From birth to five, a child’s brain is wiring itself to hear the distinct sounds and syllables within words and absorbing the grammatical patterns of language. This is a critical stage. Reading aloud exposes children to a richer vocabulary as well. The average child enters kindergarten familiar with approximately 5,000 words. Most parents and teachers don’t realize that the normal child’s book has 17% more “rare” words than the conversation of a college graduate. (from Annual Growth, Catch-Up Growth, Field, Kerr and Rosier)
The importance of reading to your child between birth and age five is evident above and in research.