The Surprising Reason Kids Can't Seem To Read Anymore

<div><img src="https://img.huffingtonpost.com/asset/68dae6ff180000f65a5d08ee.jpeg?cache=4yns6O9Nob&ops=scalefit_630_noupscale" alt="Supporting literacy and growing a love of reading requires more than just sight words and phonics. " data-caption="Supporting literacy and growing a love of reading requires more than just sight words and phonics. " data-credit-link-back="" data-credit="Katiuscia Noseda via Getty Images" />Supporting literacy and growing a love of reading requires more than just sight words and phonics. </div><div class="content-list-component text"><p><span style="font-weight:400">One of my daily challenges as a parent is getting my fourth grader to read for 30 minutes as part of her homework.</span></p><p><span style="font-weight:400">It’s not because she struggles with her reading skills; she actually reads well-above grade level. Like many kids of her generation, though, my daughter has zero interest in picking up a book. Why would she, when she’s got an iPad offering her nonstop entertainment via videos expertly designed for her short attention span? </span></p><p><span style="font-weight:400">Allie, a mother of three in Connecticut who asked to use just her first name to protect her privacy, can relate. While she confirmed all of her kids can read and write at grade level, she told HuffPost that “they just don’t WANT to”. </span></p><p><span style="font-weight:400">Allie believes the prevalence of screens is “a huge factor” when it comes to her kids’ lack of interest in reading. “Books can’t compete with screens,” she lamented.</span></p><p><span style="font-weight:400">But Allie has also noticed some potential long-term effects stemming from her kids’ reading indifference: she said that when her teenage s