Children`s reading skills and healthy lifestyle could potentially determine the quality of their adult life. Developing reading and promoting a healthy lifestyle could have the best effects within the primary age children. Many adults are involved in that often challenging process. The government has an overall approach on children`s health and welfare, providing us with different researches aiming to tackle existing problems. The teachers working directly with children can often have lifelong influences on them, and the parents wishing to ensure the child has the best skills and habits for easier future life. They all play a key role in developing children`s reading and healthy lifestyle.
Reading is by far the most important skill needed, not only for school but also in an adult life. Colloby et al. (2012) states, that English children do not develop as good reading skills as their western countries peers. The government decided that teaching phonics should become a part of National Curriculum aiming to improve the literacy levels. This was based on recent research into literacy standards in 2006. Collloby et al. (2006) further states that teaching phonics can have two approaches, the analytic and most favoured by the government the synthetic, which according to some studies was considered “…the most effective in developing literacy skills” Colloby et al. (2012, p.111). The government policies can have a significant impact on children`s attainment, by funding different researches, studies and campaigns. Teachers also play a key role in developing children`s reading skills. Working directly with students they often overcome many challenges that come with each individual child. Colloby et al. (2012) writes about the “gender gap”, explaining the issue of how boys and girls achievements differ. Boys spend less time reading