One More Piece of Literacy News: and a Very Good Question

Over at The Miss Rumphius Effect, Tricia just shared some results from the National Center for Education Statistics report America's Children: Key National Indicators of Well-Being. You can (and should) read the details at Tricia's, but the gist is that in 2005, only "60 percent of children ages 3–5 who were not yet in kindergarten were read to daily by a family member", and the exact percentage was highly correlated with other socioeconomic factors. Tricia says: "The fact that 40% of children in this country were NOT read to every day is very discouraging." And she asks an important question:

"how do we reach out to folks who don't read blogs, or much of anything else, and get them to understand how incredibly important reading to children is, and what a long-term impact this practice (or lack of it) makes?"

Jill T. and I were talking about this a little bit over in the comments on this post at The Well-Read Child. I also wrote earlier today about an opinion piece in The Age (Australia) with some big picture ideas for governments. I wrote last January, in an article about a talk that I heard by read-aloud advocate Jim Trelease that:

"He (Trelease) suggested that we need some sort of national campaign to inform people all over the country of the importance of exposing their kids to more words every day, and encouraging them to enjoy reading. He gave an analogy to the campaign that was used to successfully cut the incidence of smoking in this country by 50% over 40 years, a combination of informing people, scaring people, and insulting people, and thinks that we need to try something similar in American homes re: reading."

I think that programs that give books to newborn babies before they leave the hospital, and the Read Out and Read program that gives books to kids on their well-baby visits, are steps in the right direction. As are programs like First Book and Dolly Parton's Imagination Library and Cops 'N Kids, that give books to kids.

But what else can we do? How do we reach people with this message that so many of us understand is critically important? Is there anything that we, as ordinary citizens, can do, besides supporting the above organizations? What I want to do is jump up and down and tell people: "Just read to your kids. Every day. Here are some books for you. Keep on reading to them for as long as they'll let you. We'll find you some more books as they get older." And I pretty much do that with people I know in the real world, and with people who read my blog. But, like Tricia, I wonder how to reach more people with the message. Different people. People who really need to hear it.

Sadly, I don't have any answers right now. But thanks for making me think, Tricia. Readers, if you have any thoughts on this, please share them here or over at Tricia's. Thanks!

Comments

[Little Willow]

I want to comment on this but I HAVE. to. SLEEP.

[Cheryl Rainfield]

I really like this discussion, Jen. Here are the ideas that popped into my head:

-corporate-sponsored and government sponsored ads that promote reading to children--both on TV, and on billboards on buildings, buses, in magazines, that sort of thing. Think sort of like the madd-drunk-driving ads on tv--only these ones should be emotional and touching, and still give a few statistics (like how children who aren't read to don't learn to read as easily, how it affects them, etc. The negative effects of not reading to children. OR the positive effects of being read to. Or both, separately)

-it would take a lot of money, but as an add-on to these ads, there could be a mail-in form for a free children's book...or two...that parents could read to their child

-internet ads, similar to above.

-pamphlets that have the same information--and more--as the ads, that are distributed on buses and public transportation, and at, i don't know, libraries, community centers, churches, etc. With resources, some suggestions on how to make reading to children enjoyable, some links (on paper) to websites with articles or more information, etc.

-email campaigns that tell some of the info....

-what about some sort of reward/incentive program, government or corporate sponsored, that reward parents who read to their children? i don't know how they could prove they had--and i actually don't think people should have to be rewarded for reading to their children, but sometimes rewards motivate people, and we are thinking about reaching people who don't read to their children at all.... There's a reward program in the US for kids who read, right? they get pizza or movie tickets or something. I don't know if that promotes a love of reading, but *maybe* something like that.

That's what I could come up with now....

[Jen Robinson]

Great stuff, Cheryl! I actually think that the free books would be a lot cheaper than the TV ads.

I'm not sure where the responsibility lies for such big initiatives. I think I need to do some research on the government programs that already exist. In my spare time, whatever that is. I just signed up for the National Family Literacy Initiative newsgroup, from the National Institute for Literacy, to see what's going on there, but it's too soon to say. Anyway, thanks for thinking aloud with me on this.

[Jennifer, Snapshot]

I think that an effort is being made. There's the "The More You Know" campaign on NBC. I think that some of these people (who don't read), definitely watch TV, and will "listen" to Dr. So and So from ER.

I've noticed another similar campaign aimed at parents. I think it's one of the children's networks.

I think that getting the word out through schools is key--preschools, daycares, Kindergarten. I know that daily reading has always been part of my daughter's HW, and before she could read, that entailed reading aloud.

[Jen Robinson]

Good points, Jennifer. I think that there are efforts underway - I just don't think that it's enough. As for having the schools be part of this education effort, of course that makes sense. But I don't think that assigning specific reading for homework is the answer, or even requiring families to read a certain amount. The last thing we want is to make reading feel like homework or punishment, for parent or child. I do think that there are things that can be done in and by the schools to tell parents how important it is to read with their kids, though. Absolutely.

[Andrea of (of JOMB)]

Jen,

I laughed out loud over "informing people, scaring people, and insulting people". Could be the makings of a bestselling parenting manual.

[Jen Robinson]

Glad to have provided a laugh, Andrea. I can't guarantee it was an exact quote, but that's definitely the gist of what Jim proposed. And maybe a parenting manual is in the future...