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29th June 2016
04:00pm BST
Speaking about the campaign, childhood development expert David Carey told us: "Parents should read with their children. By that, I mean reading to the child and letting the child read to them. Doing so demonstrates not only the importance of reading but the fun and joy of being together with books."
He added: "As a psychologist and educationalist, I know that children who are given books at an early age do better in school, have a more vivid imagination, better vocabulary and a more inquiring mind… Nothing stimulates the imagination more than reading and an active imagination is the foundation of all learning."
Carey stressed the importance of introducing reading at an early stage: "Children need to be involved in a print-rich environment early on. It can be books, magazines, comics, newspapers - it really doesn't matter.
"When children are stimulated by seeing reading material in the home and seeing their parents read, they begin to love the idea of reading. This will make them better learners in school."
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WYm0eeLXhYk
Claire Smith with Bord Gáis Energy said: “We’ve seen a huge response to Little Readers for two years in a row now which is fantastic. The benefits of reading with children from a young age are well documented and we’re hoping that this year parents and guardians all over the country will get involved and register for a free book.
"As part of the campaign, we’re also delighted to support our charity partner Focus Ireland by donating books for children under 5 living in emergency homeless accommodation across the country.”
As if that isn’t reason enough to get involved in this worthwhile cause, the energy company has also pledged to donate a book to charity partner Focus Ireland for every young child in emergency homeless accommodation across Ireland.
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