An early love for reading 'boosts long-term literacy'

October 22 2009

Helping children to discover reading at an early age has a vital role to play in educational development, says a literacy charity.

Booktrust advises that any kind of reading material can be beneficial - including blogs and comics as well as books.

Nick Batty, project manager for the educational charity's Reading Champions programme, said: "As well as developing vital literacy skills that can benefit them in the longer term, reading also gives a child the opportunity to develop their creative imagination."

His comments follow the release of new research by Booktrust, which found nearly 60 per cent of parents say their children spend more time playing computer games or watching television than they do reading.

Although almost all (96 per cent) children enjoy reading, more than a third (34 per cent) of those surveyed revealed that books are outnumbered by games and DVDs on their shelves at home.

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