New study reveals decline in reading, but SWFL libraries offer solutions

CAPE CORAL, Fla. — As Fox 4 celebrates Blitz Day this Wednesday (when your donations to our If You Give a Child a Book campaign are doubled), we're looking deeper into the importance of reading.

A new study from the University of Florida and University College London has found that reading for pleasure in the U.S. has declined by more than 40% over the last 20 years. However, researchers say there are ways to help reverse this troubling trend.

The decline comes as books compete for attention with social media and the online world. But librarians in Lee County said the key is instilling a love of reading in children as early as possible.

"We know that reading is such an important foundation of success for all areas of life as you get older," said Melissa Baker from the Lee County Library System. "By 3rd and 4th grade a child shifts from learning to read to reading to learn and for the rest of their whole life, reading is that little thing that you have to have learned to be able to learn. So, as they get older in school, if they don't have that solid foundation in reading they are falling behind their peers."

According to the Children's Reading Foundation, one of the most powerful predictors of a person's success in life is being read to as a child. Children who start reading for pleasure early in life tend to perform better on cognitive tests and have better mental health, more independence and more creativity.

The benefits of reading are indisputable and endless, including a bigger vocabulary and a higher level of empathy.

The Lee County Library System offers a special program called "Read a Thousand Books Before Kindergarten" to help get children started on their reading journey. The program rewards children book by book as they progress toward the goal.

Librarians suggest that parents can inspire reading in their children by reading themselves. When children see their parents sitting and reading a book, it shows them that reading is important, enjoyable and fun. Children then begin to model that behavior.

For those looking to make reading more accessible to other children in the community, donations can be made to the "If You Give a Child a Book" campaign by texting WFTX to 50155.

This story was reported on-air by a journalist and has been converted to this platform with the assistance of AI. Our editorial team verifies all reporting on all platforms for fairness and accuracy.