Reading aloud to your children is one of the best ways to form deep, shared emotional connections. It also has the added benefits of increasing kids’ confidence and, of course, building strong reading skills.

So when the Institute of Reading Development’s CEO, Doug Evans, found out that only 4 in 10 parents actually enjoy reading to their kids, he was heartbroken. He discovered this shocking statistic in a recent report published by The Guardian.

Like all of us here, Doug relishes a great bedtime story, and wouldn’t trade all the nights he spent reading Harry Potter to his son for anything. And yet, over the last decade there’s been a 36% drop in the number of kids who are read to regularly by their parents. Why is the practice of reading aloud to kids on the decline?

Doug sets out to uncover the facts about reading together and reflect on ways parents can revive this irreplaceable practice (and enjoy it!) in a new article.

In the rest of this newsletter, we’ll explore how reading together from an early age can shape your child’s time with family, time in school - and entire lifetime.

In today’s issue:

• Brain development tied to early reading aloud

• Reading together still benefits older children

• Modeling reading to support teen mental health

Building Brains, One Story at a Time

Reading aloud to preschoolers sets them up for greater success as they enter elementary school. Listening to a parent read has been scientifically shown to activate brain areas supporting mental imagery and narrative comprehension. That’s right: whenever you read a bedtime story to your young child, you are not only forming a closer bond, you are actually building his or her brain.

Taking the time to read out loud has so many emotional, behavioral, and cognitive benefits for the youngest students that it is worth prioritizing. Check out this post from Scholastic with tips for fitting reading together into your busy schedule.

“Read with your child for as long as he’ll let you.”

The Institute of Reading Development’s founder, Paul Copperman, was right when he gave this advice to Doug years ago. Even when your child starts reading independently, you shouldn’t stop reading aloud together.

Late Elementary school is primetime for developing fluency in longer books and comprehension in complex narratives. Writing for Parents Magazine, researcher Molly Ness shares how reading children’s novels together and having meaningful conversations about the characters and plot is the perfect way for parents to give their kids a roadmap for reflecting on books.

Readers are Resilient

New research by HarperCollins shows that young people who strongly identify as a “reader” report higher levels of happiness and better mental health. So, it’s no wonder that, when only 16% of teens claim to read for fun daily, we’ve got a problem.

What can worried parents do to help if their kids are past the years of reading aloud together? Model reading for pleasure! Choosing to pick up a book yourself, and letting your teen see you do it, will have a bigger impact than you might think. Read side-by-side at the beach, pick audiobooks together, or visit a bookstore during your next set of errands. You’ll benefit, too.

How to Raise a Skilled Reader

“Reading aloud isn’t just for kids, it’s for parents, too.”

– Doug Evans, CEO Institute of Reading Development

Join our movement and get support and reassurance throughout your parenting journey. Sign up for the free Raising Skilled Readers parent community today.