Fall 2021
Foreword
News for our donors who propel us forward.
“The pandemic has continued to challenge us all, but no group has been more challenged than our front line healthcare providers. This issue is dedicated to each and every provider and clinic staff member, who continue to care for the families they serve, going above and beyond every single day. We are grateful for their passion and dedication to Reach Out and Read Colorado’s mission. Please meet our Medical Director, Dr. Michelle Shiffman, a pediatrician at Denver Health’s Federico Peña Southwest Family Health Center. Dr. Shiffman joined us in this role in early 2021. She co-leads the statewide Reach Out and Read Colorado Provider Advisory Board, and is a member of the Department of Early Childhood’s Transition Advisory Group.”
Anne Tengler, Executive Director
Dear Reach Out and Read Colorado Community,
Although families are still finding a new normal, we are breathing a sigh of relief as kids went back to school in person this fall. Many are finally returning for annual visits with their physicians and are able to participate in Reach Out and Read again. Now, more than ever, I am so grateful to have been chosen as Reach Out and Read Colorado’s Medical Director. My predecessor and chapter founder, Dr. Steve Vogler, left big shoes to fill, and I am excited and up to the challenge.
We honored Dr. Vogler’s service to Reach Out and Read Colorado by launching the Back To Birth Movement at Denver Health clinics. This initiative added 3 new “doses” of literacy intervention in the first 5 months of a child’s life. I was thrilled to participate in this enhancement right from the start at my clinic and know firsthand that these earliest books have an impact on the families receiving them. Many fathers, in addition to other caregivers, attend these early visits, allowing us to discuss the importance of early relational health and early literacy to a larger audience from day one. Capitalizing on multiple caregivers in the room increases the quantity and quality of connection and reading that each child receives.
In order to strategically and equitably roll out Back To Birth for all clinics, we focused next on our rural Colorado communities. By the end of this year, more than 40% of our clinics will prescribe books starting at birth and welcome Back To Birth as a part of the core program going forward. To understand the significance of Back To Birth, continue reading the newsletter!
We recently launched a Provider Advisory Board, a diverse group of 12 providers from all over the state. We meet quarterly to strategize ways to strengthen Reach Out and Read Colorado’s impact. Already this year, the board tackled topics such as how to better measure and communicate our impact, and how to shift our focus to the interactions that a provider has with families about early literacy. We are also very excited about our next initiative, revamping the training for providers starting in Residency. Currently, three slots for rural providers remain open on the Provider
Advisory Board, if you are interested!
It’s been a year full of ups and downs and we are so grateful to share our impact with you in this newsletter. Thank you for your continued support and passion for the mission. We look forward to a bright end of the year.
Michelle Shiffman
MICHELLE SHIFFMAN, MD.
Medical Director | Reach Out and Read Colorado
Reach Out and Read’s Impact on a Child’s Overall Health
Developed as an early literacy intervention, Reach Out and Read has always measured and reported on its impressive impact as it relates to brain and language development, as well as kindergarten school readiness. But as issues of mental health, stable home environments, and toxic stress work their way into conversations about overall lifelong health, Reach Out and Read’s subtle yet profound effects begin to come to the forefront.
In an updated policy statement, the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) emphasizes the latest research showing the significance of safe, stable, and nurturing relationships as a protective buffer against the biological harms of toxic stress on children – as well as a key toward building resilience. When children feel connected and supported in the earliest years, they are more likely to become healthy, competent, and educated citizens later in life. The earlier these positive interactions can begin, the better.
This approach, rooted in positive childhood experiences, has been at the core of the Reach Out and Read model for decades. Reach Out and Read Colorado sits at the intersection of Early Literacy and Early Relational Health to give families the tools they need to create a strong and healthy bond with their kids and make sure they start school ready to learn. In short, the simple act of unplugging and reading a book together creates connections, and not just with neurons. We teach families how to support early language, literacy, and brain development with the simplest, yet most effective of resources- books, time and attention.
Our Impact Above the Water line
Early Literacy
Benefits
- 2.5X more likely to read together
- Accelerates language development by 3-6 months
- Increases language ability
- Kids start school ready to learn
Our Impact Below the Water line
Early Relational
Health Benefits
- Healthy relationships from birth
- Positive interaction and attention from caring adults
- Stimulation from people and environment
- Social and emotional development
- Mitigates toxic stress
“The critical period of language acquisition peaks during the first year of life, so the thought of starting the program earlier makes a lot of sense. But even beyond brain development and language acquisition, it’s really about relationships – and developing relationships with parents. Shared reading is a way for parents to interact in a positive way with their child, and those positive interactions with stable, nurturing caregivers can actually help buffer maladaptive events that happen in a child’s life and set the child up for success going forward. These early relationships are very important and start very early.”
Dr. Anna Miller-Fitzwater | Pediatrician
from the Reach Out and Read Podcast with Dr. Navsaria
“The critical period of language acquisition peaks during the first year of life, so the thought of starting the program earlier makes a lot of sense. But even beyond brain development and language acquisition, it’s really about relationships – and developing relationships with parents. Shared reading is a way for parents to interact in a positive way with their child, and those positive interactions with stable, nurturing caregivers can actually help buffer maladaptive events that happen in a child’s life and set the child up for success going forward. These early relationships are very important and start very early.”
Dr. Anna Miller-Fitzwater | Pediatrician
from the Reach Out and Read Podcast with Dr. Navsaria
Launching Reach Out and Read Colorado's Back To Birth Movement
Reach Out and Read Colorado couldn’t be more proud of our healthcare partners and the creative ways they have navigated the past year.
Since January, we launched several Back To Birth cohorts, now serving more than 16,000 newborns in our existing clinics. That’s half of the newborns served in our clinics throughout the state!
B2B
Launch
Timeline
Get involved
Volunteer
We are always looking for volunteers to help around the office, sort gently used books, help with event coordination, etc. If you are interested in volunteering with our team, connect with us here to learn more about current opportunities.
October Happy Hour
Reach Out and Read Colorado’s newly formed Associate Board hosted a happy hour on October 12th in downtown Denver! Are you interested in attending upcoming events with Reach Out and Read Colorado family and friends?
Email us to stay connected about upcoming events.
Led by Board Member Ryan Chase, golfers across the country pledged donations to Reach Out and Read Colorado for each birdie shot throughout the season. We’ll be celebrating their impact later this month! Are you a golfer and RORCO champion? Stay tuned to join the challenge next summer!
Save Paper! Only Email Me Future Newsletters, Please.
Thank you for celebrating with us at the Last Stop on York Street Gala in June!
Thanks to our generous sponsors, supporters, and partners, our annual gala on June 16th raised $170,000, enough to support more than 11,000 Reach Out and Read Colorado kids for an entire year. We’d like to give special thanks to Cimarex, Scholastic, and Denver7 for their lead sponsor support.
Thank you for your continued support during these unprecedented times!
Sign up for our email newsletter or connect with us on social media to stay up-to-date with everything Reach Out and Read Colorado.
“I want to thank you for all the wonderful books that our practice receives from Reach Out & Reach. Your program is a gift to our families and their children, and truly promotes literacy and the mission of our profession. I pray the program continues for many, many years to come. Our location in Green Valley Ranch is approximately 70% Medicaid, so Reach Out & Read is very much appreciated by our families, and may be the only books these kids own themselves. It has become an eagerly anticipated part of the well visit.” -Meggan Macias, PA-C
Child Health Associate/Physician Assistant, Horizon Pediatrics
My name is Sandra. I’m one of the home visiting nurses that works with Barb in the NFP program with Tri-County Health Department. I was the nurse who asked for the Farsi books. I have a client that speaks Farsi, so we work through a translator when I visit her in the home. I was really eager to give her the children’s book as she has a 6 mo boy. When I handed her the book, she was so thrilled! She immediately opened it and showed it to her son. She reached over and gave me a big hug and kiss. She was so very thankful to have this book. She is currently taking English classes and was excited that she could also work on her English, as the book is printed with the English words too. Thank you so much for providing these wonderful books in other languages. It really means a lot to this client!” – Sandra Gwinn, BSN, RN, CLC @ Tri-County Health Dept, Nurse Family Partnership
I wanted to reach out to you to let you know that we have started seeing clients again. Yeah!!! Last week was the first time we have seen clients since March 18th. Our building is still not completely open to the public and we are seeing clients by appointment only. We have asked that our clients and children (age appropriate) wear a face covering when they come to their appointment. We have made appointments far enough between that we only have one appointment in our office at a time. This gives us time in between to sanitize before the next appointment arrives. It went really well last week and I think our clients appreciate the length between each appointment. so we’ll do the same again this week and continue the same procedure until things change. Of course all of the kids were so excited to receive a book. That’s always the best part!”
-Jo Lynn Idler, Site Coordinator at Prowers County Public Health/Kiowa County Public Health (May 18, 2020)
