Turn a Page. Touch a Mind. (TAP-TAM) physician trainers have had a busy summer training new reading sites across the state. Rhonda Green at Summit Clinic in Arkansas City, Partners in Family Care in Moundrige, and Comcare in Salina all participated in a one-hour training and learned how easy it is to incorporate books and early literacy advice at each well-check visit from 6 months to 5 years old. TAP-TAM participating physicians use books as a tool to assess developmental milestones, like fine motor skills (thumb-finger grasp to turn pages), communication (points to objects), and cognitive (conveys desires by pointing) and take the opportunity to express to parents the importance of sharing a book with their child daily.
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This fall the TAP-TAM trainers will visit Family Medicine of Tonganoxie, Pediatric and Adolescent Medicine in Lawrence and Vernon A. Mills, MD in Leavenworth. The popular literacy program has even more new sites currently in the application process as it continues to grow across the state.
Over 36,000 books were distributed in 2009 to kids throughout the state by Turn a Page. Touch a Mind. participating physicians. These physicians continue to give early literacy advice and books to grateful Kansas families every day.
“It makes us feel so good at each well check visit when Dr. Blum picks out a special book for each of the kid’s and watches them interact with it,” said Amy Kroeker, the mother of 2 year old triplets, Alex, Carson and Avery. “Books are expensive and I don’t think we would have been able to provide all of these books to the children without this program.” The Kroeker kids are patients at Pediatric Partners, PA in Overland Park and continue to enjoy and appreciate the fact that they receive books and information on how give their kids the best chance of reading success later in life at each well check visit.
The program has grown from just 7 sites distributing 659 books in 2003 to 33 active sites distributing 36,299 books in 2009 because the parents, kids and physicians that get to participate love it.
The Kansas Pediatric Foundation is actively looking for more Turn a Page. Touch a Mind. sites. It’s easy to get involved, just visit www.kansaspediatricfoundation.org or contact Melissa Hudelson at (913) 825-9013 or mel.hudelson@kansasaap.org for an application. Once the application process is complete, then the KPF provides funding so that you can distribute books and early literacy information at every well check visit from 6 months to 5 years. Don’t wait, contact us today!
Welcome to the new Kansas Pediatric Foundation website! We hope that you will take some time to explore all of the tools and early literacy information available for parents and providers. Check back often to stay up to date on all of the latest news on Turn a Page. Touch a Mind.
