Scholastic India to Participate in International Literacy Day to Promote Literacy as an Instrument to Empower Individuals, Communities and Societies

New Delhi, 8th September 2017 – Fifty one years ago, September 8 was officially proclaimed as International Literacy Day by UNESCO aimed at mobilizing the international community to promote literacy as an instrument to empower individuals, communities and societies.
Scholastic, the global children’s publishing, education and media company, is celebrating International Literacy Day in India and around the world. Scholastic India has engaged partners across the spectrum to reach out to readers. These include:
� Popular parenting website MyCity4Kids will encourage parents to write about why reading is important.
� The popular Facebook reading group for parents The Reading Raccoons, is inviting parents to post a picture of their children reading.
� Scholastic has associated with Books On The Delhi Metro, a group of reading enthusiasts and book fairies who drop books inside the Delhi metro for commuters to read and pass on. They will drop bestselling Scholastic books inside the metro on September 8.
� On Twitter, the Scholastic India handle will donate to a foundation The Community Library Project the total number of books equal to the number of retweets of its International Literacy Day message.

Speaking on this range of activities, Neeraj Jain, Managing Director, Scholastic India said, “Access to books, and reading books of their choice every day, helps children grow into readers. This in turn can transform a child’s prospects for success. For International Literacy Day, we have tried to capture these aspects through various activities, hoping to encourage parents to participate in the process.”
In 2016, Scholastic India released the findings of its first-ever India version of the global research report, Kids & Family Reading ReportTM. This national survey of Indian children aged 6–17 years and their parents, plus parents of children aged 0–5, explores attitudes and behaviours toward reading books. The survey reveals that 86 percent of children aged 6–17 years agree that “my favourite books are the ones that I have picked out myself.” Eighty-eight per cent of boys and eighty-six percent of girls equally agree “I would read more if I could find more books that I like.” The majority of children, 81 percent, in this critical age group enjoy reading books for fun and more than three-quarters, 77 percent of children, believe reading books for fun is extremely or very important.

Importance of reading aloud
Parents of children aged 0–5 years shared that the top benefit they want for their child when they read books for fun is development of vocabulary and language skills. Similarly, these parents primarily start reading aloud to their children to help them learn the letters and words. Half of the parents surveyed who have 0–5 year-olds, received the advice that children should be read books aloud from birth, most commonly from their grandparents. Overall, only 27 percent of parents started reading aloud to their children before age one and 60 percent began reading books aloud to their child at two years or older.

Parents play a huge role in seeding the love for reading and in keeping kids interested in books. One of the most powerful predictors of reading frequency in children age 6–17 is being read to by parents 5–7 days a week. Across all ages, 85 percent of children love being read aloud and among kids aged 6–11 years, whose parents have stopped reading aloud to them, more than half, 57 percent, wish their parents had continued.
The online link for the detailed free to download report is: http://scholastic.co.in/en/readingreport
The survey was conducted, among 1,752 parents and children, including 350 parents of children aged 0–5; 701 parents of children aged 6–17; plus one child aged 6–17 from the same household. All data presented in the Kids & Family Reading ReportTM, India Edition represent the country’s English-speaking population with access to the Internet.

About Scholastic
Scholastic Corporation (NASDAQ: SCHL) is the world’s largest publisher and distributor of children’s books, a leading provider of core literacy curriculum and professional services, and a producer of educational and entertaining children’s media. The Company creates quality books and e-books, print and technology-based learning programs for pre-K to grade 12, classroom magazines and other products and services that support children’s learning both in school and at home. With operations in 14 international offices and exports to 165 countries, Scholastic makes quality, affordable books available to all children around the world through school-based book clubs and book fairs, classroom collections, school and public libraries, retail and online. True to its mission of 97 years to encourage the personal and intellectual growth of all children beginning with literacy, the Company has earned a reputation as a trusted partner to educators and families.
8 Sept 2017