A new study shows that fewer parents are reading to their young children than ever before. The research reveals that many Gen Z parents do not read to their kids as often as previous generations. They say reading is not fun, which raises concerns about children’s early exposure to books.
According to the study by HarperCollins UK, less than half (41%) of children aged four and under are read to frequently. This is a sharp decline from 64% in 2012.
Gen Z, generally defined as those born between 1997 and 2012, are much more likely than Millennials or Gen X to see reading as a task to learn rather than an enjoyable activity. The study points out that Gen Z is the first generation to grow up fully in the digital age. Millennials, by contrast, remember a time before the internet was common.
This change in attitude toward reading seems to be affecting children. The study finds that only 32% of kids aged 5 to 10 read for fun often, down from 55% in 2012.
The numbers are even lower for boys, including those too young to read on their own. More than 20% of boys aged 0 to 2 are rarely or never read to, compared to 44% of girls, the study reports.
Many parents said they do not find reading to their children enjoyable or wish they had more time to do it. Another reason given is that children have too much schoolwork, leaving little time for reading for pleasure.
Experts say reading to children helps them enjoy books more. Alison David, Consumer Insight Director at Farshore and HarperCollins Children’s Books, said, “Being read to makes reading fun for children. It is very worrying that many children grow up without a happy reading culture at home.”
She added that children who are read to daily are almost three times more likely to read on their own than those who are read to only weekly. “It’s never too late to start or restart reading with children,” David said.
