I have begun homeschooling my 17 year old son. He has ADHD and hates reading.?

Question

He has been battered by the public school system since middle school and I want the time I spend teaching him to be positive and fight free. Any Ideas on how to help him enjoy reading or at least be able to tolerate it?

Answer 1

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We started homeschool in 8th grade and the 'love for learning' that we hoped would happen---has not happened.

My son still makes a fuss even with the read along audio books.

We continue to require  reading   with some of his subjects  but we use many video and audio resources.  Another tactic that we have used is having 2 copies of a book and sitting and reading together either silently or taking turns reading aloud.  

By the way, he doesn't mind reading Sports Illustated, catalogs, and My Space pages and messages.  Instant messaging has helped his spelling.   No joke.  

We are relaxed eclectic in style so this my not work for you if you teach in a more traditional style.

Hope this is an encouragement to know that you are not alone.

Short note:  I  recently finished "Uglies" and  in that book  paper and pencil writing was a forgotten skill.    I thought the book was fascinating with all kinds of interesting things to think about.   My son read it because his girlfriend wanted him to read it.   He read half of it...which ain't bad for a book that was not an assignment.

Answer 2

Hi, below are some guidelines to help your kid read more fluently and confidently. Each session should last only about 20 minutes.

1. Begin by selecting a book that your kid has interest in.

2. You start first, reading a short passage. The passage should be short enough so that your kid can rely on his short term memory to aid his reading. Read at a normal rate and move your finger across the bottom of the words with your kid watching closely.

3. Get your child to read the same passage together with you. Both read aloud. Continuing to point to the words as you read along. The passage should be read repeatedly until your child feels comfortable reading the passage independently.

4. Now, have your kid read the passage on his own.

5. Discuss the passage with your child. Ask him things like what the passage is about and what he has learnt.

6. repeat the steps throughout the book.

7. You should write down those words which your kid consistently has problems with. Think of activities for him to do so that he has more chances of seeing those problem words in action.

Good luck. I wish you and your kid the best of luck. A wise man once said: "problems are actually opportunities in disguise."

Source(s):

http://www.adhdquestionsandanswers.com/T...

Answer 3

1) Check his ability to read. Have him read out loud to you and see just how well he can read. If phonics is a problem, start there. Phonics Pathways is a great program for all age. If syllabication is a problem but the phonics is okay, work on that first. Poor reading skills are the number one cause of a resistance to reading.

2) What kinds of things is he interested in? This would help guide you to materials (books, magazines, other) he'd be interested in reading. You could even just find books on tape/CD--novels, biographies, other non-fiction--to narrow in on what he might like to read. If he enjoys listening to books, then obviously he enjoys the content. Which would then point to poor reading skills being aculpri for not enjoying reading.

Answer 4

I think the auditory materials might be worthwhile.  Also, books or magazines about something that interests him.  It doesn't matter if its motorcycles or Rock n Roll, just something he'll read and enjoy.

Use audio resources or read to him for the things he has to study (History, Science, Literature,etc.)  Just do your best to not put too much pressure.

And don't get upset if he isn't into picking up a novel and reading for pleasure, some people never get to that point, do try to get him to the point of being able and willing to get needed information from a text though.

Answer 5

Some people never read as adults. If he is capable of reading basic directions, recipes, emails, etc, I'd let it go. Some day he'll want some information that will come from a book. There are alternative ways to learn anything, you don't have to read to do it.

If you don't want a fight, make what he's learning interesting and related to the world. Kids hate school because they are taught random facts in an order that doesn't relate to THEM.

Ask him what he wants to do with his life. Figure out what he has to learn to get there. Get an ACT test book and see if he can work through it (tell him he's done when he can score a 30 on the test) We're doing that with my 13 yo, and it WORKS because he sees a point for everything he's learning.

Answer 6

My son is younger (10), but faced the same qualms about reading.  I let him listen to audio books, and while he still very much enjoys listening to them (he has those on his MP3 instead of music), he has come to (basically) enjoy reading enough to willingly do it every day.  He'd rather be watching it on DVD, or playing baseball at the park, but he no longer complains about reading - and often really gets into a book after a day or two of reading the required 30 minutes a day.  I've actually gone up to his room and found him reading in the wee hours when he couldn't sleep.

I would say at least for the next several months, get him all the audio resources you can.  As he gets more "into" it, have him read along with the audio book - and then transition him into straight reading.

Also - even though he's older, he may enjoy having you read aloud.  I'm in my mid-30s and still enjoy doing read alouds with my parents :)  Seeing your enthusiasm for the books, and having you paint word pictures and dramatize the scenes a bit may help him break through the reading barrier.  Don't make it a schedule "thing", just call him over and start reading the book.  Let him know that you enjoy it and thought he might enjoy the break, then go from there.

After he "deschools" a bit - gets through the transition from traditional to homeschooling - you'll likely find that he opens up to learning a lot more easily.  You indicated that he's had a really rough time in school; he needs time to come off of that.  During this period - which may take a few weeks to a few months - don't push him.  Surround him with things that will draw his interest, praise him for every step he takes, and show him, gently, what lifelong learning can be like.

Hope that helps - and good luck!

Answer 7

I can't speak with any authority to the situation with a 17 yr old boy, but I can let you know what has helped my dyslexic son with ADHD.  He had struggled with reading until a doctor suggested he be allowed to use talking books, audio books, etc. with the written book together.  He chooses books to his liking for his independent reading time.  The audio book allows him to enjoy the text, while training him to visually track more rapidly than if he were reading silently or aloud without the audio.  

(note:  I don't know if your son is on ADHD meds, but my son said that when he took them for a short time, it made the words "move around."  Now he has dyslexia as well, so that may not be an issue for your son.  But when we took him off the meds, he didn't have as big a problem with this)

He has gone from struggling and being a good 1 yr. behind in reading level to being approx 6 mos. ahead of avg for his age/grade level.  

We also set time aside to read as a family.  Being an example goes a long way.  Because of his attention issues (and mine as well)  we take it in short bursts.  We started with 10 min. and gradually worked up to 30 min at a time.  It took about 1 yr. to get him to that length of time.  Of course he still does reading without the audio books, but does the dual media reading daily.  

My most memorable moment was the day after he got the book and CD "Holes" from the library.  He begged to read longer rather than move on to other work (I was THRILLED to oblige.)  Well, his batteries died, but he kept reading...and reading .... and reading.  The next morning I found him up at 5 a.m. reading in the living room.  He woke up early and ran to the book and was done by noon.  He had read the entire book in one day.  Quite a feat for him!!!!!!

Just an aside...I didn't really enjoy reading in school because of the volume of reading assigned that was not to my liking.  I think if you allow him to choose his books it will go farther to fostering a love for reading in him than anything else.

Answer 8

You may want to consider that he needs time to deschool.  It can take a while to get over the idea that learning takes place only in school when you first homeschool.  

If he isn't enjoying reading, maybe he just needs a break from it for a while.  Have a discussion with him about how he feels reading and maybe a bit of probing to see if he does have dyslexia.  

Suggest to him that he find a book on a topic in which he is interested.  Or even begin with magazines or internet articles.  At some point he could realize that he enjoys reading.

Some people never do get too into reading, for whatever the reason.  Obviously being illiterate is difficult, but reading as a hobby is optional.  

Good luck :D