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Dad Who Pays His Son $1 For Every Book Read Posts That He’s Already Out $120, Divides The Internet On This Parenting Tactic
Interview With Author
Dad David Woodland started a heated discussion online after he posted that he pays his oldest son to read books. David gives his son 1 dollar for every book read and thinks that it’s a great investment. Meanwhile, his kid believes that he’s ripping his dad off by getting paid to read.
David’s post got a lot of attention online. He got nearly half a million likes on Twitter and made a large splash on Reddit where lots of people reposted his tweet. However, people were divided over whether or not what the dad is doing is right.
Some internet users fully supported David and thought that it’s a good way to get his son to develop positive habits. However, others were much more critical of David’s technique. Let’s see what both sides think, shall we, dear Pandas? Bored Panda also got a hold of David and chatted with him about the parenting tactic that he and his wife use, so be sure to read on!
More info: Twitter | Instagram
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David Woodland recently shared a parenting tactic that got a lot of attention all over the internet
Image credits: David Sven
Image credits: DavidSven
Image credits: DavidSven
“I don’t think anyone expects to go viral. Been tweeting for a decade and I’d say I have had much better tweets that got 5 likes. The first thing to clarify is that this system was my wife’s idea. So, shoutout to her and she deserves this much sought after, life-changing internet fame (spoiler: it isn’t life-changing at all),” David told us.
We wanted to get to grips with what David thought about all the criticism that his post received. According to the dad, the ‘controversy’ was around incentive structures in child development.
“Some think that if you reward some tasks, those tasks become chores that a kid will never be able to enjoy. It’s a fair take. In the instance of my son, I don’t worry about his pleasure of reading. He is bright and his vocabulary is exploding,” David explained. “He sometimes shocks me with how smart and insightful he is. He has even mentioned we don’t have to pay him anymore, but we do anyway because it’s just a dollar. He doesn’t get an allowance, so outside of chores, this is possibly the only other way he can earn money on his own as an 8-year-old. He likes to save his money and is proud of the pile of money he has accumulated.”
The dad said that he’d be willing to keep paying his son to read forever. “If the rate stays at only $1, I would fund it for life if it kept working! The benefits of reading a book can change people’s life. My favorite tweet that came from the thread was this: ‘You wasted $150,000 on an education you coulda got for $1.50 in late fees at the public library,'” he said.
“It’s hard to overstate the impact of quality time and energy spent on a child. It can have a lifetime effect with exponential impact,” David added. “If anyone is interested in hearing more of my thoughts on being a dad in the Silicon Valley, they can check out this recent podcast episode where I was a guest on the Rad Dad Show.“
The dad started a heated discussion online about whether or not paying kids to read is a good idea
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Image credits: DavidSven
Some Twitter users said that using money as an incentive is a bad idea
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Others said it’s perfectly fine to use money as an incentive:
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Meanwhile, other parents said they’re trying out similar tactics with their own children
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People who received money as an incentive to read in the past also shared how it all turned out
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The dad ended the discussion by sharing more about his oldest son
Image credits: David Sven
Image credits: DavidSven
David’s post rubbed some people the wrong way and they explained why they think he’s doing more harm than good. Some said that the moment you stop paying someone for what they should be doing anyway, they’ll lose motivation.
Others pointed out that the point isn’t to read lots of books as quickly as possible but to really understand each one of them. While some Twitter users hinted that throwing money into the mix gets rid of the joy of learning and pointed out that the kid reading for money sounded a lot like a job.
And in case you were wondering how cheating is prevented, David told the internet that his son gladly shares lots and lots of details about the newest book that he read.
According to the New York Times, a whopping 60 percent of parents admitted to paying their kids to read. However, researchtends to show that positive behavior ends when the rewards dry up. “If you pay kids to read you’ll get them to read. They’ll continue to read until you end the experiment, and then they’ll stop,” Edward Deci, a professor of psychology at the University of Rochester, explained.
In that case, non-material ‘bribes’ might be part of the answer. While in-depth discussions with parents about what the kids read or even starting up a book club might be another part of teaching kids to value reading for reading’s sake.
Would you ever pay your child to read books, dear Pandas? What do you think of David and his wife’s parenting tactic? Share your thoughts with us in the comments below.
While the debate on incentivizing children with money for reading books continues, it sheds light on how monetary influences shape habits and behaviors.
Interestingly, if you’re keen to see the lighter side of financial dealings, explore this delightful take on our inherent relationship with currency through these witty observations and jokes about money.
What do you think ?
Rae Black 5 years ago
Let's try a new plan: stfu if you don't agree. Different tactics work for different family settings. Hey, guess what? Just because someone doesn't think like you doesn't make them stupid. Dad gets a gold star just for trying something that will benefit his children.
Hans 5 years ago
While you are right about the "stfu about other people's parenting", it was the OP who went out and tweeted about his tactics. This is an invitation for comments, since Twitter is no closed group but a way to tell things to the world.
Load More Replies...
Ola 5 years ago
When I was young for every book I read I got a movie ticket. Now 20 years later I have a degree in literature and couple thousand books at home. I turned out just fine.
Troux 5 years ago
LOL @ research paper claiming that incentives make people less likely to do the task. Yeah I stopped showing up for work when I got my first paycheck, and then I gave up gardening once the tomatoes started blooming. /sarcasm... I presume these are mostly childless adults that are saying "they should just be doing it out of the love for reading/because they are supposed to." Meanwhile, most people probably haven't read 120 books in their lifetime, let alone within a year like this kid did! Aside from reading, this teaches the value of EARNING money. That kid will think about how many books he will have to read if he wants to buy ___.
Evil Little Thing 5 years ago
To be fair, I doubt you'd go to work if they stopped paying you.
Load More Replies...
lenka 5 years ago
An appreciation for reading, whether derived from extrinsic or intrinsic motivation, is valuable gift. The kid feels like he is ripping his dad off, so he is clearly happy with the arrangement. Sounds to me this family has found a win-win arrangement. Good on 'em. Parenting is bloody hard!
Tivoli 5 years ago
When I was 10y, I wasn't allowed to go see lotr because it was too violent. When we saw the book in one of the shelves while cleaning, my mother laughingly said if I read it, we would go together. It took my reading skills to a new level, not to mention a movie I loved because of it. Now I prefer to read the book before I see a movie/TV show. No regrets!
Foxxy (The Original) 5 years ago
We have a deal with our daughter and for every grade above a C she got $50 BUT anything below a C she lost $50 so she had a possibility of earning $500 at the end of the year. This is not something we do every year, this was last year and she ended up with $250. We did this because her whole school life she has struggled academically and not because she isn’t smart, it is because she hasn’t been applying herself, forgetting homework, not completing projects etc so this was an incentive for her to actually do her work and take her education seriously. Grades aren’t everything and isn’t something we focus a lot on to a certain degree, we just don’t want her to fall too far behind and struggle in the future with exams, higher education, employment etc.
Firework 5 years ago
It sounds like she might have ADHD? I'm above average for my age, but I struggle with lessons a lot because I have ADHD so I forget things, can't focus in lessons, have to learn things a lot before I can remember it, and don't have enough motivation to complete projects. I think you should encourage her to try hard, but instead of punishing her for making mistakes, try to find ways to help her remember homework and projects.
Load More Replies...
Leo H 5 years ago
I think its wonderful because there is no active push for boys to read. So they easily fall behind girls when it comes to language skills in school. Plus the female brain is better suited for processing language to begin with. Your doing your boys a disservice if your not getting them to read
Loki’s Lil Butter Knife 5 years ago
I work in the field of linguistics, and there is still a considerable amount of research that needs to be done regarding how men and women process and learn a language. This is a pretty contested topic in nuerolinguistics- there was a study done on this back in 2008 at the Northwestern University in the United States. The study saw greater activity in the areas of brain that processes languages in young girls than they saw in boys. This is not my area of work/research, but it's really fascinating. I wonder how many additional studies have been done on regarding this since then.
Load More Replies...
T.J. Barber 5 years ago
My parents used to let me stay up late if i was drawing. Like if i was still drawing at bedtime, I'd get another half hour as long as i continued to draw. Ended up getting a degree in fine art with an emphasis in graphic design, and I'm fully employed as a senior interactive designer now in my 30s. I still look back at the late bedtime as a huge start. It was my parents being excited about what i enjoyed in a tangible way, not just ssying "oo that's nice" but adding some real tangible weight to it. Staying up after bedtime was huge, i would have paid to do that at 8 years old.
Stille20 5 years ago
This is why you don't need to post your business all over social media. There are plenty of arguments to be made on both sides, but do you really trust people who just state their gut reaction like it is fact, even if they think they heard a thing on NPR last week or have a cousin's nephew's sister that did the same thing.
Rae Black 5 years ago
Let's try a new plan: stfu if you don't agree. Different tactics work for different family settings. Hey, guess what? Just because someone doesn't think like you doesn't make them stupid. Dad gets a gold star just for trying something that will benefit his children.
Hans 5 years ago
While you are right about the "stfu about other people's parenting", it was the OP who went out and tweeted about his tactics. This is an invitation for comments, since Twitter is no closed group but a way to tell things to the world.
Load More Replies... Ola 5 years ago
When I was young for every book I read I got a movie ticket. Now 20 years later I have a degree in literature and couple thousand books at home. I turned out just fine.
Troux 5 years ago
LOL @ research paper claiming that incentives make people less likely to do the task. Yeah I stopped showing up for work when I got my first paycheck, and then I gave up gardening once the tomatoes started blooming. /sarcasm... I presume these are mostly childless adults that are saying "they should just be doing it out of the love for reading/because they are supposed to." Meanwhile, most people probably haven't read 120 books in their lifetime, let alone within a year like this kid did! Aside from reading, this teaches the value of EARNING money. That kid will think about how many books he will have to read if he wants to buy ___.
Evil Little Thing 5 years ago
To be fair, I doubt you'd go to work if they stopped paying you.
Load More Replies... lenka 5 years ago
An appreciation for reading, whether derived from extrinsic or intrinsic motivation, is valuable gift. The kid feels like he is ripping his dad off, so he is clearly happy with the arrangement. Sounds to me this family has found a win-win arrangement. Good on 'em. Parenting is bloody hard!
Tivoli 5 years ago
When I was 10y, I wasn't allowed to go see lotr because it was too violent. When we saw the book in one of the shelves while cleaning, my mother laughingly said if I read it, we would go together. It took my reading skills to a new level, not to mention a movie I loved because of it. Now I prefer to read the book before I see a movie/TV show. No regrets!
Foxxy (The Original) 5 years ago
We have a deal with our daughter and for every grade above a C she got $50 BUT anything below a C she lost $50 so she had a possibility of earning $500 at the end of the year. This is not something we do every year, this was last year and she ended up with $250. We did this because her whole school life she has struggled academically and not because she isn’t smart, it is because she hasn’t been applying herself, forgetting homework, not completing projects etc so this was an incentive for her to actually do her work and take her education seriously. Grades aren’t everything and isn’t something we focus a lot on to a certain degree, we just don’t want her to fall too far behind and struggle in the future with exams, higher education, employment etc.
Firework 5 years ago
It sounds like she might have ADHD? I'm above average for my age, but I struggle with lessons a lot because I have ADHD so I forget things, can't focus in lessons, have to learn things a lot before I can remember it, and don't have enough motivation to complete projects. I think you should encourage her to try hard, but instead of punishing her for making mistakes, try to find ways to help her remember homework and projects.
Load More Replies... Leo H 5 years ago
I think its wonderful because there is no active push for boys to read. So they easily fall behind girls when it comes to language skills in school. Plus the female brain is better suited for processing language to begin with. Your doing your boys a disservice if your not getting them to read
Loki’s Lil Butter Knife 5 years ago
I work in the field of linguistics, and there is still a considerable amount of research that needs to be done regarding how men and women process and learn a language. This is a pretty contested topic in nuerolinguistics- there was a study done on this back in 2008 at the Northwestern University in the United States. The study saw greater activity in the areas of brain that processes languages in young girls than they saw in boys. This is not my area of work/research, but it's really fascinating. I wonder how many additional studies have been done on regarding this since then.
Load More Replies... T.J. Barber 5 years ago
My parents used to let me stay up late if i was drawing. Like if i was still drawing at bedtime, I'd get another half hour as long as i continued to draw. Ended up getting a degree in fine art with an emphasis in graphic design, and I'm fully employed as a senior interactive designer now in my 30s. I still look back at the late bedtime as a huge start. It was my parents being excited about what i enjoyed in a tangible way, not just ssying "oo that's nice" but adding some real tangible weight to it. Staying up after bedtime was huge, i would have paid to do that at 8 years old.
Stille20 5 years ago
This is why you don't need to post your business all over social media. There are plenty of arguments to be made on both sides, but do you really trust people who just state their gut reaction like it is fact, even if they think they heard a thing on NPR last week or have a cousin's nephew's sister that did the same thing.
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