A Boy and the Library

From the desk of Alice…

Let me introduce you to Miller:

• He is 6.
• He is a boy.
• His favorite time of day at school is on the playground because he is “fast”.
• He likes to be right.  All the time.
• He has a sharp sense of humor and understands sarcasm.
• He enjoys math because there is an opportunity for a “right” answer.
• He is motivated by results and even more by achievement.
• He is loud and only gives lengthy attention to things he values.  He considers everything else an interruption.

So his class library trip was coming up and I had some concerns.

Backstory: The first time his class went, he came home with one book.

ONE. BOOK.

They can get an unlimited amount of books AND they get to keep them for 3 weeks. And it’s all free.  Miller chose a book about cars and he threw it on the table when he walked in the door as if it pained him to actually get ONE BOOK at the library.  I made sure we read that book multiple times and talked about all the cool things in it, examined the pictures and discussed how wonderful non-fiction text was.

ONE. BOOK.

Keep in mind I know a little bit about reading.  I have over 10 zillion books in our house ranging from books with no words to the classics.  I have read to Miller his entire life and he sees me reading, writing, and talking about what I have read in newspapers, magazines and books for pleasure and for work.  I make time to read with him everyday.   I fell in love with reading and books as a small child and the library played a huge part in that!  But yet he still brought home ONE BOOK and acted the library was the morgue.

So recently his class was headed back to the library.  He was clearly unenthused about the trip.  He told me he was going to return his ONE BOOK but wasn’t planning to get another one.

WHAT?

Did the world just stop spinning? Not get another one?  This was clearly a parenting fail.

Since this little apple doesn’t fall far from the tree, I decided I would make a plea to his need for achievement.  I started talking to him about all the knowledge that resides in the library.  I explained to him that knowing things will help you be better at everything.  Knowing how a car works makes you a better mechanic.  Knowing how to kick the soccer ball will make you a better soccer player.  Knowing lots of stories will make you a better writer.  Knowing how other people live will help you decide where you want to go on a trip.  He perked up a little.

“You mean there are books about everything inside the library?!?”

“Yes.  And they are waiting for people to check them out.  And if you don’t check them out, someone else will.  And then they will know more than you.”

(Silence)

“Ok. I guess I could check out one today.”

“Well, just think what you could learn about if you checked out more than one….”

“Ok.  I will see if I can find two books about something I like.”

From there, we just talked about all the things he likes including but not limited to football, soccer, cookies, cupcakes, shoes, cars, Spiderman, cheetahs, fish, and joke books.

That afternoon, he came home with two books.

And that is how to teach a 6 year old boy to value the library.