The Dino Files...perfect for my reluctant reader

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Being the mom of a reluctant reader can be tough. Being a READER mom to a reluctant reader can be ALMOST heart wrenching. WHY oh WHY would anyone NOT want to read books??? It is also hard not to feel guilt, anger, denial…well let’s just say ALL emotions are pretty fair game. Did I read to him enough as a baby?? Did I let him watch too many cartoons. Should I have used a different bottle?? OHHHH the things that we have to worry about as parents. AS IF JUST RAISING TINY HUMANS IS NOT STRESSFUL ENOUGH?!?!

Well I finally decided that enough is enough. Ethan might be a reluctant reader…but darn it…he WILL be a reader. I made it a personal mission to find him books that were not a straight waste of time, had a bit of educational merit, kept him entertained, and were easily read in just a few sittings. In a world of YouTube and Netflix, the last thing my 9 year old wants to do is to read the same book every day for 3 weeks…no offense to some REALLY amazing middle grade authors…but my reluctant reader is not THERE yet. I get 30 minutes a day with him and a book…I gotta make it count.

Our first success….The Dino Files: A Mysterious Egg by Stacy McAnulty. We read this one as a read aloud, and I KNEW I had found a good one when Ethan used the words “Keep Going” for the first time. He was hooked!! So basically the book is about a kid who helps his grandparents at a dinosaur dig site where they find a dinosaur egg. The egg hatches and the kid keeps the baby dinosaur hidden is his room. It was super cute, fun, and fast paced…perfect for slower readers or those who cannot follow long flowery passages yet. It also reads GREAT as a read aloud…tons of sarcasm, dry humor, and funny situations. There is also a cat that rides around in a stroller…and you know I am on board 100% with THAT so….

The Dino files is written for grade school age kids with a level of 2-5. Ethan is in 3rd (and is a little below grade level in reading) and had no problems with reading or comprehension. PLUS I have NEVER met a grade school boy that at some point does not go through a dinosaur phase. (My husband is pushing 40 and honestly is still in his dinosaur phase.) Ethan has been obsessed with dinosaurs for as long as I can remember and so these books were a great way to read about dinosaurs, but to also stray away from his normal non-fiction books.

Well one book didn’t turn Ethan into a reader…YET, but I still have hope. I mentioned another book that we LOVED over HERE…so that makes 2 that we successfully read together and had ZERO fights about:) And if I can get him to read ONE book…and then ANOTHER book…well that is a start right?!!

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