(Alabama Public Radio)
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Reach Out and Read Alabama is a nonprofit aiming to integrate shared reading into pediatric care by providing books and coaching that help families with young children make reading together a part of their daily lives. The organization’s program, Rx for Summer Reading, is celebrating its 15th anniversary with birthday parties across the state.
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Amy Crosby is the statewide coordinator for Reach Out and Read Alabama. She said program is important for families that may not have access to books through the traditional means.
“There’s a lot of families in Alabama that don’t have access to libraries because of transportation and other barriers and may not have books in the home,” Crosby said. “The pediatrician comes from a place of authority, so we like when they impress upon the family of how important [reading together] is.”
More than just giving away books to families, Crosby said the program is beneficial for creating positive relationships between healthcare professionals and their young patients.
“Our pediatricians are trained to be able to talk to families about how important [reading] is,” Crosby said. “These are only well child visits. So. those are often the visits where the child is getting immunizations and things like that. They’re not the most fun. This is another way of like encouraging the family to have a positive feeling about going to their doctor and maintaining those well child visits.”
Read the full article at Alabama Public Radio here.
(Image credit: Alabama Public Radio)