Starting in kindergarten, if a student reads 20 minutes a day at home, they will hear 1.8 million words per year.  They will have read for 851 hours by 6th grade and on standardized tests, they will likely score better than 90% of their peers.

This is compelling data on the benefits of encouraging your child to read.

Helps in language development

From the time your child is born, reading out loud is a positive influence. As your child grows, daily reading will help the brain make connections between the written and spoken word, widening vocabulary in the process.

Adding to that benefit, vocabulary knowledge equates to masterful spelling. In fact, reading, spelling and vocabulary are critically important to a child's lifelong achievement.

Promotes brain development

Educators have long said reading makes people smarter, and there’s research backing them up. A study conducted by the American Academy of Pediatrics found reading to children of any age wakens a number of regions in the left part of the brain. The areas in the brain that become active involve understanding the meaning of words and concepts tied to memory.