* Reading to children at age 4-5 every day has a significant positive effect on their reading skills and cognitive skills (i.e., language and literacy, numeracy and cognition) later in life.
* Reading to children 3-5 days per week (compared to 2 or less) has the same effect on the child’s reading skills at age 4-5 as being six months older.
* Reading to them 6-7 days per week has the same effect as being almost 12 months older.
* Children read to more frequently at age 4-5 achieve higher scores on the National Assessment Program – Literacy and Numeracy (NAPLAN) tests for both Reading and Numeracy in Year 3 (age 8 to 9).
* These differences in reading and cognitive skills are not related to the child’s family background or home environment but are the direct result of how frequently they have been read to prior to starting school.
Talking is great, but often constrained to the limits we set ourselves (our town, our experiences, our acquaintences) but reading is not bound by our imagination, only by the authors. Helps us step out of our comfort zone.
For sure. On the flip side, talking can be more interactive (which is probably good but maybe it's not), and stretching our own imaginations is worth doing - most people can probably come up with stories with enough creativity to entertain a four-year-old, particularly if the adult has been doing some reading.
But then, of course, building positive associations around books is doubtless valuable in our current society.
Lots of great arguments on both sides. I'm certainly not going to forego reading to my children. I'm just floating a perspective I found interesting.
Thanks for the data. I'll back it up with a personal anecdote: I was at least a grade if not 2-3 grades ahead of my class by the time I got to kindergarten. My parents (and the full-time babysitter) read to me. I had "Goodnight Moon" freaking MEMORIZED from how many times it was read to me; the actual reading came soon after.
I have two sons, 6 and 3, and my wife and I read to them every night. My 6-year old seems a little behind when it comes to reading, at least from what I would expect.
He attends a Montessori kindergarten and scores fine on the reading tests they administer. The school seems to put more emphasis on mathematical concepts at this point and I'm pretty amazed at what he's picked up so far. So overall I'm not too concerned and I think at some point a flip will switch and his reading will pick up.
He definitely enjoys us reading to him, but is pretty reluctant when we ask him to read so we don't push it. He really enjoys non-fiction books (e.g NatGeo books on animals) and things like The Magic (School Bus|Tree House). It's fun to hear him recite facts he's learned. I'm definitely looking forward to getting to some of the books I read as a kid (Chronicles of Narnia, The Great Brain, Encyclopedia Brown).
Here's data:
http://www.education.vic.gov.au/Documents/about/research/rea...
Key Findings
* Reading to children at age 4-5 every day has a significant positive effect on their reading skills and cognitive skills (i.e., language and literacy, numeracy and cognition) later in life.
* Reading to children 3-5 days per week (compared to 2 or less) has the same effect on the child’s reading skills at age 4-5 as being six months older.
* Reading to them 6-7 days per week has the same effect as being almost 12 months older.
* Children read to more frequently at age 4-5 achieve higher scores on the National Assessment Program – Literacy and Numeracy (NAPLAN) tests for both Reading and Numeracy in Year 3 (age 8 to 9).
* These differences in reading and cognitive skills are not related to the child’s family background or home environment but are the direct result of how frequently they have been read to prior to starting school.