News from Reach Out and Read Massachusetts Spring 2015

REACH OUT AND READ MASSACHUSETTS NEWSLETTER

In This Issue

Welcome to Our Newest Reader

Libraries in Every Neighborhood

The Power of Play

Legislators Meet Clifford!

Read Across America!

A Teachable Trip

Libraries and Schools: A Perfect Combination

Thank You!

Kids Helping Kids

Contact Information for Reach Out and Read Massachusetts

Journey to Literacy Conference Scheduled for May 15th in Somerville

The Spring 2015 Journey to Literacy Conference,

presented in conjunction with the Massachusetts Department of Early Education and Care, will be held May 15th at the Holiday Inn in Somerville. The conference will highlight literacy development starting at birth. Speakers will include

Massachusetts Medical Director Marilyn Augustyn MD;

Early Literacy Researcher Meredith Rowe, PhD, Harvard Graduate School of Education;

and Liz Buchanan, music educator for Boston Public Schools.

More information and early registration discount available here

Welcome to our Newest Reader....

Congratulations to Western Massachusetts Regional Coordinator Sara Stewart and her family on the birth of their daughter, Valentina!

Reach Out and Read wants to hear from you about myror!

Reach Out and Read's National Office recently sent out a brief survey about two very important, if seemingly unrelated, questions:

How we can redesign and streamline the myROR system to better serve you?

and

How you currently - or would like to - collaborate with local libraries and museums to benefit the children and families you serve?

If you've already completed the survey, thank you! If not, please take it now - it only takes 5 minutes, and it's important for us to have your feedback!

Train the Trainer Webinars

with

Marilyn Augustyn MD

Wednesday May 20th

11 am or

3 pm Eastern

Serving 193,568 Massachusetts children

at 299 clinical locations

Dear Reach Out and Read Colleagues,

And a Snowy Day it was! (Thank you Ezra Jack Keats). As the snow recedes, we look forward to moving outside, and we contemplate nearby adventures. All of us and all our patients and families have access to an amazing lineup of libraries and museums. Let's use them!

Reach Out and Read National is partnering with the Institute of Museum and Library Services to

increase families' awareness of local libraries and museums. Visits to these low- or no-cost resources encourage our children, and ourselves, to be curious, to talk about new things, to ask questions, to listen to stories, to expand our worlds.

Libraries are sources of information that anyone can use. All neighborhoods have libraries that are part of regionally named systems like Clams, Sails, and Minuteman, giving access to library books, videos, DVDs, and other resources across the state. They may have story hours for young children, homework helpers for school-age children, ESL classes for adults, computer access, and community and ethnic events held for entire families. Let's encourage our patients to enter those doors and remind them that the only documentation required is proof of local residence, such as a utility bill;

proof of citizenship status is not required.

Museums of all sorts and sizes are also everywhere throughout the Commonwealth. Many have free passes on certain days, or are available at reduced cost with passes from the library. Boston Children's Museum is clearly a star [see article below]. But how about the Museum of African American History/Black History Trail on Beacon Hill, or the amazing story of the West End of Boston?

And don't forget other stars in this galaxy, such as The Eric Carle Museum of Picturebook Art; the American Textile History Museum in Lowell; the Norman Rockwell Museum in Stockbridge; the new Dr. Seuss Museum coming to Springfield...and so many more, large and small.

Literacy has many mothers and fathers....so let's build better brains with stories from local resources open to all.

Thrive,

Carole Ferguson, PNP

Boston Area Coordinator

Residency Training Panel Discussion

Monday May 11th

Residency training is essential to the future of Reach Out and Read. We count on family medicine and pediatric residents to become ambassadors for Reach Out and Read as they move into practice, and we count on their training to make Reach Out and Read second nature as they develop their pediatric primary care routine.

Join us for a discussion with Panelists Ellen Stevenson, MD, Department of Pediatrics, Oregon Health and Science University, and Susanne Krasovich, MD, Waukesha Family Practice Center, Medical College of Wisconsin, about effective ways to present the art and science of Reach Out and Read to residents. Please call in and share what works at your program as well as obstacles you may encounter. We look forward to your questions, insights, and opinions. Or perhaps just sit back, listen, and gather new ideas! (60 min.)

12 pm Eastern or

3 pm Eastern.

Libraries Are a Family Resource In Every Neighborhood

Our own pediatrician and strong Reach Out and Read supporter, Dr. Ed Levy from the Uphams Corner Health Center, made a trip to the local library near his clinic to meet with the librarian and to see what is offered there that he might recommend for his families.

While the library is not easily visible from the curb, he now knows what to tell his families that will encourage them to
seek it out. The Uphams area library has a story hour and many other ways families can get books, movies or join in community-based events. As Dr. Levy explained, "Making library programs such as storytimes known through the health center helps patients build access to literacy" and gives the Reach Out and Read program a longer arm to help. Community outreach from Dr. Levy shows some real passion for his patients and for literacy resources. Applause!

Libraries have calendars of events like this one

that can be printed out and posted.

Boston Children's Museum, Harcourt Houghton Mifflin and

Massachusetts Reach Out and Read Collaborate on a Playful Project

Play is what children do best. It forms the foundation for all their learning and, thanks to a generous book donation from Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, Reach Out and Read Massachusetts and Boston Children's Museum will be working with providers throughout Dorchester, Roxbury, and Mattapan to support playful learning for children and families. Posters designed to support playful child-adult interactions will be displayed in waiting rooms and exam rooms, also promoting Boston Children's Museum's many ways to save on the cost of admission, such as $1 Target Friday nights and a $2 admission fee for EBT recipients. In addition, Reach Out and Read, BCM and HMH are working together to provide additional books and resources to help families understand the importance of play and how to support play in everyday life. If your practice would like to know more about participating, please email Massachusetts Programs Director Alison Corning Clarke.

Representative Alice Peisch Hosts Legislative Briefing about

Reach Out and Read

Dr. Sean Palfrey of Boston Medical Center and Reach Out and Read National Medical Director Dr. Perri Klass spoke on Thursday, March 12, at a State House policy briefing on critical literacy interventions for children starting at birth. The briefing was hosted by Representative Alice Peisch, Chair of the Joint Committee on Education, a champion of early literacy interventions, parental engagement efforts, and Reach Out and Read.

Legislators and early education officials responded enthusiastically to invitations hand-delivered by Clifford the Big Red Dog, and listened with interest as panelists discussed brain development, literacy and language acquisition, parental engagement, children in poverty, and the importance of a child's first 2,000 days.

"In my experience, Reach Out and Read levels the playing fields of life," said Dr. Palfrey. "The key to the success of a child is whether they do well in school, and early literacy is the cornerstone of everything that I do as a pediatrician. Investing in early education has better outcomes and lower costs than remedial programs in later grades for children who have fallen behind their peers."

Since 2000, the legislature has been a critical partner with Reach Out and Read Massachusetts, providing funding that Reach Out and Read matches with contributions from individuals, foundations and corporations. Last year, this public-private partnership allowed Reach Out and Read to serve 188,829 at-risk children across the Commonwealth, through 1,518 medical providers at 301 clinical locations.

"I would like to thank Representative Alice Peisch for giving us this opportunity to present our program to state legislators," said Brian Gallagher, Executive Director of Reach Out and Read. "We know that every dollar invested in quality early childhood education produces a 7-10 percent annual return on investment. In light of this, we hope to secure a renewed commitment from the state to support smart investments in early education, so that every child in the Commonwealth has the opportunity to succeed.

Dr. Seuss Across America (and Massachusetts)!

Read Across America Day celebrated by Reach Out and Read Partners Raising a Reader, Reading Success by Fourth Grade, and Mom Blogger and Reach Out and Read Coordinator Susan Curley

March 2nd, Read Across America Day, is the celebration of Springfield native Dr. Seuss' Birthday! Birthday events were held all over the state, and we were excited to get a mention by our own Susan Curley--child development specialist, blogger, and Reach Out and Read Coordinator, who covered the day in a post on citymomsblog:

Read Across America Day is the celebration of Dr. Seuss' birthday. What a wonderful event! The celebration of a man who wrote the classics - Cat in the Hat, The Lorax, Hop On Pop, Green Eggs and Ham - shall I go on? Can you tell I am a Dr. Seuss fan? He has inspired many generations of readers to dive into books. Theodor Seuss Geisel taught countless children to love the rhyming, the silliness, the bright colored illustrations that are his books. Dr. Seuss was an artist of epic proportions! But the real reason Read Across America Day is important is because it unifies people across the country. We all take an extra moment to read to children. It might be an old favorite or a new piece of literature, but we read together. Reading to a child is magical.

Early literacy is so important. It is crucial for language development, school readiness, and bringing families together at bedtime. Reach Out and Read is one of the many programs that promote early literacy.... I am biased, I have been a program director for Reach Out and Read for 18 years. I love, love, love giving books to young readers! Showing parents the power of books is a pleasure. Sharing books with children who point to the pictures and tell me a story is unparalleled. I love looking at the faces of pediatricians who talk about the importance of reading with their patients.

Read the rest of Susan's blog or follow her here.

Raising a Reader celebrated with these imaginative door covers.

Boston Area Reach Out and Read Coordinator Carole Ferguson held two storytimes at the Prudential Barnes and Noble!

And Springfield Reading Success by 4th Grade celebrated all week long with the Cat in the Hat!

Energetic Haverhill Teacher Preparing for Library Trip

Inspired by Reach Out and Read

Chantal Alder is a new teacher in the Haverhill Public Schools. Seeing firsthand her fourth graders' lack of exposure to or experience with books, she reached out to Carole Ferguson, Boston Area Coordinator, to help find resources to change that. Since many of her students attend clinics that practice Reach Out and Read, but are too old for the program, Chantal asked her school to join Scholastic Literacy Partners, so that her children could have age-appropriate books to take home. And she decided to plan a community library field trip to help her students understand what is available to them.

Chantal is an inspiring new teacher who has made teaching a second career. As an English major undergrad, she thought she wanted to be a high school English teacher, but after a brief stint as a substitute she realized that was the wrong age group for her. Ten years later, after raising a daughter and working in the office of the District Attorney, she went back for her Master's degree in Elementary Education. Her first job is in a school taking on the challenging job of working with children whose lives are often difficult. Chantal and her colleagues see the power of reading at home and are looking for ways to make this a real possibility. We applaud her efforts and will redouble ours in working with the clinics that serve these children before they get to school.

Worcester Libraries Move Into Public Schools

The Ash Center for Democratic Governance and Innovation at the John F. Kennedy School of Government, Harvard University, recently recognized the Worcester Public Library's One City, One Library Initiative as part of its 2015 Bright Ideas program.

One City, One Library is a dynamic public-private partnership focused on improving literacy skills citywide. This collaboration between the City of Worcester, the Worcester Public Library, the Worcester Public Schools and organizations dedicated to education is focused on opening neighborhood public library branches in the City's elementary schools.

One City, One Library has opened public branch libraries at Roosevelt Elementary, Tatnuck Magnet School, and the Goddard School of Science and Technology. These branches offer the wealth of resources found at the public library, including technology, new materials and professional librarians, and bring them into our schools. They are accessible to students and teachers during the school day, and open to the public when school is not in session.

Thank You To Our Supporters!

Thank you to everyone at Wellesley Booksmith for their ongoing support! This month, donated books were delivered to Hyde Park Pediatrics, Boston Medical Center Family Practice, and Healthcare for the Homeless!

Joshua Chisholm, Property Manager, and the residents at Ridgecrest Village in West Roxbury held a book drive to benefit Reach Out and Read. Josh delivered close to 200 books to Brookside Community Health Center for their waiting room. Thank you to everyone involved!

Thanks to WAMC and Charlesbridge Publishers for their support of Reach Out and Read Massachusetts during their February on-air pledge drive. Nearly seven hundred listeners pledged to support Reach Out and Read and WAMC, raising over 2500 books for Reach Out and Read!

Sandy Scola, Early Childhood Director at the Worcester Jewish Community Center, spearheaded a drive at the preschool and collected books for Worcester area waiting rooms. Thank you Sandy!

Kids Helping Kids

6489 thank-you's to the students at Noble and Greenough School who helped prep that many books for delivery to our Reach Out and Read program sites! All hands on deck made quick work of "unsticking" books, and what would have been a tedious and lengthy process for our staff became a cheerful and collaborative event with the help of students and faculty participating in weekly community service. A team from the school will be giving the Harvard Street Community Health Center a makeover on April 14th, Noble's "Common Fire" day of service.

Thank you to Sabrina Glaser, who collected books in lieu of birthday gifts and donated them to the Dimock Community Health Center. The Glaser family are long-time Reach Out and Read supporters...many thanks to all of you!

Casey Holmes, Nancy Holmes, and Olivia Saccocia, high school students in Norton, are collecting books to deliver to a Reach Out and Read program site in Attleboro!

REACH OUT AND READ MASSACHUSETTS CONTACT INFORMATION

56 Roland Street, Suite 100D,

Boston, MA 02129-1243

Phone: 617.455.0636 Fax: 617.455.0601

Alison Corning Clarke, MA, MSW - Massachusetts Programs Director alison.clarke@reachoutandread.org

Carole Ferguson, PNP - Boston Area Regional Coordinator carole.ferguson@reachoutandread.org

Sara Stewart, MA - Western MA Regional Coordinator sara.stewart@reachoutandread.org

Heather Robinson, MPH - Central MA Regional Coordinator heather.robinson@reachoutandread.org

Marilyn Augustyn MD - Massachusetts Medical Director marilyn.augustyn@reachoutandread.org