Early reading habits give kids better start at school

Melbourne, July 24 (ANI): Children whose parents read regularly to them when they are young, are likely to have better reading, writing, language and numeracy skills, a landmark study has revealed.

Such children also perform better in NAPLAN, which is a battery of tests administered annually to Australian students. These standardised tests assess students' academic skills.

The survey, conducted by The Australian Institute of Family Studies, found that solid foundations for reading at the ages of four and five was linked to higher literacy scores.

Mini-bookworms, who were surrounded by books at home and visited the library, were the best off, News.com.au reported.

Although the study dealt with children aged four and up, researchers Dr. Killian Mullan and Galina Daraganova claimed that parents can start on the path to developing literacy skills from birth.

The research used information from a longitudinal study of nearly 5000 children, using time-diaries when they were aged 4-5 and then 10-11.

It also evaluated the impact of early reading on NAPLAN scores for about half the group that aged 3 and 5.

About 50 per cent of young kids were read to almost every day, 30 per cent three to five times a week, and one in five just one or two days a week.

Dr Mullan said the study highlighted the importance of a supportive family environment at an early age.

"The early home environment is directly important to literacy scores in NAPLAN in year 3," he said. (ANI)