Serving children in 50 States
and early learning programs are much lower. By
collaborating with clinicians, Reach Out and Read
is able to impact children who might not otherwise
benefit from any literacy support. Physicians lend
a sense of urgency and importance to Reach Out
and Read’s message, too. Parents are generally
eager to read with their children daily when it’s
“doctor’s orders.”
Of course, plenty of parents read aloud to their
children without a prescription. My own mom did,
and many of my most-loved books from childhood
now sit on Hank’s shelf. Reading and interacting
with children requires time and energy, though—
two things that are in short supply for most
parents. The Annie E. Casey Foundation (AECF)
reports that, nationally, more than 4.3 million
children under age 6 are read to by family
members less than three days per week. This data
represents millions of missed opportunities,
considering the rapid brain development that
occurs before kindergarten.
AECF also notes that nearly a quarter of
American children under age 6 live at or below
100% of the Federal Poverty Level, which is
currently defined as annual household earnings of
$24,250 for a family of four. Research puts these
children at significantly increased risk for reading
failure, due to factors such as parents’ lack of
disposable income for purchasing books, low
parental education levels, and limited access to
libraries and bookstores.
Reach Out and Read serves about one in every
seven children growing up in poverty. For parents
who do not feel comfortable with their reading
skills, doctors demonstrate how to use a book’s
illustrations to tell a story.
Science is starting to show how reading aloud
is more than just a feel-good activity. In August,
the medical journal Pediatrics published a study
that used functional magnetic resonance imaging
(fMRI) to reveal how books shape children’s
brains. The research, conducted by John Hutton,
MD, of Cincinnati Children’s Hospital Medical
Center, examined fMRIs of children ages 3 to 5
years while they listened to age-approp