Books for Boys Who Hate to Read and Tips to Get Them Reading Today!

There are many books for boys who hate to read, but finding the right one takes time. It is a known fact that boys reading scores lag behind girls reading scores. Because boys reading scores are lower it’s important to get them reading something, anything!!

There are some of my boys at school that love to read, but there are more that are picky readers and I really have to work hard to find them a book that they want to read.

More boys are reluctant readers and it takes skill and patience to get them to read. These ideas in this post can be used for girls also, and even some of the book suggestions are popular with the girls, but my main focus for this post is finding books for boys who hate to read.

Many boys would rather be playing video games or playing football, basketball, soccer, etc., but based on lower test scores, they need to start reading and enjoy reading so they’ll keep at it!!!

Suggestions for Boys Who Hate to Read

• Even boys who hate to read usually love to be read to – let them pick out a book that you’ll read. Eventually, you will share the reading, but I suggest that you don’t tell them that right away.
• Let them see you reading! It’s important for them to see female and male parents/role-models read and enjoy reading.
• Give them a choice of what they read.
• Give them the motivation to read. Make it fun, make it challenging, make it a competition or challenge!
• Make reading fun! Have a family read night, read with flashlights, use a magnifying glass, inside a tent, etc.
• Connect something physical to the reading – if he loves football, get him a nonfiction book on football or a story about a boy who plays football.
• Let them read on a device. Most books can be purchased on any device from a Kindle, iPad, Chromebook, laptop, etc.

If you also want suggestions on practicing reading skills and promoting reading, see my post that touches on ways to practice reading skills –  these are just some ideas for fun ways to practice reading skills. And if you believe that your child has a problem with reading and that he’s actually a struggling reading who actually lacks the proper skills to read correctly, check out this post, How to Help Your Struggling Reader at Home.

The Next Five Suggestions are From My Post How to Help a Reluctant Reader

 Incentives and Motivations
I have a list of different ways and places to read on this post (read to a stuffed animal, read at the park, etc.) it’s a list that can be checked off so you could give an incentive for every 5 items on the list that was completed, for every 10, etc. Email me at mrs.dehm@gmail.com and I’ll send you this document.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Books for Boys Who Hate to Read

Read EBooks
E-books can be read on a Kindle or the Kindle Cloud. You can use it on a Kindle, iPad, etc. You can find them under the Kindle tab. They have most of the book titles available.

 

 

 

 

 

Make Your Own Ebook
Creating a story and then making an ebook is a super fun project. If you have a Gmail account which is totally free, you have Google Slides and if you don’t see it as an option, just type “Google Slides” in the menu bar at the top of the page and it will appear! Just follow the directions on this page and you’ll have your ebook in no time!! That’s a bit of writing and reading!!!

Read Big Print Books
Because the big print books have bigger fonts, a reluctant reader enjoys reading them more than the smaller print books. These books also appear to be larger because there are more pages and it makes some kids feel prouder because their book appears to be larger.  I know that seems strange!!! Here are a few big print books for some popular books:

  

Read Aloud
A child LOVES to be read to. I can walk into any classroom when a teacher is reading and 95% of the time the only noise is the voice of the teacher reading a favorite book!!! There is something magical about being read to and your child will probably love for you to read to them (or use a CD of a book).

10 books that boys who hate to read will read,

In my years as a teacher and then a library media specialist, I’ve finally figured out the books for boys who hate to read. I can figure out which boys dislike reading and I’m now ready with my bag of tricks with book suggestions.

If you click on these book links of suggestions for boys who hate to read and click the picture of the book once you are on Amazon, you can usually preview a page or two. You will see that there is just a small amount of text. I give these type of books to the children who want to look like they’re reading a grade level books, when in fact it’s a lower grade reading level.

Reluctant readers (girls and boys) love this series. I can’t keep them in the library! There are quite a few in this series.

Diary of a Wimpy Kid by Jeff Kinney: Greg Heffley finds himself thrust into middle school, where undersized weaklings share the hallways with kids who are taller, meaner, and already shaving. Greg is happy to have Rowley, his sidekick, along for the ride. But when Rowley’s star starts to rise, Greg tries to use his best friend’s newfound popularity to his own advantage, kicking off a chain of events that will test their friendship in hilarious fashion.

 

This is another series that boys will come in and ask for. The author, Dav Pilkey created this series after he created two other popular series, Captain Underpants, Ricky Ricotta and Dog Man (and yes, they’re all in this top 10 list). This new series is in color and the boys are crazy about it!!!

Ricky Ricotta Mighty Robot by Dav Pilkey: Getting picked on by creeps at your school? Wish you had a special friend? Meet Ricky Ricotta and his giant flying Robot! Young readers will cheer as Ricky and his enormous flying Robot friend soar through the air and battle the diabolical Dr. Stinky, an evil scientist who threatens to take over the world!

This is the other series by Dav Pilkey that the boys can’t get enough of. I can not keep this on the shelf. I never really liked the topic of the series because it’s a gross topic, but I have to get kids to read anyway I can, so I have the whole series.

Captain Underpants by Dav Pilkey:  Meet George and Harold in these five hilarious adventures with the amazing Captain Underpants, as they duel Dr. Diaper, tackle the talking toilets, clash with the crazy cafeteria ladies, plot against Professor Poopypants, and wrestle the wicked Wedgie Woman. Overflowing with humor, action, and lots of super silly events!!

This series is my “go-to” series that I have hooked many a reluctant reader. Both girls and boys love this series and there are a ton of book in this series!!

Miss Daisy is Crazy! by Dan Gutman: In the first My Weird School book ever, second-grade teacher Miss Daisy is in over her head. She doesn’t even know how to add or subtract! But the kids have other things on their minds. Principal Klutz has promised that if they read a million pages in books, they can turn the school into a video-game arcade for one whole night!

This is a newer series, but the newest of Dav Pilkey’s creations! Girls and boys love this new series!

 Dog Man by Dav Pilkey: When Greg the police dog and his cop companion are injured on the job, a life-saving surgery changes the course of history, and Dog Man is born. With the head of a dog and the body of a human, this heroic hound has a real nose for justice!

 

Very funny and very popular – more so for the 4th and 5th graders.

Middle School the Worst Years of My Life by James Patterson: With his best friend Leonardo the Silent awarding him points, Rafe tries to break every rule in his school’s oppressive Code of Conduct. Chewing gum in class–5,000 points! Running in the hallway–10,000 points! Pulling the fire alarm–50,000 points!

 

Another popular series for the boys.

Revenge of the Cream Puffs by Lincoln Peirce: Nate and his baseball team, saddled with the most embarrassing moniker in Little League history, want to show the world they’re not just a bunch of cupcakes. But it won’t be easy! On the day of the big game, illness and injuries have the team facing a crushing defeat, unless the unlikeliest Cream Puff of all can come in from the bullpen and save the day.

 

This is a graphic novel that I can’t keep on the shelf. I’ve actually had to replace the whole set because they are so worn out that they were coming apart!! Boys and girls LOVE this series!

Amulet by Kazu Kibuishi: A sinister creature lures the kids’ mom through a door in the basement where they come upon an underground world inhabited by demons, robots, and talking animals.

 

 

Some boys are drawn to nonfiction topics, cars, books on tips on playing various sports, art books, biographies of famous sports characters, movie stars, historical figures, etc.

For boys who want a variety of small amounts of information, magazines can draw your child to reading.

 

 

 

 

Check out these posts if you want to explore more ways to get your child to read or if you want to help your child find the book that he will read. Below is also a list of my most popular posts:

• Helping Struggling Readers at Home
• How to Help Your Struggling Reader at Home
• Educational Gifts that Promote Learning
• FAMILY FUN IDEAS
• Homework Routines That Work!
• Do you Know the 4 Signs that your Child is Struggling in School?
• 3 Reasons Why Your Child Won’t Read
• How to Help a Child with ADHD
• How to Motivate a Reluctant Reader at Home!
• 25 Ideas for Reading Skills Practice at Home!
• How to Help Your Child Get Ready to Read
• Is Your Child a Reluctant Reader?
• How to Help a Reluctant Reader
• Motivate your Child to Read More – a Reading Challenge!
• Super Fun Ideas For Reading Practice
• Memory Techniques to Help Your Child Remember Information
• 6 Reasons Why Your Child Won´t Read
• Help your Child Find the Right Book!

For more ideas on how to get your child to read, click here.  And please either leave me a comment below with your email address or email me at jean@reading-love.com or mrs.dehm@gmail.com. Happy Reading!