Feel free to leave comments on what you think about this phenomenon of "grossology" for books aimed at boys, and do take a look at the comments on that Bloom post. I love the first commenter's suggestion for helping boys learn their interests and providing them with non-fiction options. My kids are only 2 and 3 right now, but for my son I can already see how fascinated he is by the things he sees in the world around him. Helping him learn more about the world around him (whether it is in the category of "diggers" or trains or birds or even if it's not non-fiction but a classic fictional work like Charlotte's Web) is something I enjoy now. I sincerely hope that he will continue to find books that aid him in that process as he grows up.
Thoughts?
1 comment:
We go with whatever he's into...when he was 2 it was books about chickens or tractors. At 3 we read too many books about pirates and trains. Now, he's just happy to read ANYTHING. And I really mean anything! He wanted to learn more about Egypt, so we read books about pyramids and the Nile. Now he wants books about space. Okay! We love the non-fiction section at the library...even if we just get a couple "for the pictures". Try asking the librarian for age-appropriate non-fiction. Fiction is easier to sift through on your own!
I'm nervous about "grossology"...I see the Cub Scouts reading icky, poorly-written fiction and just cringe! I'm doing my best to raise readers with many interests...who will not be swayed by the class clown and his own opinions of "literature". Not that the occasional "Captain Underpants" can be avoided entirely...
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