The
Impact of Fathers Reading to Their Children

How a father's interest in learning can shape a child's future

By Rhian Jones

A child may not remember every book their father read to them.

They may not remember the questions he asked about their homework, the school assembly he attended, the afternoon he sat beside them while they struggled through a difficult chapter.

But they may remember something much simpler: Dad cared about learning.

And that feeling can stay with a child for a long time.

When we talk about children’s education, we often think about schools, teachers, books, technology and curriculum. These matter. But learning begins well before a child walks through the school gates. 

It happens in conversations around the dinner table, on the journey home from school, during a bedtime story, on a trip to the library, or when a parent simply asks, 'Tell me about what you’re reading'.

For fathers, taking an interest in their children's learning can send a powerful message. Education matters. Being curious matters. Their stories matter.

How does a father’s involvement support a child’s learning?

Father involvement is sometimes thought of in practical terms: parent-teacher meetings, helping with homework or checking that a school project has been finished.

But it can be much more than that.

It might mean listening while a child explains something they have discovered. It could be taking an interest in the book they have chosen or visiting the library together. It could be as simple as letting a child see their father enjoying a book himself. 

A meta-analysis by Kim (2022) found a positive correlation between parental involvement and academic achievement. Interestingly, the strongest relationship was linked to parental expectations and aspirations, while the interaction concerning helping with homework was far more nuanced.

That is worth thinking about. Children do not necessarily need their parents to become a second teacher. What they need is for the adults around them to show that learning has value.

The question is not always, ‘Can Dad help me solve this?’

Sometimes it is simply, ‘Does Dad want to know what I’m learning?

Why does it matter when children see their fathers reading?

Children notice what parental figures do.

They see what adults make time for, what they talk about and what they value. When a father picks up a book, discusses an idea, asks questions or takes an interest in something new, he illustrates that learning does not only happen at school; it is part of everyday life.

The Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD, 2021) found links between parental involvement and children’s attitudes towards lifelong learning. Activities outside formal education, including visiting libraries and discussing what others have read, were associated with favourable attitudes towards lifelong learning and reading for pleasure.

This provides another way to think about education. It is not only about academic achievement, but about helping children become people who are curious about the world around them.

The impact of being seen

For anyone interested in children’s literature, this is where reading becomes particularly important.

A book gives a father and child a reason to talk.

They can laugh at the same thing, disagree about a character or imagine what it would be like to live somewhere else. They can ask questions without needing to find the ‘right’ answer.

Reading together can support children’s language and literacy development while creating opportunities to use their imagination, consider different worldviews and apply this to the stories they encounter.

Research examining father-children literacy elevates the significance of this relationship. The National Literacy Trust’s review of fathers’ engagement in children’s literacy found that, in 2024, 76.8% of fathers surveyed said they talked with their child every day, while 47.4% said they read with their child every day (Moisi et al., 2025).

The report also identified a decline in daily engagement in learning activities among both mothers and fathers between 2019 and 2024. It is worth noting the many contributors at play, and that one sole factor cannot be attributed to this trend.

So, the answer may not simply be that fathers need to do more.

It may also be about recognising the value of everyday opportunities to engage with children’s reading and learning.

Ten minutes reading together matters.

A trip to the library can matter.

Even sitting beside a child and saying, ‘I love hearing you read,’ can matter.

How fathers can encourage children to read

Supporting a child’s reading does not need to be complicated. Small, regular interactions can help make books and learning part of everyday family life.

• Read together. Even a short amount of shared reading creates an opportunity to slow down, talk and enjoy a story together
  
  
• Let children choose. Give young people some agency over what they read. Their choice might be a novel, picture book, graphic novel, comic or another format that captures their interest
  
  
• Talk about the story, rather than testing it. Ask what surprised them, which character they liked or what they think might happen next
  
  
• Let children see you reading. Adults can model the idea that reading is something worth choosing for enjoyment, information or curiosity
  
  
• Visit a library or bookshop together. Give children opportunities to browse, explore and discover what interests them
  
  The goal does not always need to be finishing a particular book. Positive reading cultures can emerge through positive experiences with reading.

Fathers can shape how children see education

Other research has found that fathers’ involvement can contribute to children’s academic outcomes beyond the contribution of mothers’ involvement. McBride et al. (2005) found a significant relationship between aspects of fathers’ involvement in education and children’s achievement after accounting for mothers’ involvement.

Jeynes (2015) meta-analysis also found a strong positive relationship between father involvement and educational outcomes.

But this research gives us a reason to be careful about what we mean by ‘involvement’.

Being involved does not mean putting pressure on a child.

One study found that fathers' academic pressure was associated with lower achievement, while encouragement and support were associated with more positive outcomes (Rogers et al., 2009).

That distinction matters.

A father who says, ‘You have to get top marks because your future depends on it,’ is sending one message.

A father who says, ‘That looks difficult. Let’s work out what you’re interested in,’ is sending another.

Both fathers are taking an interest in education, yet the experience for the child can be very different.

Children can benefit from high expectations, but they also need to know that their value is not determined by their grades.

What children learn from how we behave

Education shapes more than academic achievement.

It can affect how young people communicate, solve problems, respond to differences and make sense of the world.

This is another area where fathers can have an influence

A father who listens shows his child that other people's voices matter.

A father who admits that he does not know something, then looks for the answer, shows that not knowing is not a failure; it is part of learning.

Reading stories about people whose lives are different from our own can also give children opportunities to become curious about other people's experiences.

And when fathers encourage questions, rather than shutting them down, children can learn that disagreement does not have to mean disrespect.

These are educational lessons too, even if they never appear on a school report card.

From the family to society

This may be one of the most important reasons to talk about fathers' participation in children's learning.

Children become adults. A child who grows up knowing that questions are welcome may become an adult who is more willing to listen.

A child who discovers through books that other people can have very different lives may grow up more curious about experiences outside their own.

And a child who sees learning as a lifelong endeavour, rather than simply a competition for marks, may carry that attitude with them long after they leave school.

Of course, none of this means that one father, one book or one conversation determines the adult a child will become. Children's lives are shaped by their families, schools, communities, peers, socioeconomic circumstances, culture and many other influences.

But relationships matter. And so do the small things that happen again and again.

A father's interest in a child's learning can become one of those things.

Perhaps it starts with one more story

For those of us who care about children's books and literacy, there is something appealing about how simple this can be.

We do not always need another programme, another device or another complicated educational intervention.

Sometimes we just need a father to sit down, open a book and read the first page.

Then ask:

'What do you think happens next?'

It is a simple question, but it can do quite a lot.

It tells a child that their ideas are worth hearing. It gives them a chance to use their imagination. And it shows them that learning can be something shared between people.

Years later, the child may not remember the book.

They may not remember exactly what happened in the story, or even the name of the character they loved.

But they might remember sitting next to Dad.

They might remember that he listened.

They might remember that he was interested in what they thought.

And perhaps that is one of the most valuable things a father can give his child: the feeling that learning is something worth being curious about, talking about and enjoying.

References

Flouri, E. and Buchanan, A. (2004) ‘Early father's and mother's involvement and child's later educational outcomes’, British Journal of Educational Psychology, 74(2), pp. 141–153. doi: 10.1348/000709904773839806.

Jeynes, W.H. (2015) ‘A meta-analysis: The relationship between father involvement and student academic achievement’, Urban Education, 50(4), pp. 387–423. doi: 10.1177/0042085914525789.

Kim, S. (2022) ‘Fifty years of parental involvement and achievement research: A second-order meta-analysis’, Educational Research Review, 37, 100463. doi: 10.1016/j.edurev.2022.100463.

McBride, B.A., Schoppe-Sullivan, S.J. and Ho, M.H. (2005) ‘The mediating role of fathers' school involvement on student achievement’, Journal of Applied Developmental Psychology, 26(2), pp. 201–216.

Moisi, I., Jackson, T., Picton, I. and Clark, C. (2025) Fathers' Engagement in Young Children's Literacy in 2024. London: National Literacy Trust.

OECD (2021) OECD Skills Outlook 2021: Learning for Life. Paris: OECD.

Rogers, M.A., Theule, J., Ryan, B.A., Adams, G.R. and Keating, L. (2009) ‘Parental involvement and children's school achievement: Evidence for mediating processes’, Canadian Journal of School Psychology, 24(1), pp. 34–57. doi: 10.1177/0829573508328445.

Tadi, P. and Sadeghi, A. (2026) ‘Father–child shared reading behaviours and emergent literacy: Insights from the Daddy Book Club’, International Journal of Early Childhood, 58, pp. 769–784. doi: 10.1007/s13158-026-00518-9.

UNICEF (2023) Gender-Transformative Parenting Resource Modules. New York: UNICEF.