Let Children read whatever they want within their age group and/or reading level. Yes or no and why?

Question

Having grown up in a household full of books where I was basically allowed to read anything I could read and was interested in (Julius Caesar at age 9, Jane Eyre and Gone With The Wind at age 12), I'm wondering what other people think about this. Did you have your reading restricted as a child? Do you restrict your children's reading? If so/ or not, why do you?

Answer 1

Wouldn't want them reading Caligula would you?

Answer 2

The only restriction put on my reading as a child was by the librarian and my mother. The librarian would not let me read Truman Capote at age 11(too late...I had already read The Grass Harp) and my mother thought reading was a waste of my time. It just drove her nuts when I brought 10 books home from the library every week and devoured every periodical that came in the house. My father and uncle read a lot and I read all of their books as well. Family story....My father, uncle and I were sitting at the dinner table, each of us, as was our habit, with a book open next to our plate. My mother, the only one without a book, angrily asked, "Doesn't anybody in this family TALK?" We all looked up and without reply, returned to our books.
However, I do believe that there are some books that a young child should not read, simply because he doesn't have the life experience to understand them correctly. Having said that, I don't know if there are many parents out there who are able to distinguish between what may be harmful to the child's development and petty censorship. That's a tough line to walk. I would rather see as little interference as possible, intervening only if the child appears to be showing an unhealthy interest in an unsavory subject, such as sadism or the like. They should be available for calm, reasonable discussion of the subjects that they find objectionable.

Answer 3

I wasn't restricted, and I don't plan on restricting my children. We have a house full of books, nearly a thousand including all of mine, dh's and the kids, none of it pornography, but most of the adult books have heavy issues . Pretty much anything that they aren't developmentally ready for, they would get bored reading anyway. If they read it, and some concepts are hard to accept, I'm here to help them with it.
I did flinch a little when my eleven year old son picked up National Geographic's issue on the biology of love. When he asked me about the GSpot, and I explained that it was an internal part of a woman's anatomy for sex, he just said "Oh gross", and threw the magazine back into the bin.

Answer 4

You should only restrict their reading if it's something completely inappropriate...for example, there are some "Teen books" that would make today's romance novel writers and erotica writeres blush! But I was an avid reader when I was young too and grew up to be an English major, haha. Depending on the content, I would onlyl censor my child's reading if completely and utterly necessary. My mother never did because I chose my books carefully. I went through a phase at 12 when I read "Trainspotting" and while that was about a bunch of heroin addicts, it made me not want to do drugs.

Answer 5

I think that as long as it's not porn, or very graphic, let them read what they choose. I read anything I could get my hands on as a child. I remember trying to read Stephen King at like 10, and I was too scared. So I quit reading it..... until I was 12. I let my son-8 read whatever he chooses. However, I considered starting the Harry Potter books with my 4 and 8 year old, but I decided not to. I was concerned, mostly with my 4 year old, that it would be too dark by about the middle of book 2. Now we're reading Charlotte's Web~ they love it!!!! I think if they can read it and comprehend it, let them!!!

Answer 6

My kids are only 6 and 1, but my son reads. I will allow him to pick any book that is appropriate for him right now. As they grow up, I don't see any harm in allowing them to read whatever they can get their hands on, as long as it's not pornographic or something like that. Even those books that have bad morals and situations, I can turn them into a way to teach him that that is not a good example of how to behave. Plus that will give them a basis to argue their points and be knowledgeable about what he is speaking against.

Answer 7

I do not restrict my children from reading anything, although once I came across a book with instructions for satan worship (3rd grade) I did take that and reported it to the principal....My kids have always been avid readers. I use all mediums as teaching tools, even things I might not have liked or agreed with I taught them about artistic freedom....If you think our world is "the worst" go to a museum and check out the artwork from a hundred years ago

Answer 8

I let my kids read whatever they want within certain limits. I do not let them read books that I think will corrupt their morals or draw them into another religion (they can read books that present another religion in a positive light--no problem there, and yes, it can be hard drawing the line). They don't read much; I would love it if they read what you read!

I would let them read "hard" books like The Autobiography of Malcom X, although I would urge them to wait until they're older because of the intensity of it. Some things might damage a young child's spirit, while an older child might be changed in a positive way by it. So, yes, I guess I would also restrict such a book from a younger child if I felt it would damage them (and each child is different).

My kids hate books where animals suffer or die; they would not read "Black Beauty" for anything.

Answer 9

My oldest is just starting to read and I guide his reading to his skill level. Between the ages of 5-7ish, I will be mindful of letting them read material that is intended to be pornographic (sex novels from an Adult bookstore) but short of that, they can have at it. Reading about events, both joyful and heinous, allows them to glimse and process the experience without suffering or being injured. They will ask questions and I will ask questions. Everything is okay to read as long as I'm there to help explain and put it into context. When they get to between 10-13, I exist only to answer questions and occasionally challenge them with one, but all books are a go. Around 13, they will be allowed to watch, read etc what they want but they had better be ready to answer my questions about it. They need to be able to evaluate and filter the information and had better be able to demonstrate that. If they want to watch a horror, I expect a discussion about the psychology of the victims and the perpetrators and about why humans like horror and I expect them to be able to accurately describe catharsis. If they want to watch porn, we will need some discussions first. They need to understand that that is not a real human relationship and that it is not how people really have sex in a marriage (ok, before you email me, I'm talking about how the treat each other etc. "insert stick A into slot A is how it happens"). We are teaching our children to be adults capable of understanding and processing and making a judgement on the value of all the information that adults encounter, we are not training them to be cute well-behaved children (though it is nice to have that for awhile). My kids learn self-discipline, not obedience. They learn respect, not abject servitude. They learn to negotiate, and voice themselves in a respectful and communicative manner, not to sit down and shut up. That philosophy extends to reading too.

Answer 10

My son is too young to be reading on his own, but I will definitely monitor his reading. I don't wish to restrict him, necessarily, but there are certain themes that I want to be careful around. If he's like I was and reading well beyond his age group, he could easily find himself reading material with sexual, drug, and other inappropriate themes.

As parents, DH and I have agreed that he can purchase any music or books he wants - but we will listen and read anything he chooses, and if we don't approve, the selection is going in the trash. No questions asked.

Answer 11

I did keep an eye on what they were reading at about age 9 or 10 as they were reading way ahead of their age level and had a tendency to want to read trashy romance novels.