A Child's Learning-to-Read is a Bit of a Miracle.

The LEARNING TO READ happens because the curriculum was created after careful and prolonged study of what works and what does not. Montessori works with young children, and it can be started with a willing eighteen month old.

The Importance of Family Participation in Literacy Activities

Family participation in literacy activities provides valuable developmental experiences for young children. In addition to developing an interest in reading, children who are read to, told stories, and visit the library may start school better prepared to learn. Engaging young children in literacy activities at home also enables parents and other family members to become active participants in their children's education at an early age.

• In 1996, more than 80 percent of children ages 3-5 were read to three or more times or told a story in the past week by a parent or family member, while 38 percent had visited a library in the past month. The percentage of children who were read to or told a story increased between 1991 and 1996.
• Children ages 3-5 who were not enrolled in pre-primary education were just as likely to have been told a story by a parent or family member in the past week as their peers who were enrolled in kindergarten in 1996. However, children ages 3-5 who were not enrolled in preprimary education were less likely to have been read to three or more times in the past week or to have visited a library in the past month than children who were enrolled in kindergarten.
• White children ages 3-5 were more likely to have been read to three or more times in the past week than their black or Hispanic counterparts in 1996. Additionally, white children were more likely to have visited a library in the past month than their black and Hispanic peers.
• In 1996, children ages 3-5 whose parents' highest education level was a bachelor's degree or higher were more likely to have been read to at least three times in the past week or to have visited a library in the past month than children whose parents' highest education level was a high school diploma or GED.

  This article was originally published as an Indicator of the Month, taken from The Condition of Education 1998. The sample survey data are from the NCES National Household Education Survey (NHES)

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