Reach Out and Read is a nonprofit organization that gives young children a foundation for success by incorporating books into pediatric care and encourage families to read aloud together.
The best opportunity to influence a child's future is in the first five years, a critical window of rapid brain development that does not occur at any other time. Children who hear fewer words during early childhood start school developmentally behind their peers and may never catch up.
When families read aloud to their young children, they can give them a better start to life. With unparalleled access to families with young children, Reach Out and Read medical providers give books to children at more than 10 well-child visits from infancy until they start school. More importantly, they encourage families to read aloud and engage with their infants, toddlers and preschoolers every day.
Today, Reach Out and Read partners with more than 5,800 program sites and distributes 6.9 million books per year, and continues to grow each year with the vision that one day the Reach Out and Read model will be a part of every young child's checkups.
Marshfield Area United Way has joined the Marshfield Clinic Health System to improve the accessibility of books for local families through the Reach Out and Read program.
Books distributed to children to date (partnership started October 2012) - over 32,000