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Reach Out and Read is a national program whose mission is to make literacy promotion a standard part of pediatric primary care, so that children grow up with books and a love of reading.
Reach Out and Read trains doctors and nurses to advise parents about the importance of reading aloud and to give books to children at checkups from 6 months to 5 years of age, with a special focus on children growing up in poverty. By building on the unique relationship between parents and medical providers, Reach Out and Read helps families and communities encourage early literacy skills so children enter school prepared for success in reading.
Reach Out and Read (ROR) is a research-based early literacy intervention. Twelve studies have been published in peer-reviewed medical journals showing ROR’s effectiveness in expanding the expressive and receptive language of young children and motivating parents to read aloud more often. Visit the national Reach Out and Read website at www.reachoutandread.org for more information about these studies.
The Minnesota Academy of Pediatrics Foundation is the fiscal sponsor of the Reach Out and Read Coalition in Minnesota (ROR-MN), which provides support and resources to sites that implement the ROR program model and answers queries from clinics interested in learning more.
The Reach Out and Read model:
- In the exam room, providers trained in the developmental strategies of early literacy encourage parents to read aloud to their young children and offer age-appropriate tips.
- The pediatric primary care provider gives every child between the ages of 6 months and 5 years a new, developmentally-appropriate children’s book to take home and keep.
- In the waiting room, displays, information, and gently-used books create a literacy-rich environment. Where possible, volunteer readers entertain children, modeling for the parents the pleasures – and techniques - of reading aloud.
More than 50,000 pre-kindergarten Minnesota children participate annually in Reach Out and Read at 70 clinics throughout the state.
For general info about bringing ROR to your clinic or to start an application, please visit www.reachoutandread.org
For more specific info about ROR-Minnesota (ROR-MN) or questions about clinic participation, please contact Lynne Burke, ROR-MN Coordinator, at lynne@rorminnesota.org or call 612-873-8954
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