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Martha in VA
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Every week we make a run to our local library. I give the girls some direction about what types of books they may choose. Still, I'm starting to get concerned about the "brain candy" (I guess it's really twaddle.) to which they gravitate. Do you allow your children to pick their own "free reading" books? Or do you assign? How do you control twaddle in your home?
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1floridamom
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 That is a great subject line!!!
Mine sadly tend to the same thing when we go to the library. With the addition of new babies, I've had much less patience with going, so we have not been going. I'm spoiled rotten in that my library system offers home delivery, which I am all too willing to partake of.  We have a ridiculously large home library, because I have had the good fortune of taking notes from everyone with recommendations for quality books. Still, every once in a while when we do go to the library, I try not to worry too much about their choices. By and large, they read things that are better for them than not. If they have periods of not reading, I will pick up a book and suggest it. Sometimes, when I feel really strongly about it, I'll read aloud. That helps a lot. 
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Erin
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Martha
Are you talking about your oldest two?
I find that 9-11 is a big age for series books and my dc are really enjoying the Hardy Boys. I let them but 'bag' out the books. We have discussions on how poor the plots and language is etc. They can see and agree but still enjoy.
I find mine also go for light stuff at the library. For real substance I assign or 'strew'. I control the twaddle by what I allow in the house, I have minimum twaddle and they KNOW it for what it is. I am not quite about it  I keep an eye on what they are reading and if I find they are having a twaddle binge for too long I then 'pull the plug' and assign a better book.
Last year ds11 read nothing BUT Hardy Boys, Trixie Belden and the three investigators HOWEVER along with that he did read Lord of the Rings three times. So I felt that was a balance. He will be 'hauled out of the binge' this year however those books are in storage.
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Lisbet
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My two oldest totally go for the Hardy Boys and Nancy Drew. Not my first choice, but they really enjoy them. I make sure they do read plenty of other great stuff too. I let each child pick out 3 of their own books, then I pick out quite a few myself for them to read or for me to read to them.
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Martha in VA
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Erin wrote:
Are you talking about your oldest two?
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Yes!! My oldest two!! My 11 year old would read Trixie Belden and Nancy Drew all day if I let her. They really like it when they find a series. Recently, the Saddle Club series has been ever popular around here. I just wish they would migrate to better books. Maybe I'm expecting too much? 
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MaryM
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Oh please don't say anything bad about Nancy Drew, Hardy Boys, Trixie Belden - I love them and lived on them for many years! 
When I read your question I thought of this as being an issue with my younger ones (5-8 year old ages) who gravitated toward the twaddly picture books like Clifford, Berenstein Bears and ones based on TV shows. That is the age when it's been more of an issue for us. Then there is the problem of my 6 year old who always spends way more time at the video section than the book section and begs for videos. I tell him I amgoing to stop taking him to the library with me.
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alicegunther
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Martha in VA wrote:
| Every week we make a run to our local library. I give the girls some direction about what types of books they may choose. Still, I'm starting to get concerned about the "brain candy" (I guess it's really twaddle.) to which they gravitate. Do you allow your children to pick their own "free reading" books? Or do you assign? How do you control twaddle in your home? |
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One trick I have is to make the occasional trip to the library alone (or with just the two oldest girls--they are pretty discriminating). Then I am able to browse, read, discover, and bring home the books I deem truly worthy without a separate armload of twaddle picked out by the little ones.
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Rachel May
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MaryM wrote:
| When I read your question I thought of this as being an issue with my younger ones (5-8 year old ages) ....That is the age when it's been more of an issue for us. |
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This is my age crisis. Maria has been given nearly every Junie B (for bad grammar, backtalk, banal, and BANNED as of tonight) Jones book. I was trying to be low key, but I could not read about her talking about the "stupid baby" that her mom was having. That book (all probably) is going in the trash. But where to go now? I think Alice's library alone idea is best. Now I just need time!
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marihalojen
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I've looked at library visits as a place where Habits need to be formed. This is our method that has worked well for years...
We gather tons of books at the library and then meet up at a table for a sort. I may have our weekly plans with me (they occasionally give weight to the Word of Mom ) and we browse each book. They go into three piles, No, Maybe, and Yes. The No's go right back into the reshelving bucket and she is free to look at and read the Maybe's while I go and select my books.
To be truthful, the No's by now are mostly just off topic books (dinosaurs again??? For Egyptian studies? Is the fact she still adores dinosaurs at this age a sign she will not be outgrowing this?) or adult parts of series I won't let her read yet (Pern). The Maybe's are most likely to be picture books that are decent but not spectacular and the info is most likely also in our Yes pile in a clearer or more concise form.
Her twaddle-ist selections are the Dinotopia Books which is excellent in our library, I've never seen more cruddy, new fantasy in one place in my life!
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5athome
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I do a similar in library sort of the choices like Jennifer. It can be a positive thing to reject twaddly books because it is a way of learning to discern what to read rather than grab things off the shelf. My oldest son is a big reader -- he used to crack us up with his book critiques, complaining about the tired plots and stilted dialog when he was in elementary school. I think if they are exposed to tons of great writing the children will quickly identify and avoid most of the twaddle. I know we are not twaddle free but we try. I don't think I can expect them to choose library books without guidance just like I would not send them into a grocery to freely select meals -- my 5 yr old would definitely try to live on donuts and chocolate milk.
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marihalojen
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It's also a great way to keep tabs on what her interests are. Great discussions blossom at that table about the pile of books - what draws you to this particular one? Why? This artwork is fab! But these words sound dull. Examples, please! If a theme is apparant in her selections I can then guide her to a great story on that topic rather than a dishwater story.
Basically we give Book Talks to each other!
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cathhomeschool
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Our approach is similar to Erin's. I recently had to pull the plug on Star Wars chapter books (the twaddle of choice around here). And every time we go to the library (like this morning) I get asked if they're back on the menu yet.
Like Alice, I used to make lone trips to the library on an occasional Saturday morning. What I do now is spend time searching online and then reserve the books. When the books come in, dh runs by on his way home from work (or we do) to pick them up.
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Topic: Help! My kids love twaddle!
