I was chatting with friends recently when I was reminded that many people don’t consider magazine reading as real reading. What is real reading? Does it mean you only read books? Who made that rule? I think I am a real reader and I will read anything I can get my hands on whether it is the newspaper, magazines, advertisements or books. We have stacks of magazines all over our house to keep us occupied.  My husband has a car manual on the coffee table right next to my People magazine. My husband doesn’t think he is much of a reader either, but he can tell you where to open up that car manual to find the answer to your question.

I remember talking with the parents of one of my students years ago about ways they could get their young boy to read. He hated reading with a capital H. They tried everything they could think of to get him to practice his reading each evening. Nothing worked. That’s when I found out he loved to go out in the woods with his dad. He loved hiking and fishing. If he could go to school outside in the wilderness, he would have been in heaven. I suggested they buy some of the outdoor magazines, and get some catalogs like REI, or Cabelas or LL Bean to read. They had never considered that option. If you can find something to interest you, then you will read more about it. I just want kids to read- whatever they want!