Bedtime Stories Boost Learning in Toddlers

Bedtime stories before naps enhance learning in toddlers, according to a new study.

Researchers found that listening to stories before taking naps improves word-learning tasks in three-year-olds.

The latest study involved 48 children. Half of the kids took afternoon naps and the other half didn't. The children were read either the same story, or three different stories. However, they were exposed to the same number of unfamiliar words.

Participants were tested two-and-a-half hours later, a day later and a week later. The findings revealed that children who had been read the same story before their nap scored significantly better than those who hadn't napped. Researchers also found that kids who had been read three different stories before their nap performed 33 percent better than those who had stayed awake after hearing those stories. Tests also revealed that participants who stayed awake never caught up with those who napped in word recall.

Researchers said the latest findings suggest that naps can significantly boost learning in children, especially when they are exposed to different stories.

"Overall, all of the children in the study did very well-reading is always good, at any age and any time. But, children who were learning something particularly difficult (new words from several stories) especially benefited from hearing the stories right before sleeping. In fact, these children ended up learning the words as well as the children who had heard the same stories again and again, which we knew would be easier," said Dr. Jessica Horst of the University of Sussex, according to MedicalXpress.

"Many preschool children take an afternoon nap, yet classroom naps are increasingly being curtailed and replaced due to curriculum demands," she added. "Given the growing body of evidence that sleep consolidation has a significant effect on children's learning, such policies may be doing our children a huge disservice."

"In fact, findings like those from the current study indicate we should be encouraging young children to nap and should take advantage of the period right before they nap for instruction in key academic areas such as word learning and arithmetic," Horst concluded.

The findings are published in the journal Frontiers in Developmental Psychology.

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