How I struggled reading in School as a Boy

As an eight-year-old, all I really wanted to do was run around and kick a ball. I was simply not ready, to sit still, and concentrate. The funny thing was that I actually loved the idea of books and the mysteries held inside. I was always excited by the prospect of visiting a local Waterstones bookshop or library. I would walk down the aisles as my fingers drew a line across the front pages. The image of the Goosebumps by R L Stine excited me with the potential held within. Yet rarely having badgered my mum for a copy, did I finish one.

For me, at that time this was not an issue. I had the general growing-up part to keep me occupied. However, my teachers and parents were worried that I was falling behind. The help came of course. Susan one of the teacher’s assistants, was directed to help me get through the maze of words. We would sit in the corridor, away from the rest of the class for some one-to-one help. The other kids sniggered as they walked past- what a loser I was. This led me to believe, I must not be built for this reading game. Thus, I was pushed further away.

Now you can’t tell me to stop reading

Fast forward to now, I am an avid reader, I write Poetry and I have just finished writing my first novel – The Cat Mouse-A Adventure to Cheese Paradise. What has changed? Well, I am still that restless person, and with the modern world all craving for attention- I still struggle for concentration. So, the difference for me has been audiobooks. I realise now that when I was younger, I just did not have any real relationship with words. Words were just words. As I used to read, the dialogue was as dead as a zombie.

Book audio, with services like audible, was not as readily available as they are now. Listening to people reading has increased the skills I now have for reading. I now see that there are many ways to bring words alive without needing to sit down and read. Like acting out a story, or reading out loud. Or simply listening to them as your eyes scan the text. Now when I read, the words come alive, as if someone is reading them to me, a skill I had not developed when I was younger.

Is audible the answer?

In seeing reading as a one-dimensional process limited my enjoyment of stories as a boy. There are many different ways children learn. Reading should be about enjoyment. If it’s all about right or wrong, I can see why a child would choose a path of least resistance and want to run free.

So, if you’re a parent, teacher or even a child who is struggling with reading. Look for different ways to bring stories alive. Listen, act, read out loud and even draw it. For me, the investment in an audiobook account has been worth every penny. Just hearing the different voices, will ignite any imagination.

This article was written by Tom William, author of the first in the series The Cat Mouse Adventure to Cheese Paradise.

Estimated reading time: 3 minutes