a Parents Help Children Learn To Love Reading (NAPSA)—It’s never too early to get children to enjoy reading. Reading Is Fundamental (RIF) and Macy’s teamed up to find out just how early—and often—parents are reading with their children. The results may surprise you. Study Results Few parents with kids age 8 and younger are engaged in nightly reading, according to the new survey. The survey found only one in three parents read bedtime stories with their children every night and 50 percent of parents say their children spend more time with TV or video games than with books. The study also found: While 87 percent of parents say they currently read bedtime stories with their children, only onein three do so daily. Children of families with an annual household income below $35,000 are morelikely to watch TV (40 percent) than read books (35 percent). Twice a printed an e-book who read as manychildren prefer book (20 percent) over (9 percent), say parents both types of books to their children. Why Reading Is Important According to the Annie E. Casey Foundation, children who don’t read well by the end of third grade are four times more likely to drop out of high school than proficient readers. Yet the 2011 National Assessment of Educational Progress reveals that two-thirds of U.S. fourth graders—and more than four-fifths of those from lowincome families—are not reading proficiently. In RIF’s review of major literacy studies, researchers found a direct correlation between income level and the number of books in the household, creating even more obstacles to developing children’s literacy. What’s Being Done Fortunately, that’s where Reading Is Fundamental and Macy’s come in. As the nation’s largest children’s literacy nonprofit, RIF has placed 410 million books in a= ONLY 1IN 3 PARENTS =A aL Giving children their own books can inspire them to becomelife- long readers and achievetheir full potential. the hands of more than 39 million children, mostly in underserved communities. And Macy’s has been a longtime supporter of RIF, helping to raise more than $25 million for the organization in the last 10 years. What You Can Do RIF offers these tips for parents who want to make the most of reading with their children: *Try to establish a regular time for reading aloud. *Find a quiet, comfortable place; snuggling together while reading is important. background *Remove distractions. Select a book both you and your child can enjoy. *Point out the cover illustration as well as the author’s and illustrator’s names. *Read with expression; have fun bringing the characters and eventsto life. Read slowly so your child can take in the words andlook at the pictures. Encourage questions. Watch the child’s body language to see if you need to take a break. *Talk about the book afterward. Be sureto elicit the child’s reaction. eIf the book is a frequently read one, ask the child to retell the story in his or her own words. Learn More To find out more about how you can help provide books to kids who need them most, visit www.RIForg.
