Free guide · The 10-Minute Story Trick
Get your child reading and focused in ten minutes tonight.
Without taking their phone away. The one routine I use to win a child’s attention back from the screen, written so any parent can do it after dinner.
- 10 minutes a day
- 5 simple steps
- Ages 6–14
Sound familiar?
- He reads the same page three times and still can’t tell me what happened.
- Four minutes into homework: “I’m bored.”
- She watched the YouTube summary instead of reading the book.
- “I’m just not a reading person.”
Your child hasn’t lost their attention. They’ve stopped finding anything worth giving it to. Screens trained it away. Stories can train it back.
Imagine
Dinner is over. The phones are in the other room. Your child is curled up beside you, and when you close the book at the best part, they say “just one more page.”
From stuck to moving forward.
Before- Taking the phone away, then a fight, then giving it back
- Reading feels like a punishment
- Homework takes two hours and three arguments
- You worry AI is doing the thinking for them
What’s inside
Ten minutes, minute by minute.
- 0–1
Settle
Sit beside them. “Ten minutes. Just us and a story.”
- 1–5
Tell it, don’t just read it
Voices, pauses, eye contact at the exciting bits.
- 5–8
Hand it over
They read the next part. Keep it moving.
- 8–9
Stop at the best part
Close the book right at the cliffhanger.
- 9–10
Ask one question
“What do you think happens next?” Then walk away.
Plus: how to adapt it for ages 6 to 9 and 10 to 14, and exactly what to say when they push back.
I know what you’re thinking.
Start with five. Stopping at the best part does the rest: by day three they’re asking for more.
You don’t need to be. The guide gives you the exact words for every minute.
This isn’t more reading. It’s ten minutes of you, a story, and curiosity. That’s different.
Yes. One email with the guide, then short Sunday letters you can unsubscribe from anytime.
Who I am
I’m not a parent. But I’ve spent years winning children’s attention.
I’m Addie: a tutor, author and filmmaker. I’ve watched brilliant kids decide they’re “just not reading people”, and I’ve watched one good story change their minds. I want your child to be a creator, not just a consumer, and it starts with ten minutes tonight.
Addie