Finding Something to Inspire Reading

My kids hate reading.  They have never liked looking at books even before they were subjected to the torture of the schools reading books.  They enjoy being read to at bedtime and love books that are quirky and alternative.  But. they rarely want to look in a book on their own.  They will occasionally flick through the pages of a super hero comic or natural world book with striking illustrations but that's about it.

One of my friends (also a home educator) who has a mildly autistic child suggested that I just try and read the words that surround us in everyday life eg road signs, packaging, adverts etc.  I am sure that generally this is a good idea and would be an organic and natural part of a child reading development.  However, my kids simply refuse to read anything.  No matter how clever I try to be to 'trick' them to read something they always see through it!  However, they do take an interest of anything or of place or different to the norm so I took them to the South Bank to see if there were any words they could read in the graffiti.  They took great pleasure from reading the inappropriate words!  It’s a start...