1. Adults are reading more to children aloud and reading to children earlier.
The number of parents of children aged 0 to 5 who started reading to a child before the age of three months was 40% in 2016 compared to 30% in 2014.
The number of parents of children aged 3 to 5 reading aloud 5-7 days a week was 62% in 2016 compared to 55% in 2014.
The percentage of parents reading aloud decreases significantly with the age of children:
Children from 0 to 5 years old - 59%
Children aged 6 to 8 years - 38%
Children from 9 to 11 years old - 17%
2. When parents read aloud to their children, they are often not limited to one book.
66% of parents who read to children at least once a week read several books at once.
3. Children get used to the freedom of choice early on.
Children who are read aloud at least once a week choose their own books:
In 54% of cases, between 0 and 2
In 81% of cases, between the ages of 3 and 5
In my opinion, this is a very important indicator. It is a normal and natural practice to give a child the opportunity to choose a book from the shelf by himself. I don't think that the answers of Russian and Belarusian parents would be very different. But the habit of choosing later begins to conflict with the school with its mandatory lists of class and extra-curricular, and even summer, reading. It cannot have positive consequences.
4. Children and their parents like to read aloud together.
87% of children aged 6-11 and 82% of parents like to be read aloud (or loved in the past).
91% of parents of children aged 0-5 have the same attitude to reading.
5. The main explanations for the love of reading aloud are
This is a time of special intimacy:
In children aged 6-11, 72%
Parents have 77%.
Reading instead of having fun:
Children aged 6-11 have 66%
Parents have 67%.
More detailed statistics on these five items.
Three quarters of parents of children aged 0 to 5 say they started reading aloud when the child was under the age of one (77%)
59 per cent of parents of children aged 0 to 5 years have heard recommendations to read books to their children from birth.
The main sources of such recommendations:
Journals for young parents, Internet resources, blogs, books - 62%
Friends and family - 57%
Family pediatrician - 45%
The answers of respondents show that since 2014 parents have started to read more to children aged 3 to 5 years.
Percentage of parents reading aloud to their child 5-7 days a week:
In 2014, in the category of children from 0 to 2 years of age, the indicator was 52% and increased to 56% by 2016.
In 2014, the indicator for children aged 3 to 5 years was 55% and increased to 62% by 2016.
According to the results of the survey, it became clear how many books are read at once by parents of children aged 0 to 5 years (the answers of those who read aloud at least once a week were taken into account).
Among parents of children from 0 to 2 years old in one reading session:
35% read the same book
35% read two books
29% read three or more books
Among parents of children from 3 to 5 years old in one reading session:
31% read the same book
38% read two books
30% read three or more books
How often do children choose the books they want to read to them by adults?
Information was obtained from the questionnaires of parents reading their children at least once a week.
Answers of all parents (total share of positive answers is 66%):
The child always chooses independently - 21%
The child often chooses on his own - 47%
The child rarely chooses 20% by himself
The child almost never / never chooses on his own - 12%
Answers of boys' parents (total share of positive answers is 65%):
The child always chooses independently - 17%
The child often chooses on his own - 49%
The child rarely chooses 20% by himself
The child almost never / never chooses on his own - 14%
Answers of girls' parents (total share of positive answers is 69%):
The child always chooses independently - 24%
The child often chooses by himself - 45%
The child rarely chooses 20% by himself
The child almost never / never chooses on his own - 10%
Answers of parents of children aged 0-2 years (total share of positive answers is 54%):
The child always chooses independently - 15%
The child often chooses by himself - 39%
The child rarely chooses on his own - 22%
The child almost never / never chooses on his own - 23%
Answers of parents of children aged 3 to 5 years (total share of positive answers is 81%):
The child always chooses independently - 26%
The child often chooses on his own - 54%
The child rarely chooses on his own - 17%
The child almost never / never chooses on his own - 2%
The practice of reading aloud in the family is being drastically reduced.
The first time it is visible at the turn of the five-year age, and the second time - at the turn of the age of eight.
Percentage of parents who read to their children 5-7 days a week.
Age of children from 0 to 2 years - 56%
Age of children aged 3 to 5 years - 62%
Children aged 6 to 8 years - 38%
The age of children aged 9 to 11 years is 17%
The reasons for the success of reading aloud among children aged 6-11 and their parents: