Literacy experts say it’s time for parents to get kids reading again as they catch up from two years of pandemic-related learning losses.
Pandemic lockdowns “significantly disrupted” the family routines of small children who advanced in school with glaring social and educational deficits, said Michelle Torgerson, the CEO of Raising a Reader, a literacy nonprofit claiming 300 affiliates serving 200,000 children annually in 34 states.
Students in kindergarten through 12th grade saw steep declines in their math and reading skills amid COVID-19 lockdowns that kept them glued to digital screens for virtual learning, according to the Department of Education. Standardized test scores for some grade levels hit historic lows. Ms. Torgerson suggested that children will not make up that lost ground without older family members reading to them — and with hard-copy books, not eBooks.
“As long as they see you reading and know it’s important in your life, they’re going to imitate that behavior,” said United Through Reading’s Ms. Hagan Lingad. She suggests letting children pick reading material that both generations enjoy and focusing on the interaction rather than finishing a set number of pages.