too.

[Anonymous No.1805287]

My parents let me read whatever I wanted so I liked being able to read adult books. A lot of it I found boring because I was a kid but I really enjoyed Ender's Game, The Hobbit and Hitchhiker's Guide. Because of books like that I can't remember a time where I went without reading a book. I would always sneak a flashlight into my bed and the book under my pillow and wait for my parents to go to bed and stay up way too late reading which always resulted in me being incredibly tired the next day at school.

[PaleMarionette !wD2ssNoNKQ No.1805289]

I plan to read them whimsical things like Dr. Seuss in their very early years. Then, in elementary school the Chronicles of Narnia, The Hobbit, The Last Unicorn, and the Lord of the Rings trilogy before bed. Maybe I'd start giving them Harry Potter to read at this time, too, or read it to them depending on the kid. Though what I read to them will depend on their interests, I think these books would appeal to all kids and they helped spur my love of reading as a child. Not sure if I'll have them watch the movies of the books. I read and loved them before we saw them but it might help immerse them more.

After that, I'd buy them books and such but generally I think if they enjoyed what we read together they'd seek out and ask for literature they liked from there on.

[PaleMarionette !wD2ssNoNKQ No.1805294]

>>1805289
And no, I don't think I'd have reading rules. I read some slightly disturbing/adult things as a kid and it didn't affect me too much. However movies and such are a different story. I'd still look the book over before letting them have it, though and use my judgement.

>mfw my mother wouldn't let me read White Fang in 4th grade because it had the word 'damn' in it.

[Anonymous No.1805292]

Get them to read in the bath or when you're cooking. Get them to read with expression. It's also very important to read to them.

[Anonymous No.1805297]

>>1805294
>mfw my mother wouldn't let me read White Fang in 4th grade because it had the word 'damn' in it.
Awwww... I feel sorry for you bro. Still, now you can read damn all you want.

[Virginia W00F !!GThm5VqxqDi No.1805299]

>>1805289
>Harry Potter

Don't forget to tell them that Dumbledore is gay.

[Anonymous No.1805312]

>>1805294
my brother's girlfriend got kicked out and had to come live with us for a couple years because her mom found harry potter books my brother lent her. her mom's extremely christian and thought it'd lead to witchcraft. true story.

[PaleMarionette !wD2ssNoNKQ No.1805314]

>>1805312
That's awful. I had friends who got in trouble for that, too, and one whose mother wouldn't let her come with us to see LotR.

Only thing my mother ever caught me with was Lolita in the eighth grade. She thought it was going to corrupt me. Seeing as I'm on 4chan, though, perhaps she was right to worry.

[Anonymous No.1805321]

I'm a christian, so are my parents but when I was a kid they never stopped me from reading something. I always thought Harry Potter was shit but they said I could read it if I wanted to. They let me read/listen/watch whatever as long as it didn't influence me in a negative way that something like a book or movie could easily do to a kid.

[Anonymous No.1805324]

my parents let me read/watch anything i was mature enough to watch. i was allowed to watch movies with tits in them with my family unless i giggled when they came on, then my dad would change the channel. i'd go with that method.

[Anonymous No.1805375]

I don't believe you should keep anything away from your children that won't damage their mental or physical health. It just makes them want it more; If it's taboo, it's exciting. If everything is available to children, they usually choose what is appropriate and beneficial to their age group, believe it or not (based on babysitting, working as a teacher's aid and running a summer camp for children aged 4 - 8).

That being said, the library will be a big part of my children's lives, because I go there at least twice a month. I'll sit in the beanbag chairs with them and read them all kinds of stories until I get a sense of what they like and I'll recommend books some of the time, and let them pick what they want to read the rest of the time.

Whether your children like reading or not, they'll appreciate the time with you and it will boost their vocabulary and other important factors of their development that I'm not going to get in to because this post is already too long.

[Anonymous No.1805516]

This thread is relevant to my interests.

[Anonymous No.1805528]

I am fucking terrified of the idea of raising a kid in a world with the internet, but books aren't so easy to passively consume - I really think children won't keep reading material if it's disturbing to them, and in the case of adult or otherwise questionable content, I think usually if you're old enough to understand what you're reading you're old enough to process it somewhat critically

[♥ !Rrxa7zePwI No.1805541]

instill absolute doubts about everything, every philosophical and existential crises, spartan life training and self disciplinary activities, including the conquest of all forms of 'anxiety' while also never, never losing courage to look behind the veil. ignorance may be bliss, but the courageous can face the abyss, with style.

my little girl will be the empress of the worlds.

[Behemoth !!Twl3DmqEY/B No.1805544]

You will all fuck up your children. And so will the books they read.

[Anonymous No.1805631]

>>1805544

Exposing your children to books and encouraging them to read above all else causes autistic behaviors. Look at most "bookworms" and notice the way they act. You'll see what I mean.

[Anonymous No.1805636]

>>1805263
>some employers in the UK claim kids are leaving school without sufficient reading skills LOL

Wouldn't surprise me in the least. Here in America, I've seen college students fail to understand the most basic principles of grammar and word usage. Those peer review sessions always created an awkward situation for those that knew the difference between "your" and "you're".

[Anonymous No.1805662]

>>1805263
>some employers in the UK claim
It wouldn't surprise me. They like to claim all sorts of bullshit when passing the buck. We also have a shitty backbone to our education system.

[Anonymous No.1805665]

I'm already amassing a collection of good children's book I want my kids to have available. A lot of them I'm getting from Folio Society and other fine press publishers, so that they'll last until my children have children as well.

I'm especially concentrating on fairy tales from around the world, along with all the classic children's novels. I want a large diversity, so that my kids will have at least /something/ they like, though I know they probably won't like everything.

I plan to read to them as often as I can (maybe even while in the womb, as retarded as that may be). My mom did this for me, and I started reading at an early age. The person I plan on having a kid with also was read to from an early age and enjoys reading too, so I feel my kid will at least vaguely enjoy it. Plus, I can't imagine too many kids who don't love a good adventure story.

I'm also thinking of delving into creating a good "young adult" type library. In no way am I going to make my kids have to read all this exclusively, but I want it around so they have the choice. It would also feel pretty awesome to be the parent that all my kid's friends want to visit because I have such a kick-ass library.

As for "reading rules," a lot of fairy tales already have dark themes. Withing certain boundaries, I'd probably let them read whatever they want. And as they get older, I'd remove even those boundaries, because I feel that the kid I would have raised by that point was intelligent enough to understand those themes.

I think about this a lot lately. Planning on having a kid within the next two or three years, so. Definitely a point of interest for me.

[Anonymous No.1805667]

>my parents let me watch anything I want
>they don't encourage me at anything, but they let me do anything I want
>best grades, start reading russian literature with 12, I can buy any book I want because books=free money
>play guitar, play tennis, study, learn everything, alone.

mfw everything went better than expected

[Tha Keyboard Assassin No.1805668]

>>1805636
I'm trying to get two girls through the MCAT. They're writing at the 8th grade level, if that.

UBC will pass science majors through without requiring that they develop any writing skills at all.

[Anonymous No.1805693]

This is how I feel about it.

[Anonymous No.1806403]

>>1805668
And that's why I'm leaving this place and going to McGill.

Oh, what side of town are you on, Keyboard? I'm the anon you were talking to earlier about van.

I'm close to cityhall.

[Tha Keyboard Assassin No.1806804]

>>1806403
Meh, McGill is where the Girl I used to love is going. I don't want to ever darken that doorstep.

I'm out on the Westside. City Hall is so convenient ever since the Canada Line. I like hanging around there. :)

[Anonymous No.1806811]

I would play sports with my children and make them the best ever.

I have a 3 year old half-sister, which I don't read to at all, but I do train boxing with her. She's gonna be a champ some day.

[Anonymous No.1806821]

>>1806811
you better start saving up for her psychotherapy...