My daughter’s goal is to read the Wings of Fire AND the Harry Potter series. She’s eight and started reading fluently about six months ago. It’s a big goal. She wants to read them out loud together and to be perfectly honest, I have no clue how we’ll find time to read that much. (Keep reading to see my update.)

I could tell her her goal is too lofty, suggest she choose one series, or just focus on one book at a time. I could steer her in the direction of guaranteed success. I could.

Instead, we talk about who her favorite characters are, and who she thinks she relates to the most. We talk about how much better the Harry Potter books are compared to the movies and how much the movies leave out.

Much like her dreams of being an architect, Falconer, and writing facilitator, or my son’s dreams of working for Lego or Nerf, my job is not to pop their dream bubbles or be a voice of reason. The reality of hard work, time, and whatever other obstacles get in their way will be there if and when they go for these dreams.

My job is to support them, to cheer them on, remind them of their goals (gently), and whenever I can sit with them, listen, and help their goals come into fruition.

Setting Reading Goals with Our Children

One of my favorite teaching tools to help readers set goals is a reading survey. A series of questions, a reading survey guides students through their story as a reader and ends by having them set reading goals.

Reading is …

What was your favorite book when you were little?

Who is your favorite author?

How many books do you want to read this year?

Not only do these questions help start a conversation about reading, they also give us a glimpse into how each reader feels about reading and why they might have these feelings.

In my experience, the children/teens who finish the sentence Reading is… with the best, awesome, relaxing, set high goals. They tend to have memories of going to the library, reading with a loved one, and often list 100s of books in their homes.

The kids who say Reading is… boring, pointless, dumb usually set a low goal. Not surprisingly, these kids tend to list very few books in their homes, can’t remember favorite childhood books, and never see their parents reading.

Children with learning differences answer in both ways. Their answers are often dependent, again, on how often they were read to or encouraged to read for pleasure. I’ve met many child who is said to hate reading, who is happy be read to or more than willing to listen to an audio book.

If we want our kids to be readers, we have to create a culture of reading in our homes and classrooms. 

Our kids need to see us reading.

Books and reading material need to be in every home and classroom.

We need to read together.

We need to encourage reading in a variety of forms- audiobooks and graphic novels included.

While it is up to the reader to set the goals, the part adults play matters. It can be difficult for the reader to read if they don’t have support. 

Supporting Readers and Their Goals

Step 1- Let kids set their goals.

They can always change them! Let kids know they are setting goals, not rules, and it’s okay if we don’t reach our goals as long as we keep trying.

• Create a list of books your child really wants to read to inspire them or keep them going if a book they choose isn’t a right fit. We call this a Someday List thanks to Nancie Atwell.
• Set daily, weekly, monthly goals. Yearly goals are great too.
• Let kids choose the books they read. Kids are going to be 100% more willing to read if they are interested and invested in the book.
• Let kids abandon books. Some books are not a good fit. Let the reader determine this. We all abandon books. If a child is afraid to start a book because they will be forced to finish whatever they start, they may be reluctant to start.

Step 2- Fill Your Home with Books

Step 3- Read Together

Next to your child, with your child, in front of your child- Reading needs to be something they see and experience daily.

I get that we are all busy, but reading time should not be rushed. We rush chores and things we don’t want to do. We don’t want our kids to see reading as a chore. If it means bedtime needs to start earlier or is a little delayed, it’s okay. Look for time in your day that is relaxed or needs to be relaxing. These are the moments where reading can be enjoyed.

• Have a set time to read every day.
• Make it special with fun snacks, cozy blankets, funny read alouds, or one-on-one time.

Step 4- Celebrate Success

Get a new book at the bookstore, watch the movie, go out for ice cream- do something special to celebrate the child’s hard work and reading.

If we want our kids to be readers, we have to encourage reading for pleasure. We also have to make sure the environment, tone, books, and time spent reading is pleasurable.

If setting reading goals brings tears or frustration, find a different way to encourage reading. For some kids goal setting offers a lot of stress. They immediately see a goal as something they won’t achieve. If this is the case, exercises in developing a Growth Mindset might be helpful.

Setting reading goals are just one way to encourage reading in our homes. The goal is a reminder to make reading a priority, a habit, something we just do. Our children’s reading goals don’t have to be huge or they can be. Regardless, the real goal is they are reading and loving to read.

Update ~ my daughter didn’t read the entire HP series. We read the first two. But she read a lot this year. More than she ever has, and she has new goals to guide her in 2020. Goals are not demands. We don’t fail if we go in different directions. They are gentle guides. It doesn’t matter if your child meets their exact reading goals. What matters is they are reading and becoming life long readers.

Here are the books my daughter, son, and I loved in 2019.