Congressman Charles Rangel Supports Parent-Child Bonding Through Reading Aloud at the Family Health Center at North General

As part of Early Literacy Awareness Week, August 6-13^th, Reach Out and Read of Greater New York invited legislators to visit families at hospitals and health centers across the region. Students from Pequenos Souls Day Care Center, located at 144 East 122^nd Street, visited the health center to listen to the Congressman.

The Institute for Family Health partners with Reach Out and Read at several of its sites, including Phillips Family Practice, Ellenville Family Health Center, Mt. Hope Family Practice, Parkchester Family Practice, Urban Horizons Family Health Center, Walton Family Health Center, and the Family Health Center at North General. Reach Out and Read encourages families to read together by providing books so doctors and nurse practitioners can model the importance of reading with children, and give each child a new, age-appropriate book at their well-child visits.  Research shows that children served by Reach Out and Read score higher on vocabulary tests and school readiness assessments.

“The Institute for Family Health is very pleased to join Reach Out and Read in marking Early Literacy Week,” said Dr. Neil Calman, President and CEO of the Institute for Family Health. “We know how important literacy is to health and are proud that so many Institute centers can participate in the Reach Out and Read Program.”