News Releases
TORONTO, June 28, 2010 – Despite the busy lifestyles faced by the majority of Canadian families, 88 per cent of parents with children under the age of 12 read a bedtime story to their children, according to a recent survey commissioned by Kellogg’s Rice Krispies cereal. Interestingly, why parents read to their children and how often, varies considerably from coast-to-coast*.
“Reading to young children helps spark their emotions and imagination, and stimulates learning before they even enter school,” says Lisa Lyons, President, Kids Can Press. “But storytime is also an excellent way for parents and children to share in something together while creating memories for a lifetime.”
Most parents would agree that bedtime can be a challenging task, especially when trying to encourage a regular routine that signals it’s time to tuck in for the night. A bedtime routine not only provides structure to a child’s day and smoothes the transition from play to sleep, but it serves as an important bonding period for parent and child. Incorporating storytime into the evening routine is a helpful way for parents to engage children and spend quiet, nurturing moments together with their children after a long day.
In an effort to make bedtime easier, more special and encourage storytime among parents and their children, Kellogg, in partnership with Kids Can Press, is offering a free copy of Per-Henrik Gürth’s “Oh, Canada!” book with the purchase of specially-marked boxes of Kellogg’s Rice Krispies cereal while supplies last. Just in time for Canada Day, the story will take families on a whirlwind tour of Canada to discover all there is to see and do. Families will learn the provinces’ and territories’ flags as well as official trees, flowers and birds, too.
“Rice Krispies has a long-standing commitment to helping parents create nurturing moments with their children,” says Andrew Loucks, Vice President, Marketing, Kellogg Canada Inc. “What better way to demonstrate this commitment to Canadian families than to provide a resource they can use to help establish their own meaningful and memorable bedtime routines with their children.”
Help Create the Great Canadian Bedtime Story
In an effort to help continue the nightly storytime tradition, beginning June 29, 2010 Canadian parents are also invited to visit www.ricekrispies.ca where they can contribute to the Great Canadian Bedtime Story, or create their own story to share with their children. There are even free, pre-populated stories available to download and great prizes to be won. It’s never been easier or more fun for families to make magical memories together before drifting off into dreamland.
*Other Interesting Regional Survey Findings
West coast parents are real page-turners compared to Quebeckers
- Parents in British Columbia are most likely to read to their children every night (36 per cent), while residents of Quebec are the least likely (10 per cent). The frequency of nightly bedtime reading in other regions of Canada is as follows:
- Atlantic Canada: 15 per cent
- Ontario: 22 per cent
- Manitoba/Saskatchewan: 29 per cent
- Alberta: 32 per cent
Reading bedtime stories stems from age-old family traditions
- 67 per cent of Canadian parents claim to have enjoyed bedtime stories with their parents when they were children
- This statistic is highest in Alberta with 73 per cent of respondents saying their parents read to them as children
- Residents of Quebec are the least likely to have been read to as a child, with only
57 per cent responding yes
Storytime proves to be a popular way to bond with your children
- While most parents agree that bedtime reading with their children is a good way to spend quality time together (43 per cent), some use the time to relax, educate and/or stimulate their children’s imagination
- 33 per cent of parents in Atlantic Canada read to their children to relax them
before sleep - 27 per cent of parents in Manitoba/Saskatchewan read to their children to improve their language skills
- 20 per cent of parents in British Columbia read to their children to help stimulate
their imagination - 42 per cent and 45 per cent of parents in Quebec and Ontario respectively, read to their children to spend quality time together
- 33 per cent of parents in Atlantic Canada read to their children to relax them
About the Survey
The Kellogg’s Rice Krispies Storytime survey was conducted between March 26 and March 31, 2010 using Leger Marketing’s web panel. It was completed with 1,520 Canadian adults ages 18 and over.
About Kellogg Canada
Founded in 1914, Kellogg Canada is the leading manufacturer of ready-to-eat cereal in Canada. The company's brands include Special K*, Vector*, All-Bran*, Kellogg's Corn Flakes*, Kellogg's* Two Scoops* Raisin Bran, Eggo*, Nutri-Grain*, Rice Krispies*, Pop- Tarts*, Kellogg's Frosted Flakes*, and Froot Loops*. In addition to providing nutritious, high-quality foods, Kellogg Canada is committed to educating consumers and health professionals about nutrition and healthy, active living through responsible packaging, brochures, advertising and scientific symposia. For more information, visit the Kellogg Canada website at www.kelloggs.ca.
* © 2010, Trademark of Kellogg Company used under licence by Kellogg Canada Inc.
About Kids Can Press
Kids Can Press is the largest Canadian-owned children’s publisher, with an award-winning list of over 500 picture books, non-fiction and fiction titles for toddlers to young adults, including Franklin the Turtle, the most successful publishing franchise in the history of Canadian publishing, which has sold over 60 million books in over 30 languages around the world. Kids Can Press is owned by Corus Entertainment Inc., a Canadian-based media and entertainment company.
