Vermont Business Magazine Reach Out and Read, Northeast has been awarded $60,000 over three years by the Canaday Family Charitable Trust during the most recent grant-making cycle. The grant will support Reach Out and Read's programs across Vermont -- helping to foster early literacy and relational health statewide. The funds will be used to provide clinics with program support and families with new, culturally, and developmentally appropriate books at every well child visit so that they leave the pediatrician’s office with the tools needed to foster their child’s early development.
Starting at birth, reading with children puts them on a path to success. What happens during the first few years sets the stage for the rest of a child’s life. Spending time together while reading aloud helps to create strong parent-child bonds and promotes healthy brain development, including social-emotional development. Children who are read to at an early age have improved language and listening skills, experience stronger emotional connections to their loved ones, and gain a lifelong love of reading.
By working within the existing health care system and using pediatric providers to deliver the program, Reach Out and Read serves families of all backgrounds and economic means -- with an emphasis on meeting the needs of historically marginalized communities. In Vermont, the program reaches almost 8,600 children aged 0-5 annually, approximately 64% of whom are uninsured or rely on public insurance, indicating that these children are at greater risk for adverse outcomes.
The Reach Out and Read model is endorsed by the American Academy of Pediatrics, and the program has a three-decades long track record of success. Research shows that children who participate in Reach Out and Read are read to more often and enter kindergarten with larger vocabularies and stronger language skills, better prepared to achieve their full potential.
For more information about Reach Out and Read or to find out how you can support programs in Vermont visit their website at www.reachoutandread.org.
About Reach Out and Read: Reach Out and Read is a 501(c)3 nonprofit that gives young children a foundation for success by incorporating books into pediatric care and encouraging families to read aloud together.
About The Canaday Family Charitable Trust: The mission of the Canaday Family Charitable Trust is "to encourage and support not-for-profit organizations that work in Vermont to improve the lives of children and families, promote environmental conservation and education, and reduce economic and racial inequality.”
Northeast Region, Reach Out and Read