It can never be too early to teach a child to read. Literacy is one of the fundamental keys to success. Adults are expected to read information for job applications, the fine print in legal documents and day-to-day needs as simple as road signs to get to their destination. It all started when they learned to read as children. Those who can read well are more prone to be successful in their chosen career.
Parents read to their children when they were infants and toddlers. Then they were taught their numbers and alphabets to progress on to reading with their parents and by them selves. Encouraging reading as a fun past time encourages them to look on it as a pleasure, not a chore.
One mother made a habit of, as well as read to her child daily, sitting down with him when he was two for short periods each day and at first write out the letters of the alphabet and numbers 0 to 9 then as he got older let him try to form the letters and numbers while reading to his mother what he wrote. It became a game to identify the letters and numbers. The mother also made a game of reading and identifying signs around town and on the road. The toddler did not realize that he was learning; he only knew that he was having fun.
The results were overwhelming. One day several people were over visiting that particular family and everyone was standing outside in the yard talking. The two and one half year old went around and started accurately reading the license plates on all the cars. While the mother simply smiled the other adults looked on in astonishment. The toddler is now in middle school and is reading on a 12th grade level, still reads at least fifteen to thirty minutes everyday for pleasure and is an A student. How did learning to read early hurt him? It did not. It only improved his success.
Numerous studies have been done where children that are read to and learn to read early and often make higher grades in school. In fact, many schools now have summer reading programs where children are encouraged to read two or more books during the summer for extra credit when they start back to school. The children who participate in these summer reading programs tend to make higher grades during the school year. If parents are unsure of what type of books their children should read there is a program called the Lexile Framework for Reading, www.Lexile.com that provides guidance or talk to their school or local librarian.
But the key to being a successful reader is to start reading to your children early and teach them to read as soon as possible. The benefits are enormous.