I came here from Sarah Miller's treatise on Dog Man. I was always allowed to read whatever I wanted as a kid, so assumed it would be easy for me to do the same, but, shocker, it isn't always! I still read to them, but wonder if my comments about characters not saying nice things are actually helpful. I appreciate the examples you both give about how to hold differing opinions and have the conversations, even (especially!) with the littlest readers. Thank you!
Welcome, Jessica! And thank you for sharing. It’s definitely a process to find the comments to share that are right for your child. (Why I never liked scripted curriculum as a teacher!) Maybe try talking about the language in different ways and see what feels best for everyone?
We will all get there together, even if it’s hard!!
Fantastic commentary on such a nuanced topic. You put it into words so well. This is something I have been going back and forth for ten years with my kids. Some days I'm more "read more literature" and some days I'm more "great-they're reading!" The reality is that their reading journey will keep going, and it's is a powerful reminder to talk openly and thoughtfully about what they're reading instead of directly banning books that make us uncomfortable. Guiding them to be analytic about their consumption will be a great asset for their future!
We love DogMan! My daughter has been obsessed since 6. My husband was apprehensive and I tried to have as many conversations with her when I could. Her favorite character is Petey. He's the main character as the books go along. DogMan is the foil to Petey as learns to get past his hurt (his dad leaving, staying at a shelter, losing his mom) to become a better "person" with room for grace. I didn't even come to that conclusion until we discussed the books. We went to a movie party and a woman in her early 20s was decked out in DogMan and they had a great conversation about what it means to them. All to say - there is value in it too other than potty humor!
Thank you for making critical conversations the point. (0:
Cece, yesssssss!! This is such a good story. And maybe as I read through the series, my feelings will change? Or maybe I’ll just continue to appreciate what the series does for my son, even if I continue to feel how I feel now about it.
It’s not really fair for us to tell children that they can’t connect with something just because it doesn’t connect with us. AND! As you remind us, GROWNUPS can connect with all sorts of things, too.
Thanks for being here and having these conversations ☺️
I can relate in many ways, DogMan (despite my personal distaste) was the first series my eldest read in Kindergarten and same for my second oldest, and i love that for them. Which led us to Captain Underpants and reading those aloud with all 3 of my boys-- including our 4yo and yes the conversations that came from them were productive and meaningful. That was one of the biggest takeaways I gained from How to Raise a Reader when I read it many years ago-- that books, reading them together and discussing them, are such a powerful and effective way to engage in big topics.
Brittany, thank you for sharing this! And yes, I think there’s SUCH a lesson for us to learn again and again that books like Captain Underpants and Dog Man can actually lead to productive and meaningful conversations that give our children critical skills for both school and life. We will keep talking about it and spreading the word! Glad you’re here ☺️
I love this story! As a fifth-grade teacher, I wholeheartedly agree with your opinion of Dogman. But, more importantly, I appreciate how you are handling this conflict of reading interests. Raising your kiddo to be a critical thinker who can articulate his opinions and support them with evidence is such an important skill. He sounds like he’s ready for 5th grade!
As a parent, I’ve struggled with this same problem. Our oldest, who is graduating from high school this spring, has pushed our comfort about what media he consumes. From books to movies to music, since he was little, he has always wanted to read, watch, and listen to media that is either more mature than what we think is appropriate, or media that we just don’t like. The problem is that he desperately wants to share with us and talk about what’s he’s reading, listening to, and watching. I wish I had this post 10 years ago to help guide me through these differences of opinions and tastes.
Well done on teaching your child to have critical conversations!
Thank you, Adrian! It’s funny that my years teaching middle school has helped guide me the most as I parent through the toddler and preschool stages. The lack of confidence and ability to share opinions and support them with evidence my 8th graders came to me with was so concerning — and not THEIR fault. It’s such a team effort, but parents aren’t always clued in! I could go on…
And oh how love that your senior wants to talk about what he’s consuming! (Even if you don’t love the content, haha.) But the fact that a child/teen is interested and ready to defend their opinions feels more important than the actual content (and maybe allows us a little room to then talk about stuff we consume and like better, too).
love this post! i found you via sarah miller and i love hearing how you addressed dog man with your son. we’re also big fans of every monday mabel ❤️
Thank you! And yay for Mabel fans ☺️
I came here from Sarah Miller's treatise on Dog Man. I was always allowed to read whatever I wanted as a kid, so assumed it would be easy for me to do the same, but, shocker, it isn't always! I still read to them, but wonder if my comments about characters not saying nice things are actually helpful. I appreciate the examples you both give about how to hold differing opinions and have the conversations, even (especially!) with the littlest readers. Thank you!
Welcome, Jessica! And thank you for sharing. It’s definitely a process to find the comments to share that are right for your child. (Why I never liked scripted curriculum as a teacher!) Maybe try talking about the language in different ways and see what feels best for everyone?
We will all get there together, even if it’s hard!!
Fantastic commentary on such a nuanced topic. You put it into words so well. This is something I have been going back and forth for ten years with my kids. Some days I'm more "read more literature" and some days I'm more "great-they're reading!" The reality is that their reading journey will keep going, and it's is a powerful reminder to talk openly and thoughtfully about what they're reading instead of directly banning books that make us uncomfortable. Guiding them to be analytic about their consumption will be a great asset for their future!
Thank you so much for these kind words! I appreciate you for saying something ☺️
We love DogMan! My daughter has been obsessed since 6. My husband was apprehensive and I tried to have as many conversations with her when I could. Her favorite character is Petey. He's the main character as the books go along. DogMan is the foil to Petey as learns to get past his hurt (his dad leaving, staying at a shelter, losing his mom) to become a better "person" with room for grace. I didn't even come to that conclusion until we discussed the books. We went to a movie party and a woman in her early 20s was decked out in DogMan and they had a great conversation about what it means to them. All to say - there is value in it too other than potty humor!
Thank you for making critical conversations the point. (0:
Cece, yesssssss!! This is such a good story. And maybe as I read through the series, my feelings will change? Or maybe I’ll just continue to appreciate what the series does for my son, even if I continue to feel how I feel now about it.
It’s not really fair for us to tell children that they can’t connect with something just because it doesn’t connect with us. AND! As you remind us, GROWNUPS can connect with all sorts of things, too.
Thanks for being here and having these conversations ☺️
I can relate in many ways, DogMan (despite my personal distaste) was the first series my eldest read in Kindergarten and same for my second oldest, and i love that for them. Which led us to Captain Underpants and reading those aloud with all 3 of my boys-- including our 4yo and yes the conversations that came from them were productive and meaningful. That was one of the biggest takeaways I gained from How to Raise a Reader when I read it many years ago-- that books, reading them together and discussing them, are such a powerful and effective way to engage in big topics.
Brittany, thank you for sharing this! And yes, I think there’s SUCH a lesson for us to learn again and again that books like Captain Underpants and Dog Man can actually lead to productive and meaningful conversations that give our children critical skills for both school and life. We will keep talking about it and spreading the word! Glad you’re here ☺️
I love this story! As a fifth-grade teacher, I wholeheartedly agree with your opinion of Dogman. But, more importantly, I appreciate how you are handling this conflict of reading interests. Raising your kiddo to be a critical thinker who can articulate his opinions and support them with evidence is such an important skill. He sounds like he’s ready for 5th grade!
As a parent, I’ve struggled with this same problem. Our oldest, who is graduating from high school this spring, has pushed our comfort about what media he consumes. From books to movies to music, since he was little, he has always wanted to read, watch, and listen to media that is either more mature than what we think is appropriate, or media that we just don’t like. The problem is that he desperately wants to share with us and talk about what’s he’s reading, listening to, and watching. I wish I had this post 10 years ago to help guide me through these differences of opinions and tastes.
Well done on teaching your child to have critical conversations!
Thank you, Adrian! It’s funny that my years teaching middle school has helped guide me the most as I parent through the toddler and preschool stages. The lack of confidence and ability to share opinions and support them with evidence my 8th graders came to me with was so concerning — and not THEIR fault. It’s such a team effort, but parents aren’t always clued in! I could go on…
And oh how love that your senior wants to talk about what he’s consuming! (Even if you don’t love the content, haha.) But the fact that a child/teen is interested and ready to defend their opinions feels more important than the actual content (and maybe allows us a little room to then talk about stuff we consume and like better, too).