Over the years, more and more children have been turning to television and video games for entertainment, rather than books. The Family Literacy Foundation believes this startling problem can be prevented if the child is encouraged to read or is read to at a young age, according to Scholastic News Service Periodical, Dec. 2001.

According to www.signonsandiego.com, President George W. Bush signed an education bill on Jan. 1,?02, that requires new reading and math testing. Bush believes this will help to close the gap between rich and poor students in public schools and also will raise teachers’ standards for their students.

This Federal Education bill requires testing every year in reading and math for all children in grades three through eight starting in the 2005-06 school year. This bill also requires that all school-teachers be qualified to teach in their specific subject.

“I think that the more you read the more you learn about things you don’t usually learn in school,” Kari Maddox, ’03, said.

Maddox spends about a half hour a day reading books not required by school and during the summer about one hour a day.

“My parents read to me a lot when I was little but I don’t think that motivated me to read. My parents read to my ten year-old brother frequently and he doesn’t like to read much,” Maddox said.

According to The Carnegie Corporation, President Bush is determined to provide a schooling system that will work and help children to learn more with better results.

“By putting aside partisan differences and working to find common ground,” Bush said in a Senate Passage of H. R. 1 conference Report on Dec. 18, ’01, “we can get things done so that our children have the opportunity for a better and brighter future.” (Committee on Education and the Workforce)

The Carnegie Corporation has reported once a child falls behind in this critical activity, catching up is always difficult and frustrating for the child and the parent. (Scholastic News, Dec., ’01)

“The best book I have read is Rainbow Six by Tom Clancy,” John Steele, ’03, said. “I read about an hour and a half a day on average. I particularly enjoy fiction and biographies. Over about a year I have obtained a very broad vocabulary because of all the reading I do.”

There are many benefits to reading including increased vocabulary and faster reading skills.

“I usually read about an hour and half a day, but it depends on the day,” Elise Aydelotte, ’05, said. “My parents read to me when I was younger and I think that contributed to how much I like to read. The reading that I do helps me to be able to read faster and do better in English class.”

The Family Literacy Foundation www.read2kids.org
Committee on Education and the Workforce: http://edworkforce.house.gov/press