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Reading is the foundation of education and vital to children’s success in school and beyond. Regular reading not only improves vocabulary and school performance, but also helps children develop empathy and self-confidence. And when children fall behind in reading, learning other subjects becomes increasingly difficult with each passing school year. Students unable to read at grade level by 4th grade are four times less likely to graduate from high school.

According to the Nation’s Report Card, more than 6 out of 10 U.S. 4th graders are not reading at grade level.2 For low-income students at high-poverty schools, that number is worse: 8 in 10 are not proficient.3

To understand some of the causes of this reading gap and identify solutions to help close it, Age of Learning recently conducted nationwide surveys of more than 1,000 parents and 1,000 teachers of children ages 2 to 12. Participants reported on children’s access to books and reading habits, and described what they see as the major obstacles to developing confident and successful readers. The data reveals three important factors contributing to the reading gap.