Teachers believe that the weekly newspaper First News is improving children's literacy. A survey of 735 schoolteachers found that 87% of their pupils are more likely to read if they have access to the paper.
By coincidence, it also discovered that 87% of boys who read the paper are more likely to read too.
The survey, conducted by Opinion Matters, asked 735 teachers about the influence of having First News in their classrooms. A remarkable 97% reported that the paper stimulated interest in current affairs.
And there was good news for newspaper publishers and editors as well because 90% of the primary and secondary teachers who took part in the survey believed that First News gets children into the habit of reading printed papers.
The researchers also asked 1,468 children for their thoughts about the paper, with 69% saying that it helped them to understand more about important issues.
First News has been edited since its launch in May 2006 by Nicky Cox. It sold an average of 45,281 copies a week during the final six months of 2010, a 14.8% increase on the same period the year before.
It is said to be read in one in four schools in Britain.
Source: Hills Balfour PR