Comics or Stories? Differences in the Reading Attitudes and Habits of Girls and Boys in years 2, 4 and 6

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Abstract
A random sample of six schools within the primary schools of one local education authority (LEA) was chosen comprising 216 Year 2 children (109 boys, 107 girls), 189 Year 4 children (99 boys, 90 girls) and 206 Year 6 children (104 boys, 102 girls). A self‐report questionnaire was administered to explore each cohort's attitudes to reading, the source and type of their reading materials and the places at home where they read. Results indicated that while there were several significant differences between the boys and girls in the younger age range, these became progressively fewer as the age group increased. The only item which showed a significant sex difference across all three year groups was the content of favourite reading material. The implications of these findings for reading policy and practice in the primary school are discussed.