Clifford the Big Red Dog and Dr. Seuss Author Coming to Manchester CT!

Who doesn’t love Clifford the Big Red Dog and Dr. Seuss? Come out and meet them both on Saturday, December 12, at the Barnes & Noble store at the Shoppes at Buckland Hills, 194 Buckland Hills Drive, Manchester CT, in support of Reach Out and Read Connecticut and early literacy!

11:00am – Story time with Clifford the Big Red Dog!

12:00pm – Presentation & Book Signing with Dr. Seuss author Tish Rabe

1:00pm - Book Signing with author T. Stephens

Saturday kicks off Reach Out and Read Connecticut’s five day in-store and on-line book fair with Barnes & Noble to help raise funds for the important work that the organization does. By using book fair code 11733607 at checkout, Barnes & Noble will make a donation to the organization, at no extra cost to the consumer. The code can be used in-store and on-line at http://www.barnesandnoble.com/h/bookfairs from December 12 through December 17. This is a great way for consumers to support the organization since they will be making holiday purchases anyway!

Focusing on low-income families, Reach Out and Read is a non-profit organization of pediatricians and medical providers who promote early literacy right in the pediatric exam room. During each well-child checkup from newborn through 5 years, doctors educate parents on the importance of daily shared reading with their baby. Starting at the 6-month visit, the child also receives a new book to take home to start building their home library. Many Reach Out and Read program sites create literacy-rich environments that include gently-used books for waiting room use and/or volunteer readers to model for parents the techniques of reading aloud to young children. As a result of this three-part interaction at the doctor’s office, parents become more engaged and read to their children more often at home, developing their early literacy skills so they are prepared to read and succeed when they enter kindergarten.

The Reach Out and Read model is endorsed by the American Academy of Pediatrics, and the program has one of the strongest records of research support of any primary care intervention. Families served by Reach Out and Read read together more often, and their children enter kindergarten with larger vocabularies and stronger language skills, better prepared to achieve their potential. For more information on Reach Out and Read in Connecticut, to get involved, or to make a tax deductible donation, visit their website at www.reachoutandread.org/connecticut/