Educational experts agree that the more children read, the more they’ll enjoy reading and the better readers they’re likely to become. Parents can play a key role in helping their child become a life-long reader by instilling the joy of reading from an early age. Educational experts recommend that parents spend at least one hour per week or 10 to 15 minutes a day reading with children as young as preschool.

“Reading is an important life skill and source of great personal enjoyment,” says Susan Leung, centre director of the Oakville Sylvan Learning Center, the leading provider of in-center and live, online tutoring at home to students of all ages and skill levels. “But reading skills and habits develop young, so it’s important for parents to encourage their children’s love of reading at an early age. Spending an hour a week reading with your children inside and outside your home can foster a lifetime of reading.”

Instilling the joy of reading can start with preschoolers. Leung recommends that parents set aside time for reading aloud to their child while pointing to the words on the page as they are spoken - encouraging children between ages 4 and 7 to recognize words themselves.

Reading aloud continues to be important with grade school children, as it helps them to develop language skills. Encouraging discussion with a child also contributes to language development skills and can help with reading. Grade school is the time to introduce a child to the local public library, and expand reading to include newspapers and magazines. Parents can also designate shelves in their child’s room to create a child’s own ‘home library.’

“Don’t forget to read outside the home as well,” says Leung. “There are many opportunities to read to your child – and have him read back to you – as you’re running errands, attending events and dining out.”

Parents can also take advantage of reading opportunities on the Internet. For example, Book Adventure is a free, interactive, reading motivation program created by Sylvan Learning and found online at www.bookadventure.com. Students choose their own books from more than 7,000 titles, take short comprehension quizzes and redeem their accumulated points for small prizes.

For additional educational resources for children in grades pre-K through 12, visit www.tutoring.sylvanlearning.com/learning-for-parents/index.cfm or call 1-800-31-SUCCESS.