I was on BYU radio Sept 8th talking about the amazing benefits of regularly reading to your children. I followed such eclectic topic as China and Oil and Vocal Fry.

Here are a few statistics to blow your mind. Just how important is the small yet profound act of regularly reading to your children?

Regular reading to children from birth through five years old is strongly linked to kindergarten readiness. Furthermore, reading proficiency by third grade is the most important predictor of graduation from high school and career success. In an international study of 150,000 fourth-graders, those whose parents “often” read to them scored 30 points higher than their peers who were only “sometimes” read to. In another study, the breakdown of minutes read at home correlated with academic status. On standardized reading tests, students who were read to for 2 minutes a day outside of school scored in the 30th percentile; those who were read to for 5 minutes a day scored in the 50th percentile; those who were read to  for 10 minutes a day scored in the 70th percentile; and those who were read to for 20 minutes a day scored in the 90th percentile.

So reading daily for 20 minutes translates to an “A” grade. Who wants a child to receive any less in life?

So pick up a book tonight when you tuck your child in for bed. Read for 20 minutes, talking about the book and discussing your day together. Make it a daily ritual…like brushing your teeth.

Or brushing the cobwebs out of our brains.

Stay tuned for my next post on my FAV-or-ite books to read aloud to young children.