– Learning to read is a staggering achievement. Children are born with practically no language skills but, after only a few years, they are able to speak and read. For most children, this crucial process starts long before kindergarten. Research has shown positive correlations between literacy development during the first five years and subsequent reading performance.

– Children who hear more language and can recognize more words, process information faster and have better learning abilities. From birth until the age of 5, a child’s brain grows from 25 percent to around 90 percent of its adult state. This is the fastest period of brain development, the most favorable to assimilate new information. A window of opportunity which should not be overlooked: children lacking early language stimulation have big risks to struggle with early reading and other academic subjects when they enter school.

Nurse Reading to a Little Girl by Mary Cassatt  (Wikipedia)

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