Deprive boys of video games to make them read...

[The Artificially Prolonged]

If you want children to read then it would be best to introduce them into books that they might actually enjoy rather than forcing them to read something they don't want to. I love reading, but I used to hate the books I was made to read in school. Also reading doesn't have to be books, most games now contain more text than some novels, hell I've spent many a time going for the civipedia if the civ games reading about the different civilizations.

 

[Estocavio]

I actually do, and always have done alot of reading. They imply people would read simply out of boredom, when in reality, before technology, we RARELY read EVER. We went out and committed petty crimes, and got drunk. I wasnt born yet around then, but the point remains. Oh, and we had a new war every decade or two, to relieve our boredom.

 

[SinisterGehe]

I myself do not read books, much at all expect the stuff I need to read, school books etc etc, but I focus on class and I learn better by listening the teacher.
I do not read books because I have hard time seeing the letters on white paper, I see letters that are messed up with kinetic distoration. I never enjoyed reading because of that.

And that is just inhuman, forcing people to do something, that would be almost torture. If they do not like literature, you can't force them to like it. If it is such a big issue give them Ebooks to read, just that it is on paper doesn't make it special.

 

[farscythe]

i love to read..but its something ill only do at night in bed (dunno why..just love reading in bed.. cant focus on it during the day)(might have something to do with a hyper active 8 year old running about)

but yea.. i wouldnt ban the lil one just get her to read tbh..she'll just find something else to do instead out of spite. do ban her for failing to control her game rage tho

 

[monkey_man]

I like reading almost as much as I do gaming. it's just how you raise your kids. If you bring them up with books, and have many books they might find interesting, children can read.
A lot

 

[A.I. Sigma]

I fucking love to read, I always have. That is why I play video games. I play to examine the plot, the character development, the relationships between characters and the themes. I never really care about gameplay or graphics. I'm in it for the story.

I am exactly the same.

 

[twistedmic]

The key, I think, to getting kids, regardless of gender, interested in reading is to read to them when they are younger. My mom did that to me and my sister when we were really young and it got us both really interested in reading.
If the parents can't get be bothered to read to their kids, even just five to ten minutes a day, then the child is going to have a harder time learning to read and leaning to enjoy reading.

As for what the kids are reading, I don't think it really matters, as long as they like reading. One of the first series of books I got into , besides picture books, was Goosebumps, which I never saw as 'gross out' books. I always saw them as the kiddo version of Stephen King or Dean Koontz books.

And if you don't want you kids to read books about farting and other crap (no pun intended) get them some 'Classic Starts' books, abridged versions of classics (Robin Hood, Swiss Family Robinson, Oliver Twist, etc.). I read those kind of books side by side with Goosebumps, and I still read and enjoyed 'The Hobbit'

Finally depriving boys of electronics is only going to make things worse, especially if the boy has a sister who is allowed to watch t.v., play video games or screw around on the computer.

 

[ntw3001]

Taking away an entertainment they already had is just going to cause resentment. Just let them grow up without games in the first place. My parents got round my pleas for a console of some sort by ignoring them. It helped that they'd already taught me this useful piece of information[/i], so I anticipated endless pestering would result in a much smaller chance of success than asking at opportune moments.

Uh, then when they do have access to games they'll probably choose that over reading books, but it's too late! The damage is done; they can already read, and they're well-read enough to understand the difference between good and bad storytelling. They'll understand their English teachers, which means they'll naturally take those lessons in. It won't directly make them want to pick up a book again, but one day they will and they'll be ready. That's as good as education can really be.

 

[WanderingFool]

http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052748704271804575405511702112290.html#articleTabs=article

The idea behind this article, I believe, is that boys (and ONLY boys, as girls do not play video games apparently) who do not like to read should not be pandered to by giving them "gross-out" books to read or bribed with video games in order to get them to read. Rather, they should be deprived of all electronic stimuli until they are so starved for entertainment they HAVE to read to relieve the boredom.

Hm. Discuss, Escapists: Rational, logical suggestion? Or is someone WAY overstepping their bounds here?

Yeeeeeeaaaahhhhhhh...

Thats a load of shit. If you force them to read like that, they will hate it more, and than call you a ***** before becoming a punk.

 

[Jabberwock xeno]

Stupid.

I love reading. I read so much that I was not allowed to get any more books because I'd be done reading them in less than a day, and I already had a growing libary in my closet by the age of 7. I play video games as much as I read.

You want your kid to read?

Drop them in borders, let them roam around, and when they find something intersting (and they will), be it Huccklberry fin, The newest Halo book, or manga, let them buy it and read it. For all I care, let them read the offcial guide to a game, or whatever.

The issue is that nearly all the stuff they make you read in school is boring, and mostly crap. If they introduced kids to books meant to appeal to us in school, then gave us Tom sawyer crap, we'd have more kids reading.

 

[Danny Ocean]

Hm. Discuss, Escapists: Rational, logical suggestion? Or is someone WAY overstepping their bounds here?

I think deprivation is an acceptable way to coerce.

I couldn't make myself stop wasting hours away on games. In a very short fit of self-motivation I unplugged all the electronics in my room and gave the kettle plugs to my parents to hide somewhere. I got them back after a month. The first few days were tedious torture. I'd do my chores, then sit around bored waiting for something to do. Then I bought a book. Then another, then five more. All I did was read, almost all day, almost every day (Like 12+ hours of reading a day all week). I finished twelve books in seven days. All non-fiction.

My grades jumped from predicted U's to predicted A's.

Most of the books weren't even about my subjects. It's just that you're much more prepared to do any work you need to do to improve yourself when the only other stimulants are exercise, which is unpleasant on your own, or reading, which is slow. Work becomes the most attractive entertainment prospect.

And yes, I think it's fair to target boys in particular with this idea, because boys do worse in school and play more games. Yes, some boys do well in school and some girls play games, and playing games doesn't necessarily make you do worse at school. These are just pointing out the logically obvious. Practically speaking, boys really are the best target for this.

 

[The Wykydtron]

Ha. I read my books when i'm meant to be sleeping... That's one of my rules

Video Games still have reading, hell some are all reading all the time for example Phoenix Wright Ace Attorney or any other text based adventure... But Phoenix Wright has more lawyerness and is therefore superior.

At least noone can tell me to "go read a book" when i'm gaming once they've seen my super special awesome bookcase!

 

[Shockolate]

Hey, I like reading!

My preferences tend to be on brutal war stories, but still!

 

[Ace of Spades]

Books just become less desirable by comparison because video games, especially those made by BioWare, provide the same gripping story aspects as a well-written novel but in an interactive environment, which means they have even more potential to capture the player's interest.

 

[Sheaphard117]

This seems like using books to reinforce a punishment.

 

[Azo Galvat]

People don't read what isn't interesting to them, and trying to force boring material down their throats early just makes them believe that ALL reading is boring. Start out your children with reading interesting things. If a boy early on wants to read gross-out books, let him. It'll get him into reading, and THEN you can try and make him read stuffy books for school. Girls, same concept.

Essentially, whatever your child is into, get books related to that interest. If they enjoy it, they'll do it, and likely realize not all books are stuffy. Just the ones for school.