Creating Moments that Matter

Reach Out and Read RI is building a world where every child is read to every day!

Our goal is to support all families with young children by offering free books and guidance from medical professionals on fostering nurturing relationships through shared reading.

We partner with medical professionals across RI to encourage families to read together every day as they build strong relationships and practice early literacy skills.

Reach Out and Read Rhode Island

Reach Out and Read Rhode Island is an evidence-based program that incorporates books into well-child visits and is the only literacy program endorsed by the American Academy of Pediatrics.

How does it work? During a child's wellness visit, reading together is encouraged for healthy growth and development. Medical providers also use books for developmental screening and model to caregivers how to engage with the book and their child.

Families take home a new book - at no cost to the family or providers - starting at the first well-care visit through age five, helping build a home library of books.

More than 80% of a child’s brain is formed during their first three years, and what they experience during this window can irreversibly affect how their brain develops. Attention and nurturing from a loving parent or caregiver supports healthy brain development—and one of the best ways to engage young children is to read books together.

Spending time together while reading aloud helps to create strong parent-child bonds and promotes healthy brain development. Children who are read to more often have improved language and listening skills, experience stronger emotional connections to their loved ones, and gain a lifelong love of reading.

About RORRI

We make reading aloud part of pediatric care so that families make reading a bedtime routine at home.

Learn About Us

Our Impact

109,712 well-child visits where a new book and literacy guidance materials were given
423 trained medical providers serving RI families
66 medical sites throughout our state

See Our Impact

Support Us

We serve 40,000 children and provide 80,000 books each year with support from the Rhode Island community.

Make A Difference

Event Spotlight

FLATBREAD COMMUNITY BAKE

Join us for a delicious fundraising event at Flatbread Co. Providence on Tuesday, May 6th, from 5-9 pm! Support Reach Out and Read Rhode Island by ordering any flatbreads during this time (5-9 pm), whether you dine in, take out, or have it delivered. A portion of all flatbread sales will go directly to our organization, helping us continue our mission to promote childhood literacy and strengthen family bonds across the state.

Your participation is key! Spread the word, bring your friends and family, and enjoy some tasty food while making a difference. The more people who partake, the greater the impact of our fundraising. We can’t wait to see you there!

DATE:

Tuesday, May 6th
Time: 5-9 pm

LOCATION:

Flatbread Co. Providence
161 Cushing St, Providence, RI 02906

Thank you for your support! Let's make this Community Bake a huge success together.

For Up to Date Information

Last year we provided over 100,000 books to over 50,000 children with support from the Rhode Island community.

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