"While it is critical that parents talk to their children, reading aloud to them is just important. Kids hear most words when they are exposed to conversation. But in many cases, we tend to speak in verbal shorthand infused with jargon.
But books, like magazines and newspapers, contain sophisticated and complex language that use complete sentences. So it makes sense that a child who hears more sophisticated words has a giant advantage over a child who hasn’t heard those words.
In their own right, electronics have had a disturbing impact on reading. For many kids, when the choice is between a book and the Internet, the Internet wins. Screens are magical and the instant gratification they provide is addictive. The fact is, the more time spent in front of a screen, the less likely a child will be to open a book.
But when parents set limits on device time — and include themselves in that limit — there is more time for personal interaction, using board games or sharing a book together.
Books provide kids with literary opportunities to travel outside their small worlds to become aware of how others live. By reading books, children learn about others who don’t have the things they come to expect — people with real disadvantages. Books offer a wider worldview than most of us can ever hope to achieve in our daily lives. The more they read, the stronger the empathy concept becomes."
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