20 reading games for a child who does not enjoy reading yet

First, work out which problem it is

Two very different children get called reluctant readers. The first still finds decoding effortful — sounding out takes all the attention and leaves none for the story. The second reads fluently and simply prefers other things.

For the first, the fix is easier text and more practice disguised as play. For the second, it is finding material they actually want — comics, football annuals, joke books, mythology — and reading aloud to them well past the age it feels necessary.

And if a child at eight or nine is still struggling badly with letter sounds and spelling, especially with a family history, ask for a dyslexia assessment rather than adding tuition.

Games for children still learning to decode (1-10)

1. Word hunt around the house. Call a sound — 'sss' — and everyone finds three objects that start with it. 2. Sound bingo: a grid of letters, call sounds rather than names, cover them with dal. 3. Word building with kitchen dal or magnetic letters — say a word, build it, change one letter, read the new word.

4. Read the shopping list. Write it in large clear letters and let them read out the next item in the shop. Real reading, real purpose. 5. Signboard game in the car: read one shop sign per street. 6. Label the house: sticky notes on door, chair, table, fan, and swap them around as a joke.

7. Roll and read: a die, six words on a page, read the one you roll. 8. Silly sentences: they read a sentence you have written that is deliberately absurd — 'papa ate the sofa' — which makes decoding worth the effort. 9. Word snap with two sets of cards. 10. Hidden treasure: written clues around the house leading to a small prize, each clue readable at their level.

Games for children who can read but will not (11-20)

11. Comics, in quantity. They are reading, they build vocabulary and inference, and children who read comics move on when ready. 12. The joke book: they read one joke a day at dinner. 13. Reading aloud to a younger sibling, a grandparent or a pet — the audience makes it a performance rather than a task.

14. Recipe reading: they read the steps and you cook. 15. Book and film: read the book, then watch the film, then argue about what was ruined. 16. Twenty minutes of family reading where every person in the house, including the adults, reads something. Modelling beats instruction.

17. Choose-your-own-adventure books, which reward reading with a decision. 18. Audiobook plus the text, which is genuinely useful for children who find decoding effortful — the story carries them along while the eyes track the words.

19. The library challenge: they choose, without any veto from you, and abandoning a book is allowed. Freedom to stop is what makes starting easy. 20. Reading in the home language too — many children who resist English reading enjoy their own language, and the skills transfer.

What not to do

Do not use reading as punishment, or set page targets that turn it into homework. Both are reliable ways to build a lifelong avoidance.

Do not correct every mistake while they read aloud. Let errors that do not change the meaning go, and ask about the story rather than testing the words.

Do not stop reading aloud to them once they can read alone. Children understand books years beyond their reading level, and shared reading is where the love of story survives the effort of decoding.

Do not compare with a sibling or classmate who reads more. It is the fastest way to make a child decide they are not a reader.

Frequently asked questions

Q: He only reads comics and joke books. — Those are reading. Keep supplying them, leave other things nearby, and stop treating the format as the problem.

Q: How long should a child read daily? — Twenty minutes of enjoyable reading is a good aim from primary school. Consistency matters more than length, and enjoyment more than either.

Q: Should I make him read aloud to check? — Occasionally and gently. Constant testing makes children hate it. Ask what happened in the story instead.

Q: English or the home language? — Both, without a hierarchy. Reading in the home language builds the foundation that the second language stands on.