Reading is an essential life skill both in work as well as in school. Numerous studies have shown that children that read well will do better academically than children that struggle to read. Because of the importance of reading significant resources and efforts are spent teaching children to read.

Boys are a little slower in developing reading skills than girls and have a tendency to be a little slower in developing language skills than girls on the whole. However, studies also show that boys seem to enjoy reading as much as girls do in the early years but that as they approach the ages of 8 to 11 or 12 they begin to lose interest in reading.

Unless this is corrected, teen boys tend to identify themselves as someone who does not like to read or someone who doesn't read well. As a result of this identity they can become resistant to reading and be shortchanged on this valuable skill and enjoyable activity.

Why do boys begin to lose interest in reading? What experts seem to be saying is that boys lose interest because of several factors.

The primary reason is the material that we present them to read. We often present them with narrative types of books about subjects that are not particularly interesting to them. Research shows that girls do much better at absorbing reading material that is presented in a narrative form while boys do better at absorbing material that is presented in an informational format.

Boys also seem to be interested in material that is either more hands on, reading that talks about things they can use or do or reading material that talks about activities that they enjoy (of course this will vary from boy to boy!) However, this is not the literature that we as adults often consider to be reading and as result we do not present this type of material to boys to read.

Another reason that boys lose interest in reading, according to experts, is that there are not sufficient male modeling of reading. We often see women reading and curling up with a great book on a cold winter day would most likely be seen as a female activity rather than male.

Fortunately, we are beginning to understand the problem and are starting to address the issue. Efforts are being made to make reading more appealing to boys by seeing reading as any activity that requires a boy to look at words and decode the meaning of the words in way that he comprehends what the writer intended to communicate.

This can take the form of how to manuals, more boy oriented literature, news papers and other types of written material that does not fit the confines of more traditional literature. Equally encouraging is that when boys are allowed to read stuff that they are interested in, they continue to enjoy reading.

As long as this is identified as reading, boys will identify themselves as readers. This enjoyment of reading for many translates into a greater appreciation of reading in adulthood with the necessary skill to be good readers. What are some tips to get your boys to read?

1. It's crucial to begin at the beginning, with what your son loves. "Kids will read when you focus on what they love".

2. Teachers can capture boys' interest by associating the material to be read with their existing knowledge.

3. Rotating reading materials of different genres allows boys to see the many types of reading materials available--not just novels and textbooks, but also newspapers and magazines, how-to guides, comics, and computer programs--and their multiple uses.

4. Boys gain confidence in their reading ability when they read aloud. Frequent interruptions or corrections undermine this confidence, however.

5. Additional time for silent reading promotes the independent development of skills and the enjoyment of reading.

Learn more about boys and reading. Go to http://boysbehavior.com/boy-reading.html to learn more about the art of learning to read and helping boys learn to love to read.