Let’s face it: Straddle Parenting brings some pretty unique challenges to bear. Things that stretch families with three or four children all in one relative season of childhood can feel like brewing storms when you’re trying to multitask by filling out your high school senior’s FAFSA paperwork in your OB’s waiting room. Ask the Straddle Parents is a forum for readers to get our personal perspective on how we’ve navigated some of the terrain— sometimes with success, sometimes with spectacular failure, and always with a whole lot of grace.
How do you choose read-alouds that engage your older kids, are appropriate for all ages, yet don’t leave your youngest listeners behind?
We are a reading family. More than that, we are a read-aloud family. Some of the best memories of our times together center around a book, a pot of tea, and our coziest pjs. Over the years, we’ve read a good many tales out loud; our children will forever remember Pa Ingalls as sounding exactly like their own father, or Smaug the dragon hissing in their mother’s voice. As parents, we’ll never forget the look of heartbreak in the eyes of our kids as they’ve mourned Aslan or their giddy laughter as Milo makes his way through Dictionopolis.
But literature is a powerful, sometimes provocative thing. The adventures that ensnare the imaginations of our adolescents are often too tame for our teens; the social commentaries that wrest the deepest heart talks from our young adults are simply too mature for the minds of our young ones. How is a Straddle Parent to cross the divide and come to the other side a winner?
Our family has adopted a variety of methods to keep the tradition of reading aloud alive without leaning too far in one direction or the other. First has been simply having separate reading times when its warranted. Right now, for instance, Christopher is knee-deep in yet another read-through of the classic Little House series during our littles’ bedtime hour. After they’re tucked into bed, the teenagers and I gather to listen to him read again—this time from How to Ruin Your Life by 30, by Steve Farrar.
As you can see, it’s not just fiction we tackle here. We’ll read anything of value, from a field guide to sheep and their fleece to biographies of heroes of the faith. The lesson here? Don’t be boxed in. Look for something that will interest your family and go for it.
But what about keeping everyone together for a read-aloud? Is it even possible? With some work, yes. Our family uses references to choose “best bets.” Favorites include websites like Read-Aloud Revival, the 1000 Good Books List and Jim Trelease’s Read-Alouds Handbook list online. We also love the book lists available in Honey for a Child’s Heart and the companion volume, Honey for a Teen’s Heart, Read for the Heart: Whole Books for WholeHearted Families, Give Your Child the World: Raising Globally Minded Kids One Book at a Time, and Books Children Love.
Don’t have a list on hand as you’re trolling the library shelves? Stick with the classics if in doubt. We’ve found far fewer instances of objectionable or mature content in literature from days past—and as a bonus, plots and vocabulary are usually engaging enough to keep teens listening. My older kids especially love reliving the tales they remember best; announcing that a beloved title is next on the list is something like saying that a family friend is coming to visit.
Below you’ll find a list of titles mentioned above as well as some of our family’s favorites throughout the years for reading aloud to multiple ages. Share your favorites in the comments!
