Pima County literacy program seeks to promote meaningful connection between parents, children in foster care
TUCSON, Ariz. (KOLD News 13) - Several groups have launched Reading 2Gether, a baby and toddler literacy program in Pima County that seeks to promote meaningful connections between parents and their children in foster care.
The program, sponsored by Pima County Juvenile Court Center, Pima County Public Defense Services and the Arizona Department of Child Safety, aims to support childhood literacy, strengthen language development and enhance family bonding opportunities.
At least twice each week, the biological parent and child will be in contact online or by phone, with identical books in hand. The child will be helped by their caregiver in following along in the book while the parent reads aloud. It’s all toward providing reunification or a final placement situation for children.
Shared reading builds a sense of safety and trust. Quiet time spent reading together positively supports and nurtures the bonding and attachment process between parent and child, and acts as a foundation for literacy development. Children in the Reading 2Gether program will hear and learn new vocabulary, exercise active listening skills and enjoy calm, predictable connections that will help ease their loneliness and anxiety.
Funded by Pima County Public Defense Services, Reading 2Gether will provide participating families and caregivers with children’s books in the family’s language, a blanket and a carry bag.
For more information, or to enroll in the Reading 2Gether program in Pima County, contact Arizona Department of Child Safety Community Coordinator Tasha Gamez at 520-209-1031 or tasha.gamez@azdcs.gov.
Copyright 2022 KOLD News 13. All rights reserved.
