A new campaign encouraging parents to include reading, writing and playing in their child's everyday life has been launched by the Scottish Government.

Read, Write, Count will provide children in primaries 1 to 3 with a gift of books and literacy and numeracy learning materials through their school.

It is part of efforts to tackle educational inequalities and raise attainment in the early years, and will be delivered with Education Scotland and the Scottish Book Trust.

It comes after the Scottish Survey of Literacy 2014 published earlier this year showed a drop in standards of reading and writing in some age groups.

Education Secretary Angela Constance said: "Ensuring children read, write and count well early is key to their success at school and in life.

"There's lots of really good work already under way across Scotland and Read, Write, Count will bring some exciting new and fun ideas into the mix.

"Crucially, it will encourage parents and families to play a key role in helping their children - something all the evidence suggests can have a big impact on how well children do at school.

"I was proud to launch PlayTalkRead nationally in 2011, which encouraged parents to play, talk and read more often with their children. Read, Write, Count takes the idea of learning further."

She added: "It's understandable that any parent or carer could feel daunted about playing a part in their child's education.

"That's why our campaign offers support on bringing fun and learning in to everyday activities with their child to make life happier and easier."