Reading for fun improves students test scores

Fourth grade students who read for fun every day score the highest on reading assessment tests. The three-quarters of students who reported reading for fun on their own time once a week or more performed at the high end of the Basic level (scores from 208-237 on the NAEP reading assessment test), while the 14% of students who never or hardly ever read for fun performed below the Basic level (scores below 208 on the test). Students who talked about their reading with family and friends on a weekly basis had a higher average score than students who talked about their books once a month or less. Sixty-one percent reported talking about their reading with family and friends at least weekly.