Book reading is a valuable source of language exposure for young children. Vitally, reading a range of books enables children to hear a variety of words and sentence structures that they may not have experienced through everyday conversations with their friends and family.
American researchers from Ohio State University have used 60 common children’s picture books to estimate that if a child is read just one book a day in their first five years of life, they will hear on average an extra 78,000 words more per year than children who are never read to. That’s almost 300,000 more words by the time they start school!
If a child is read multiple books a day in this period, the gap could reach over a million more words, based solely on the words written on the pages of books, without accounting for the ‘extra-textual’ or organic interactions that often coincide with the book-reading experience.
As we know – Words Grow Minds! The simple act of reading to a child can broaden their vocabulary and make a lifetime of difference.
Read more here: https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2019/04/190404074947.htm
Read the full academic article here: https://crane.osu.edu/files/2020/01/When_Children_Are_Not_Read_to_at_Home__The_Million.9.pdf