If reading has become a daily battle in your home, you’re not alone. At Great Leaps Tutoring, many of the parents we work with tell us the same thing: their child shuts down, avoids reading, or becomes frustrated the moment a book comes out. What often starts as concern quickly turns into power struggles, tears, and a growing disdain of reading. This issue then compounds as they fall further and further behind their friends.
The truth is, children rarely hate reading for no reason. In most cases, reading has become hard, exhausting, or discouraging long before it becomes something they openly resist. When reading feels like a constant reminder of what a child can’t do yet, avoidance is a natural response.
One of the most important shifts we help families make is understanding that resistance is not laziness. It is often a sign that a child is being asked to read at a level that feels overwhelming and they have not experienced success in reading, only failure. When students are consistently pushed to perform at or above their instructional level, without direct instruction, reading stops feeling achievable. Instead of building confidence, it reinforces frustration.
At Great Leaps Tutoring, we intentionally begin instruction below a student’s instructional level. This surprises many parents at first, but it is one of the reasons our approach works. Starting where a child can be successful allows reading to feel manageable again. Accuracy improves, fluency increases, and the child begins to experience what it feels like to read without constant struggle. That success becomes the foundation for growth, motivation, and confidence.
Another reality many families face is that helping a child who hates reading cannot always fall solely on the parent. Reading struggles can create emotional tension at home, especially when parents are also managing work, schedules, and other responsibilities. Sometimes the most effective support comes from outside the immediate parent-child dynamic. A tutor, a trusted family friend, or another supportive adult can step in and create a calmer, lower-pressure reading environment that doesn't carry the baggage of past struggles.
Great Leaps Tutoring often fills this role. Because our tutors are not part of the previous daily routine, students are able to approach reading with less emotion attached. Sessions feel structured but supportive, and students are free to make mistakes without feeling judged or rushed. For many families, this outside support is what finally breaks the cycle of conflict around reading.
Equally important is changing how reading feels for the child. When reading becomes a punishment or a chore, motivation disappears. Extra worksheets, forced reading time, or constant correction can unintentionally send the message that reading is something to endure rather than enjoy. Over time, this makes resistance stronger. This makes reading a punishment.
At Great Leaps, we focus on making reading rewarding and engaging instead of boring or stressful. Our sessions are short, focused, and designed to show students their progress quickly. Students can see and feel themselves improving, which builds motivation naturally. Success is celebrated, effort is recognized, and reading begins to feel achievable instead of intimidating.
This approach is especially important for older students who may have years of frustration behind them. Many of the students we work with believe they are “bad readers” before they ever sit down with us. Some of them have effectively given up on themselves. By starting at the right level, providing consistent support, and creating positive reading experiences, we help rewrite that story.
Helping a child who hates reading does not require more pressure or longer reading sessions. It requires patience, the right starting point, and a plan that builds confidence step by step. When reading becomes something a child can succeed at, resistance fades and willingness grows.
If reading has become a source of stress in your home, Great Leaps Tutoring is here to help or you can purchase the same intervention used by our tutors and have a grandparent, aunt, uncle, cousin or family friend work with your child for just 15 minutes a day. Our proven approach supports struggling readers in a way that reduces conflict, builds confidence, and helps children rediscover that reading does not have to be a battle.
By Colin Campbell, President of Great Leaps
