Reading is the key to unlocking untold worlds for your child, from scholastic and professional success to personal enrichment.

The challenge is figuring out ways to create a thirst for reading that will serve your children throughout their lives.

At a time when some 30 million U.S. adults function at the “below basic” level of literacy skill, according to ProLiteracy Worldwide, the importance of concentrating on reading at an early age cannot be over emphasized.

“It’s the foundation for everything we do in becoming lifelong learners, and I think it’s more important now than ever,” said Jan Pease, children’s librarian at Litchfield Public Library.

In November, the National Endowment for the Arts released a report, “To Read or Not to Read,” that examined literacy in America. The report found that while reading ability has improved at the elementary level, progress appears to halt in the teenage years and reading skills have declined or stagnated for adults of all education levels. The report stated that employers now rank reading and writing as top deficiencies in new hires.

The report also found that half of young adults read no books for pleasure and less than one-third of 13-year-olds are daily readers.

Check out 10 tips sure to inspire lifelong readers in the Jan. 10 Independent Review.