Paying Children to Read

I finished a book last night, and it was a good one! The Final Empire by Brandon Sanderson - found via an Amazon deal (I’d never read any of his stuff before, though I’d heard of him plenty). I managed to pick up the whole trilogy for 99p or something absurd like that, and I can’t wait to get on with the next book in the series…

Reading Habits

I read every night, with very very few exceptions. If I made an exception for extreme tiredness or illness, with a 7 month old, I’d never get round to it. Ever since I was a teenager, I’ve had a ‘bedtime book’ and generally spend at least 30 minutes a night reading it. I didn’t realise that this was probably unusual until much later on in life, but it’s so ingrained that I never really consider it any more.

Sometimes, the book I’m reading is a bit of a slog and maybe I’ll only get through a chapter or so. Last night, reaching the end of a very thrilling fantasy book, I ended up spending at least an hour.

I generally try to mix up my choice of book, so if I’ve just finished something “heavy” and “classic” then I’ll go to something a little bit easier and more fun. I’m thinking of this now because I finished Les Miserables a week or two ago and found it a bit of a slog. I jumped straight into Wee Free Men and found that lovely and charming, and then onto Brandon Sanderson. Now because it’s a trilogy, I’m probably just going to keep reading it. I’m not prescriptive about switching around - especially if I’m into something.

How to Build a Reading Habit

Given my DPhil, I’m interested in the habit and how it formed and where it lives and all that jazz. I read something interesting last year on the way to build bright children - it was on some essay competition and it was somebody’s experience with a wholly-online AI-driven (isn’t everything?) school. It made a bunch of good arguments, but essentially the school sees fantastic results by paying students.

Some people might bristle against the idea of paying people for studying…shouldn’t children be intrinsically motivated? Aren’t all the most successful people motivated by love of the craft?

The article argued that yes…they are…now. It said that people’s motivations change over time, and the people who end up being world class are able to transition between motivation types as they age, to continue developing their skills in a given area.

Motivation Over Time

When we’re young, we’re motivated by parental approval and rewards. My children want TV time, sweets and chocolate, and mummy and daddy to be proud of them. I don’t think that’s a moral failing. It’s being 6. So we praise the behaviour we want, and encourage them with rewards.

At some point, parental approval becomes basically worthless and peer approval becomes the be all and end all. This is where I spend a lot of time worrying about schools and peer groups, because as a parent, you lose a huge deal of control and influence and surrender it to your children’s classmates. It’s a lot to ask of a teenager to ignore peer pressure and become a social pariah in order to keep up their dream of being an ice dancer.

Finally, as we become adult we become self-motivated: driven by aiming to be the best version of ourselves, and loving the craft for what it is.

Now clearly, everything isn’t quite so linear - there are plenty of adults who still desperately need validation from their peers or their parents (I’m not immune to this myself!), but viewed generally, I think this makes sense.

Paying Children to Read

This brings me to one particular way of building a reading habit. I’m arguing here that you shouldn’t feel bad about paying your child to read. My parents often pay my children to read and at first I was uncomfortable with it, but I’ve made my peace with it.

One summer when I was learning guitar, my dad offered me £5 for each of his favourite songs that I learned all the way through. I was already incredibly motivated (partially internally, but in much larger part through my peer-group) but it definitely helped me focus.

Why I Read

I no longer think about reading - I don’t have to motivate myself to do so, I just do it. However, when I choose my books I tend to mix enjoyment with betterment. System 1 and System 2. I want to be entertained, but I also want to be the best possible version of myself. When I’m old, I want to be wise. Not simply clever, but wise.

Conclusion

I read a book, but then pontificated on that for a while. We touched on the various forms of motivation, and how you can create a virtuous habit in children. And where key points of friction for that habit are. I told you why I read. And I told you what I read. What more conclusion could you hope for than that?