Reach Out and Read
Encyclopedia
Reach Out and Read, is an American
non-profit organization that advocates for childhood literacy
. ROR was founded in 1989 at Boston City Hospital
in Boston, Massachusetts
, and was based on the premise to "encourage parents to read regularly to their children and give them the tools (the books) to do so." The program was created as a solution to the growing literacy problem in the United States. ROR was founded by Pediatric physicians Barry Zuckerman
and Robert Needlman as well as early childhood educator Kathleen Fitzgerald-Rice.
check-ups, ROR provides parents with books appropriate for children from six months to five years old, placing a special emphasis on economically disenfranchised children.
ROR makes literacy promotion a standard part of pediatric primary care, building upon the relationship between parents and health care providers. This pairing between pediatricians and parents works to ensure that children are instilled with a love of reading as well as a home library of their own. Clinics that are involved in the program frequently have waiting rooms set up to encourage reading as well, employing volunteer readers to model reading aloud. The organization encourages families to read together to promote early literacy skills so children may enter school prepared to succeed.
Since its establishment, ROR has grown significantly. It began receiving funding from the United States Department of Education
in 2001 and the structure and mission have since evolved into a national model. Endorsed by the American Academy of Pediatrics
, ROR provides books for more than 3.8 million children and families in more than 4,500 clinics, health centers, and pediatric practices in the United States. The program distributes more than 6 million books annually. ROR has also spread its influence to include all fifty states of the United States, as well as the District of Columbia
, Puerto Rico
, Guam
, and the United States Virgin Islands
.
Since ROR links health and literacy, doctors and nurses receive training as follows:
In 2007, Reach Out and Read was awarded the UNESCO Confucius Prize for Literacy
.
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
non-profit organization that advocates for childhood literacy
Literacy
Literacy has traditionally been described as the ability to read for knowledge, write coherently and think critically about printed material.Literacy represents the lifelong, intellectual process of gaining meaning from print...
. ROR was founded in 1989 at Boston City Hospital
Boston Medical Center
Boston Medical Center is a non-profit 639 licensed-bed medical center in Boston, Massachusetts. It was created by the formal merger of Boston City Hospital which was the first municipal hospital in the United States and Boston University Medical Center Hospital in July 1996 which was sponsored...
in Boston, Massachusetts
Massachusetts
The Commonwealth of Massachusetts is a state in the New England region of the northeastern United States of America. It is bordered by Rhode Island and Connecticut to the south, New York to the west, and Vermont and New Hampshire to the north; at its east lies the Atlantic Ocean. As of the 2010...
, and was based on the premise to "encourage parents to read regularly to their children and give them the tools (the books) to do so." The program was created as a solution to the growing literacy problem in the United States. ROR was founded by Pediatric physicians Barry Zuckerman
Barry Zuckerman
Barry S. Zuckerman is the co-founder of Reach Out and Read, a national childhood literacy program in the United States, and the founder of the Medical-Legal Partnership model.-Background:...
and Robert Needlman as well as early childhood educator Kathleen Fitzgerald-Rice.
Background
ROR seeks to encourage and enable parents to read to their children by offering them the skills and the tools to do so. At regular pediatricPediatrics
Pediatrics or paediatrics is the branch of medicine that deals with the medical care of infants, children, and adolescents. A medical practitioner who specializes in this area is known as a pediatrician or paediatrician...
check-ups, ROR provides parents with books appropriate for children from six months to five years old, placing a special emphasis on economically disenfranchised children.
ROR makes literacy promotion a standard part of pediatric primary care, building upon the relationship between parents and health care providers. This pairing between pediatricians and parents works to ensure that children are instilled with a love of reading as well as a home library of their own. Clinics that are involved in the program frequently have waiting rooms set up to encourage reading as well, employing volunteer readers to model reading aloud. The organization encourages families to read together to promote early literacy skills so children may enter school prepared to succeed.
Since its establishment, ROR has grown significantly. It began receiving funding from the United States Department of Education
United States Department of Education
The United States Department of Education, also referred to as ED or the ED for Education Department, is a Cabinet-level department of the United States government...
in 2001 and the structure and mission have since evolved into a national model. Endorsed by the American Academy of Pediatrics
American Academy of Pediatrics
The American Academy of Pediatrics is the major professional association of pediatricians in the United States. The AAP was founded in 1930 by 35 pediatricians to address pediatric healthcare standards. It currently has 60,000 members in primary care and sub-specialist areas...
, ROR provides books for more than 3.8 million children and families in more than 4,500 clinics, health centers, and pediatric practices in the United States. The program distributes more than 6 million books annually. ROR has also spread its influence to include all fifty states of the United States, as well as the District of Columbia
Washington, D.C.
Washington, D.C., formally the District of Columbia and commonly referred to as Washington, "the District", or simply D.C., is the capital of the United States. On July 16, 1790, the United States Congress approved the creation of a permanent national capital as permitted by the U.S. Constitution....
, Puerto Rico
Puerto Rico
Puerto Rico , officially the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico , is an unincorporated territory of the United States, located in the northeastern Caribbean, east of the Dominican Republic and west of both the United States Virgin Islands and the British Virgin Islands.Puerto Rico comprises an...
, Guam
Guam
Guam is an organized, unincorporated territory of the United States located in the western Pacific Ocean. It is one of five U.S. territories with an established civilian government. Guam is listed as one of 16 Non-Self-Governing Territories by the Special Committee on Decolonization of the United...
, and the United States Virgin Islands
United States Virgin Islands
The Virgin Islands of the United States are a group of islands in the Caribbean that are an insular area of the United States. The islands are geographically part of the Virgin Islands archipelago and are located in the Leeward Islands of the Lesser Antilles.The U.S...
.
Since ROR links health and literacy, doctors and nurses receive training as follows:
- At every well-child check-up, doctors and nurses encourage parents to read aloud to their young children, and offer age-appropriate tips and encouragement. Parents who are discovered to have difficulty reading are encouraged to invent their own stories to go with picture books and spend time naming objects with their children.
- Pediatricians, family physicians and nurses give every child between the ages of six months and five years a new, developmentally-appropriate, children's book to keep.
- In literacy-rich waiting room environments, often with volunteer readers, parents and children learn about the pleasures and techniques of looking at books together.
In 2007, Reach Out and Read was awarded the UNESCO Confucius Prize for Literacy
UNESCO Confucius Prize for Literacy
The UNESCO Confucius Prize for Literacy recognizes the activities of outstanding individuals, governments or governmental agencies and non-governmental organizations working in literacy serving rural adults and out-of-school youth, particularly women and girls...
.