Reading to kids is great but:

1. Most people stop reading too soon. I kept reading, because kids can comprehend far above what they can read. I read the freaking LOTR aloud, for crying out loud. Yes, I want a medal for this.

2. They have to see you reading. I have seen so many parents dutifully read to their kids, the same way they dutifully bathe them and snap them into car seats -- because they know they are supposed to. But do the kids see the parents reading? My kids saw me reading all the time, especially when I really should have been cleaning. As a result, my kids (each 30-plus now) are avid readers but not so great at housekeeping. Oh well.