Getting the Family Excited About Magazines

Not all reading takes place between the covers of a book. Some of the most lively, informative, and entertaining writing can be found on the colorful pages of magazines.

If you have a child who is reluctant to read, short magazine articles on topics of high interest may bring your youngster back to the printed page.

For kids who can't get enough, magazines are an enriching supplement to the books they are already reading, and may open new avenues of reading interest.

Best of all, many magazines-with their wide range of subjects and styles-offer reading fare for the whole family.

Why They Appeal to Kids

The growing number of magazines for preschoolers and school-age children shows how popular these magazines have become.

Why Do Kids Like Them So Much?

• Magazine features are short. Young readers have the satisfaction of finishing an article or story in one sitting. They don't have to read from cover to cover!
• Magazines grab your attention. Their colorful covers make youngsters want to look inside.
• They're entertaining. The writing style is light and brisk on topics that attract kids.
• They're generally easy to read.  Most consumer magazines, for example, are written at or below the reading level of average high school students. Kids' magazines, of course, use vocabulary geared to the younger age groups that subscribe to them.
• They're lightweight and portable. You can roll 'em up, bend 'em, and stuff 'em into a backpack, bike basket, purse, or back pocket.
• They're inexpensive-less costly than most paperbacks. In fact, a full year's subscription to a teen or children's magazine (10 or 12 issues) usually costs less than one hardcover book.
• They offer variety.  A single issue usually includes an array of articles, stories, activities, pictures, and styles of writing.
• They often focus on their readers' special interests. Magazines also help readers develop new interests.
• Everybody loves to receive mail, and a magazine subscription is just that.  Kids take special pleasure in the regular arrival of magazines addressed to them personally.

Sharing Interests

So, what are your kids interested in? Magic? Skateboarding? Wildlife? Doll collecting? Science fiction? There are kids magazines devoted to each of these topics, and more.

Many of the magazines you think are for adults have tremendous appeal for young people as well.For maturing teens, magazines for adults help them expand their horizons and stretch their reading skills.Younger children, too, like to look at the pictures and read the captions or as much of the story as they can.

Like most families, the members of your family probably have many different interests.How can magazines bridge their interests and encourage them to share ideas?Here are a few informal ways you can help that to happen in your home:

1. Keep each other's interests in mind as you read a magazine.Paper clip or fold down the corner of a page that might interest someone else.

2. Read aloud an article, surprising fact, or gossipy tidbit the family might enjoy over dinner or some other occasion when you are together.