Reading can be included in the list above. It has to be. Research indicates that the most important influence of a child's academic success is the model parents set. The first six years of a child's life are a time of intense learning -- reading has to be a part of this process. It can't be left to the school alone. A child entering school who can't read at all, who has no favourite books or stories, and who may not know the alphabet, is starting with an enormous disadvantage.

Developing good, early reading habits depends on the time and intimate one-to-one attention that a parent can usually provide. A teacher, with 30 or more students in the classroom, can't possibly provide the same degree of attention.