My son is 7 (and emotionally he is a little younger than that)...he reads on a 6th grade level these days (or so I have been told). He has read many classics such as Tom Sawyer, Red Badge of Courage, Stuart Little, ect. He likes books like Harry Potter (yes, he has read them all), and he is currently reading How to Train Your Dragon which he got at the library yesterday afternoon and is already more than half way through it... He LOVES to read. Usually I pick out every other book for him so that he isn't constantly reading the same kinds of books...it is a system he likes because I have picked out MANY of his now favorite books...my issue is that at his reading level, much of the content is inappropriate in my opinion. Anyone have any suggestions for books because I am probably going to have to pick something out tommorrow and I am drawing a total blank here....
Oh, Heather, I was there with my oldest!!! Let's see...How about "Where the Red Fern Grows" and "Old Yeller"? "My Side of the Mountain", "The Incredible Journey" (which is a much better book than movie!!!), OH!!! Has he read "The Chronicles of Narnia"? And John White has some wonderful fantasy that is similar..."The Sword Bearer" is the first one. "The Great Brain" books is a wnderful series about a Catholic boy growing up in Mormon Utah. Very humorous! Also, and old book that you probably can't find is called "The Mad Scientist Club". "Homer Price", "The Wind in the Willows", "Black Beauty"..... How's that for starters? (Another incentive to come to Ohio...Croton is close enough to Columbus for you to use the library there, and it is an absolutely fantastic system as far as selection.)
Well, he has read Where the Red Fern Grows, Old Yeller and My Side of the Mountain, Chronicals of Narnia are one of his favorites especially Prince Caspian. Homer Price, and Wind and the Willows he has already read too...I think we are going to look into The Incredible Journey...he loves comareing books to the movies. I just called and left a message for the owner of a local Christian book store regarding The Great Brain...and do you know who wrote The Mad Scientist Club??? Hmmm...Thank you! That was a great start! :grin:
I wish I knew who wrote "The Mad Scientist Club"!!! It is one you'll have trouble getting, but if you can it is well worth it. It's a mostly a short-story collection of a group of boys who have all kinds of crazy adventures. I think the first one involves a "Loch Ness Monster" in their lake. One member was late for dinner, and made up a story about how it was because he saw a "monster" in the lake. So the boys decided to make one, using an old rowboat for the base. It kind of grew from there, until it got national attention. People started shooting at it, so they rigged up a remote control, then added a loud speaker so it could make this roaring noise.... Well, you get the idea. Oh, another good series he might enjoy are "Danny Dunn" books. These are also old books about a boy whose widowed mother is housekeeper for a scientist, and all the adventures he has. I read them when I was a kid. they are written by Jay Williams and Raymond Abrashkin. If he enjoyed Narnia, I would REALLY SUGGEST the John White books.
Get that boy into a Bible! :lol: At the rate he is reading he'd graduate from siminary in a couple years! I was going to suggest the Narnia series (we are now at the end of book 6) but it seems he has already finished with the series. Has he read The Hobbit or The Lord of the Rings? These are great fantasy without any adult themes added. After reading that series and then Narnia, my 9yo ds did some research into Tolkien and Lewis because of their similar styles and found that they were friends in real life. Maybe your son would like to read biographies of some of his favorite authors and get to know them even better.
Heather, look into "The Mystery of History". That's the history I'm doing with my kids. It teaches ancient history from a Biblical timeline. Volume I goes from the creation to the ressurection. There's a short reading (I read it aloud to all three), then there are activities that are marked for younger, middle or older children. You can actually teach various ages at once, assigning the more difficult activities to your older kids to do on their own. It's very adaptable. My kids can tell you all about people like King Darius, Sennecharib, Nefertiti and Ankenahten..... Your son sounds as if he'd love it!
I used to teach in a Jr. High School long, long ago (before I had my own kids and saw the light!) One of the teachers there had a "reading wheel" that she used in her English class. She made up a circle on a sheet of paper and divided the circle into pie-shaped sections. In each section she wrote a different genera of literature. "Biography, Fantasy, Science Fiction, How-to, Animal story" and so forth. Then she put it on the kids to do the research and pick out their own books. Something along those lines might work for you if you have a good children's section in your local library. Since he reads so much, it might be time to introduce him to the children's section librarian and the computer catalogue. Give him one reading wheel of your own design each month and let him start to experience picking things for himself.
Actually, Boat Gal, my kids read like crazy, especially if it's mystery. So I've set my Book It goals for them for reading two history (1 can by historical fiction), 1 nature, 1 science, 1 biography, and another non-fiction of their choice. It's the only way they'll look at the non-fiction books!
I was a reader like that, if I got in trouble mom had to ground me from books!... Most of my favorites from then were too girly or already listed in this thread but "The war Between the pitiful teachers and the splendid kids" by Stanley Kiesel kept me entertained for lots of readings.
Thank you ladies...So many awsome suggestions...keep them coming please! He reads super fast if he likes the book with full comprehension so it is sometimes a struggle to keep up with him...I look forward to the library visits when he gets to pick out his own books hehe because I am constantly trying to find him something different to so that he doesn't get "stuck" with one type of book constantly...I really appreciate the suggestions!
