Recreation and the Use of Free Time - Reading And Writing

According to "Survey Finds Teens Enjoy Reading, Lack Time" (Teacher Librarian,, vol. 27, April 2000), teenagers enjoyed reading for pleasure and would read more if they had more time. Among teenagers' favorite books were those by horror writer Stephen King, the Harry Potter series, and some classics like To Kill a Mockingbird and The Catcher in the Rye. Many teens reported reading magazines (66%), newspapers (59%), and even the backs of cereal boxes (48%) for fun. More girls than boys showed enthusiasm for reading (50% and 31%, respectively).

In The Condition of Education, 1999, the U.S. Department of Education reported on the percentage of students who read at home in 1996 and what types of materials they read. Subsequent editions of this publication up to 2005 had not reported on reading. Reading stories and novels was popular with all age groups surveyed in 1996. About 42.6% of nine-year-olds, 38% of thirteen-year-olds, and 27.1% of seventeen-year-olds read stories and novels on their own time. Magazines were also popular reading, enjoyed by 17% of nine-year-olds, 39.5% of thirteen-year-olds, and 41% of seventeen-year-olds. (High school students read more magazines at home than stories and novels.) Newspapers ranked number three, with 5.2% of nine-year-olds reading them at home, 8.4% of thirteen-year olds, and 21.3% of seventeen-year-olds.