"Recent research quantified what we’ve intuitively known about children and
reading. That is, the more adults read to children from an early age, the
greater the impact on their reading and thinking skills.It was reported in The Age (3rd March 2013 )that a longitudinal study by The Melbourne Institute of Applied Economic and Social Research measured the link between the frequency of reading to a child and his or her development.
"The study followed 4,000 children, aged four to five years in 2004 through to ages 10 and 11 and found that reading to a child six to seven days a week puts him almost a year ahead of a child who has not been read to. The study also found that children who were read to every day from a young age also have better numeracy skills in primary school."
I have always LOVED reading to our kids and I have also found it has been of great benefit to our children as they have learnt so much through books. They often refer back to stories we have read when talking with us.
If you don't read during the day, use night time to read to your children before bed as wind down time.
http://www.parentingideas.com.au/Blog/March-2013/Read-daily-to-kids
