80%

More than 80% of a child’s brain is formed during their first three years. Children whose parents read to them during those years improve their language development by up to 6 months. 

Reach Out & Read promotes early literacy and school readiness by giving books to children at regular checkups starting at birth. Parents also receive advice from their Nurse Practitioner or Doctor about the importance of having daily, meaningful, language-rich interactions with their children. Children whose parents read to them every day help them build language skills, which makes it easier for them to learn once they get to school. Children of Bellevue’s Reach Out & Read was the first of its kind in New York and has distributed more than 300,000 books since its inception.