OTT 246: 3 Simple Tweaks That Can Transform Your Child’s Reading Routine

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Ever wondered why your child resists reading time, despite your best efforts? The solution might be simpler than you think. Rather than completely overhauling your reading routine, small, thoughtful shifts can create breakthrough moments where resistance transforms into excitement.

In this episode, I share three powerful yet incredibly simple tweaks that can revolutionize your child's relationship with books. First, we explore how shifting what we celebrate – from quantity of pages to qualities like persistence and courage – builds intrinsic motivation and a growth mindset about reading. When we acknowledge a child for sticking with a tricky word or choosing their own book, we're celebrating the reader, not just the reading.

Next, we dive into how physical environments dramatically impact reading engagement. That kitchen table with its distractions and clinical feel? It might be undermining your efforts. Discover how creating a designated cozy space – even just a corner with pillows and personal touches – can make reading feel like a special treat rather than an obligation. When children read in spaces they've helped create, ownership and enjoyment naturally follow.

Finally, I reveal how adding a "makerspace twist" to required reading transforms passive consumption into active exploration. By inviting children to solve story problems through building and creating, books become springboards for imagination rather than items to check off a list. This approach deepens comprehension as children must truly understand characters and conflicts to design meaningful solutions. Using simple materials like cardboard, Legos, or recyclables, children engage with stories in ways that build critical thinking alongside reading skills.

The beauty of these approaches is their simplicity – you don't need special training or expensive materials to implement them. Try just one this week and watch for shifts in your child's attitude toward reading. And don't forget to download my free STEM Story Station resource to get started with story-based creation activities. Together, we're creating joyful, confident readers, one gentle tweak at a time.

🎁 Grab my FREE Communication STEM Story Station to Bring a Book to life!
👉 https://trina-deboree-teaching-and-learning.kit.com/280adbdf11
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Episode Transcript

Speaker 1 (00:00):
Welcome to One Tired Teacher.
Episode 246, three SimpleTweaks that Can Transform your
Child's Reading Routine.
Ah, alright, so you don't needa full-on reading overhaul to
help your child love books.
Sometimes all it takes is a fewthoughtful shifts to build
confidence, reduce resistanceand reintroduce joy to your

(00:24):
daily reading routine.
In today's episode, I'm sharingthree easy but powerful tweaks
you can make.
No major systems, no overwhelm,just small, doable changes that
lead to big breakthroughs.
Hope you stick around.
Hope you stick around.

Speaker 2 (00:46):
Welcome to One Tired Teacher.
And even though she may need anap, this teacher is ready to
wake up and speak her truthabout the trials and treasures
of teaching here.
She is wide awake.
Wait, she's not asleep rightnow, is she?
She is awake right.
Okay, from Trina Debery,teaching and Learning your host,
trina Devery.

Speaker 1 (01:08):
So in today's video, you're going to learn how or why
you, how celebrating progressmatters more than how much they
read, how measuring progressmatters more than how much they
read, how your home readingspace could be affecting your
mindset or your child's mindset,how to reframe required reading

(01:30):
with a creative, makerspaceinfused or inspired twist.
All right, so let's talk abouttweak number one, and that is
celebrating progress differently.
This is this is a, this is onethat sometimes we don't even
think about as being an issue,so let's talk about what the
problem is first of all.
The problem or the commonmistake is we often celebrate

(01:53):
how much kids read and not howmuch they grow.
That leads to pressure like howmany pages, how many minutes,
how fast are we reading?
What kinds of books are wereading?
But what builds motivation iscelebrating effort, consistency
and courage.
Those are the things that wewant to celebrate.
All right, the shift or thesolution is we want to celebrate

(02:16):
things like you stuck with thattricky word.
You found a book that youpicked.
You read while curled up in afort.
Those are the kind of thingsthat we can celebrate.
We can celebrate small wins sothat kids feel they kind of get
used to what it feels like tofeel celebrated or to feel
encouraged or to feel joyfulabout reading, and it's.

(02:39):
It just takes a little twist.
We can use non-reading rewards,like getting to stay up 10
minutes later to finish achapter.
We can draw their favoritescene.
We can share a book withsomeone they love.
Why do things like this work?
Why does this work?
It builds intrinsic motivation.
It turns reading to aself-driven achievement, not a

(03:01):
task where they just have tocheck off of a to-do list or
write out a reading log.
It helps kids develop a growthmindset about reading.
All right, let's talk abouttweak number two.
Before we do that, if you likeanything that you've heard,
definitely give me a thumbs upin the comments, all right.
Tweak number two is adjust thereading environment, all right.

(03:22):
So the problem or the commonmisstep is that reading happens
at the kitchen table, withdistractions, with clutter, with
zero coziness.
For many kids, that doesn'tinspire calm, curiosity or even
creativity.
It doesn't inspire anythingpositive.
It feels like a chore or a taskthat has to be done.

(03:45):
The shift is really simpleenough and it's really creating
a cozy reading zone, even ifit's just a corner.
You can use a pillow, a blanket, twinkle lights or even a
cardboard reading nook.
Let them decorate it with bookcovers, character drawings or
affirmations.
Like I am a reader, it can beunder their bed in the closet.

(04:06):
It doesn't have to be anythingcrazy.
Kids love to cozy up and cuddleup.
It really does make a hugedifference.
When I let kids read undertheir desks when I was in the
classroom, they would read forforever.
They would read for so muchlonger.
They thought they were doingsomething kind of that they
shouldn't be doing and it madeit more adventurous.

(04:26):
You want to offer choice.
You want kids to be able tochoose where and how they read.
Upside down on the couch, fine.
Laying under the table, great.
With a flashlight in the closet, even better.
So why do these things work?
They work because comfortincreases concentration and calm
.
Kids feel ownership over theirreading space and reading starts

(04:50):
to feel more like a treat andnot a chore.
All right, moving on torethinking tweak number three.
But before we do that, did youlike anything you've heard?
Definitely, give me a thumbs up.
Make sure you share it with afriend who is in the need of
hearing some reading inspirationfor their child.
Let's focus on tweak numberthree Rethink required reading

(05:12):
with a makerspace twist.
So the common mindset here isthat we have to get through this
book and when it's required,when reading feels like homework
even when it's not then italways feels like homework.
It always feels like a chore.
If we have to fill out readinglogs, I can't even imagine
having to fill out a reading logevery time I read something.
I think it would make me neverwant to read again.

(05:34):
So I think we have to be reallycareful about things like that.
So a common fix is reallyreframing it.
It's maybe reframing readingwith not just sitting and
getting, but doing.
So turning reading into doing issomething like you ask them
what can we, how can we help?
What do we do after we read thestory?

(05:56):
How can we help the charactersolve the problem?
Can we change the ending withan invention or creation?
So here are a few examples,like maybe, if you were reading
the paper bag princess, youbuild a fireproof shield for the
princess, you create a dragontrap using Legos or pipe
cleaners, you design a paper bagoutfit upgrade with fabric

(06:17):
scraps or brown paper, or maybeyou don't think of any of those
things and you actually let thechild come up with the solutions
.
They are the one that thinks ofthe solutions, not you.
You're not making a craft.
You're allowing them to haveopen-ended exploration so that
they are coming up with theanswers.
All you have to do is use somesimple materials like straws,

(06:38):
cardboard, pipe cleaners,toothpicks, legos, play-doh
recyclables.
Let them draw a blueprint, letthem build, let them test it out
and then let them revise it.
Don't skip the revision.
That's really where the magichappens.
Emphasize process, notperfection.

(06:59):
This gives our child a safeplace to struggle, a safe place
to fail, a safe place to learnfrom our mistakes.
It helps build resilience andproblem solving and critical
thinking, and it makes readingan active, engaging activity.
So why does this work?
It encourages deepcomprehension.

(07:19):
When you have to think abouthow you would solve a problem,
you have to kind of put yourselfin the shoes of the character,
so you're really thinking.
It helps kids take ownership oftheir reading experience and it
reinforces books that are notjust so they get through them,
but they get to explore andcreate from them.
All right, so do you want to tryout my freebie?

(07:39):
It is a STEM Story Station.
It's based on the story diaryof a worm.
I've been sharing it for acouple of weeks and it comes
with the challenge for achallenge where they have to
have an open-ended solution.
And then they work through aprocess of thinking they plan,
they brainstorm, they work on ablueprint, then they actually
test it, they create it, theytest it out, they make revisions
.
They reflect on a blueprint,then they actually test it, they

(08:02):
create it, they test it out,they make revisions, they
reflect on it.
And this is just for you.
All you have to do is grab itin the downloads below.
All right, the find some finalthoughts.
You don't need to overhaul yourchild's reading life.
You just need to gently reshapehow it feels, because when
reading becomes cozy, creativeand full of choice, everything

(08:23):
changes.
All right, try one of thesetweaks this week and see what
shifts and celebrate it.
My computer is going crazy.
And then make sure that yougrab a copy of my stem story
station below.
Make sure you like this video,you share this with others and
you subscribe for weekly tipsthat help kids fall in love with

(08:46):
books.
One joyful page at a time.
You and I creating joyful,confident readers, readers in
the making.
One page at a time.
See you next time.
You, you, you, you.