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Reach Out & Read
(ROR) | We're Special Too!
Reach
Out & Read (ROR) - A pediatric early literacy program
 What
is the Reach Out & Read Program?
The ROR, created in 1989 by pediatricians and educators in
Boston, aims to improve literacy in young people by reaching
them at an early age and by providing parents with the information,
support and materials they need to make books a part of their
children's lives. ROR uses the power of supportive relationships
between parents and health care providers to help families
appreciate the value of books and reading with their children.
The program integrates parent education about literacy development
with health care check-ups for children between the ages of
six months and five years. Volunteers read to children in
the waiting room and every child receives a new book at the
end of each visit.
Why
are Books and Reading Aloud So Important?
The 1985 National Commission on Reading reported that children's
experiences being read to were the single most important predictors
of later reading success. Reading supports language and cognitive
development. Favorite books may join teddy bears and blankets
as transitional objects, ease separations for children or
help to work through fears and problems. And perhaps, most
importantly, children begin to view reading as a pleasurable
experience. A positive relationship with books becomes critical
when children enter school. Books open up a world of information
and opportunity for children.
 The
Reach Out & Read Program seeks to enhance the culture
of pediatrics by making literacy development part of every
child's pediatric care. The program at Yale-New Haven Children's
Hospital is sponsored by the Friends of the Yale-New Haven
Children's Hospital and serves over 4,000 children annually.
Under the direction of Carol Weitzman, M.D. and John Leventhal,
M.D., a multidisciplinary team of health care providers, volunteers
and administrators works in collaboration with local community
agencies to increase children's exposure to books and to enhance
literacy potential.
Research
studies indicate that early positive exposure to children's
books, especially through reading aloud, helps children learn
to read. One parent eloquently stated, "I know that
by keeping her nose in books, she's going to be a reader.
If she's a reader, she could be a writer. She could be a doctor.
She could be anything!"
How
does Reach Out & Read Work?
- In
the clinic waiting room, community volunteers read stories
to children and model reading aloud techniques for parents.
- In
the examining room, the pediatrician or nurse practitioner
gives an age-appropriate book to the child, comments on
the child's abilities and counsels parents on how to use
books to support their child's healthy development.
- At
each visit, the child is invited to take home a new, developmentally
and culturally appropriate children's book. By age five,
the child acquires a home library of 10-12 books to share
with family and friends.
How
to Become Involved
For
more information about volunteering, donating new or used
books and/or sponsoring a child, please call us at 203-688-2336.
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