Reach Out and Read (ROAR) is a pre-literacy intervention for families living in disadvantaged communities with a child from infancy until age 5. ROAR is delivered by a GP, paediatrician, or other primary care practitioner through 10, 20-minute sessions which occur during routine health checks. During these sessions, the practitioner gives the child a developmentally appropriate book and provides the parent with tips and advice for reading interactively with the child.
The information above is as offered/supported by the intervention provider.
2 to 5 years old
Individual
Reach Out and Read (ROAR) is a pre-literacy intervention for families living in disadvantaged communities with a child from infancy until age five.
ROAR is delivered by a GP, paediatrician or other primary care practitioner through 10, 20-minute sessions occurring alongside routine health checks.
During these sessions, the practitioner talks with families about the importance of reading aloud and engaging with their young children as an integral part of the health check-up. Parents receive tips about how to look at books with their children, read together at home and build book reading into family routines. The child is given a new developmentally appropriate book to take home and keep.
0 to 5 years old
Focused but not restricted to families living in disadvantaged communities.
Disclaimer: The information in this section is as offered/supported by the intervention provider.
Science-based assumption
School readiness skills during the preschool years (including improved vocabulary and preliteracy skills) are strongly associated with children’s later success in primary and secondary school.
Science-based assumption
Parent–child reading is consistently linked to improved language development and school readiness during the early years
Children who are read to or engage with books from infancy develop language and communications skills and an interest in books and reading.
Science-based assumption
Parents living in disadvantaged communities may have less access to books and less knowledge of the benefits of early reading.
Intervention
The parent and child receives a book that is developmentally matched to the child’s age during routine health visits
Parents receive advice about the importance of book sharing during the early years
Parents are shown how picture books can support the development of their child’s vocabulary.
Short-term
Parents are aware of the benefits of reading during the early years
Parents read with their child more frequently
Parents actively scaffold their child’s language during shared reading sessions.
Medium-term
Children are more interested in books
Children’s vocabulary increases.
Long-term
Children have improved language skills at the time they enter school
Income-related language gaps are reduced by the time children enter school
Children have greater academic success during primary school and secondary school.
Focused but not restricted to families living in disadvantaged communities.
Reach Out and Read is delivered in 10 sessions of 20 minutes’ duration by a single practitioner to individual families.
Practitioners talk with families about the importance of reading aloud and engaging with their young children as an integral part of the check-up.
They show the parents how to look at books with their children and encourage them to read together at home and build routines around books.
The child is given a new developmentally appropriate book to take home and keep.
The practitioner who delivers this intervention is a health clinician, paediatrician, nurse practitioner, or physician’s assistant.
The practitioners have one hour of intervention training. Annual booster training of practitioners is recommended.
It is recommended that practitioners are supervised by a host-agency supervisor.
Information on intervention fidelity is not available.
Contact person: Barbara Ducharme
Organisation: Reach Out and Read
Email address: barbara.ducharme@reachoutandread.org
Website: https://reachoutandread.org/
*Please note that this information may not be up to date. In this case, please visit the listed intervention website for up to date contact details.
ROAR’s most rigorous evidence comes from a single comparison group study conducted in the United States consistent with Foundations’ Level 2+ evidence strength criteria.
This study observed statistically significant improvements in independent assessments of ROAR children’s expressive and receptive vocabulary compared to children not exposed to the intervention. ROAR parents also reported reading more frequently to their children in comparison to parents not receiving the intervention.
Reach Out and Read has preliminary evidence of improving a child outcome, but we cannot be confident that the intervention caused the improvement.
| Identified in search | 8 |
| Studies reviewed | 4 |
| Meeting the L2 threshold | 1 |
| Meeting the L3 threshold | 0 |
| Contributing to the L4 threshold | 0 |
| Ineligible | 7 |
| Study design | QED |
| Country | United States |
| Sample characteristics | 138 families with a child aged 2 to 5 years old, attending two inner-city general paediatric clinics for Well-child care. Families were Latino or Black ethnicity and either English or Spanish speaking. |
| Race, ethnicities, and nationalities |
|
| Population risk factors |
|
| Timing | Up to three years after intervention started. |
| Child outcomes |
|
| Other outcomes |
|
| Study rating | 2+ |
| Citations | Mendelsohn, A. L. et al. (2001) The impact of a clinic-based literacy intervention on language development in inner-city preschool children. Pediatrics. 107 (1), 130–134. |
The following studies were identified for this intervention but did not count towards the intervention’s overall evidence rating. An intervention receives the same rating as its most robust study or studies.
Golova, N. et al. (1999) Literacy promotion for Hispanic families in a primary care setting: A randomized, controlled trial. Pediatrics. 103 (5), 993–997.
Needlman, R. et al. (1991). Clinic-based intervention to promote literacy: A pilot study. American Journal of Diseases of Children. 145, 881–884.
High, P. et al. (1998) Evaluation of a clinic-based program to promote book sharing and bedtime routines among Low-Income urban families with young children. Archives of Pediatrics and Adolescent Medicine. 152 (5).
High, P.C. et al. (2000) Literacy promotion in primary care Pediatrics: Can we make a difference? Pediatrics. 105 (Supplement_3), 927–934.
Jones, V.F. et al. (2000) The value of book distribution in a clinic-based literacy intervention program. Clinical Pediatrics. 39 (9), 535–541.
Sanders, L.M. et al. (2000) Prescribing books for immigrant children. Archives of Pediatrics and Adolescent Medicine. 154 (8), 771.
Sharif, I. et al. (2002) ‘Exposure to Reach Out and Read and vocabulary outcomes in inner city preschoolers. PubMed. 94 (3), 171–7.
Note on provider involvement: This provider has agreed to Foundations’ terms of reference (or the Early Intervention Foundation's terms of reference), and the assessment has been conducted and published with the full cooperation of the intervention provider.
Rated 1: Set up and delivery is low cost, equivalent to an estimated unit cost of less than £100.
Rated 2: Set up and delivery is medium-low cost, equivalent to an estimated unit cost of £100–£499.
Rated 3: Set up and delivery is medium cost, equivalent to an estimated unit cost of £500–£999.
Rated 4: Set up and delivery is medium-high cost, equivalent to an estimated unit cost of £1,000–£2,000.
Rating 5: Set up and delivery is high cost. Equivalent to an estimated unit cost of more than £2,000.
Set up and delivery cost is not applicable, not available, or has not been calculated.
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Supporting children’s mental health and wellbeing: Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetuer adipiscing elit. Aenean commodo ligula eget dolor. Aenean massa. Cum sociis natoque penatibus et magnis dis parturient.
Preventing child maltreatment: Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetuer adipiscing elit. Aenean commodo ligula eget dolor. Aenean massa. Cum sociis natoque penatibus et magnis dis parturient.
Enhancing school achievement & employment: Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetuer adipiscing elit. Aenean commodo ligula eget dolor. Aenean massa. Cum sociis natoque penatibus et magnis dis parturient.
Preventing crime, violence and antisocial behaviour: Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetuer adipiscing elit. Aenean commodo ligula eget dolor. Aenean massa. Cum sociis natoque penatibus et magnis dis parturient.
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Rated 2: Has preliminary evidence of improving a child outcome from a quantitative impact study, but there is not yet evidence of causal impact.
Rated 2+: Meets the level 2 rating and the best available evidence is based on a study which is more rigorous than a level 2 standard but does not meet the level 3 standard.
Rated 3: Has evidence of a short-term positive impact from at least one rigorous study.
Rated 3+: Meets the level 3 rating and has evidence from other studies with a comparison group at level 2 or higher.
Rated 4: Has evidence of a long-term positive impact through at least two rigorous studies.
Rated 4+: Meets the level 4 rating and has at least a third study contributing to the Level 4 rating, with at least one of the studies conducted independently of the intervention provider.
Rating has a *: The evidence base includes mixed findings i.e., studies suggesting positive impact alongside studies, which on balance, indicate no effect or negative impact.
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