Prime Time Distraction

The American Academy of Pediatrics has discouraged TV watching before the age of 2 for some time, but a new study really drives home the WHY.

We know that brain development from Birth-Age 5 is HEAVILY dependent on adult to infant/child communication.

Apparently when the TV is on either for the child or the adult, those vital communications are not happening.

Ina study led by Dimitri Christakis, director of the Center for Child Health, Behavior and Development at Seattle Children's Research Institute and professor of pediatrics at the University of Washington School of Medicine...

Over 300 2-month-olds to 4-year-olds wore recording devices on random days recording everything they heard or said for 12-16 hours. The results were startling...

For every hour of TV being watched or playing in the same room, there was a decrease of 770 words spoken by the child's caregiver and a decrease in the child's vocalizations.

"Some of these reductions are likely due to children being left alone in front of the television screen," the researchers write in the June issue of the journal Archives of Pediatrics & Adolescent Medicine, "but others likely reflect situations in which adults, though present, are distracted by the screen and not interacting with their infant in a discernible manner."

Lesson here? Even playing in the background, TV can distract us from crucial communication with our children.

Reading aloud to your children allows you to naturally increase bonding and communication and to use a whole new set of words. Those words are essential to those wee brains growing strong and healthy.

READ MORE in LiveScience.com Article.

The More, The Merrier

Yes, but why is reading aloud to your children good for them?
Words, words, words!

Many studies have shown that there is a direct relationship between how many words a child is exposed to birth to age five and how well they will do later in school.

Does this mean you should read aloud from the dictionary before bedtime each night in hopes of turning your children into geniuses? Nope. Picture books will do just fine. Not only are there lots of words in your average picture book that you would not use in every day speech, but picture books have fun words and sounds.

For example, when you open the picture book, Down by the Station by Will Hillenbrand (Soon to be distributed to Raising Reader 3-year-olds) and read the silly words, "Puff, puff, Toot toot, Thrump, thrump, Peep, peep," you are showing your child that words and books are enjoyable. When something is enjoyable, your child will want it again and again.

More books, more words = more brain development.



To show how much people are thinking about how words and communication help in a baby's development, a group in Britain studied how caregivers talked to their children while out for a stroll.

It turns out that caregivers who used toward-facing strollers (otherwise known as baby buggies, prams, baby carriages--see photo) communicated with their babies twice as much as caregivers that used the more common strollers that faced their baby out to the world. (Read more in the New York Times article.)

Do you need to rummage through the attic for your grandmother's baby carriage? Perhaps, perhaps not. Just remember--the more words, the merrier!

Dr. Lisa Belisle Prescribes Books for Nutrition

A Post from Dr. Lisa Belisle:

March is National Nutrition month. Raising Readers has many books related to nutrition in it’s library and has recommended them in their new brochure, "Raising Readers Recommends: Great Books, Great Topics".

One such read is Cows in the Kitchen by June Crebbin. This barnyard picture book set to the rhythm of the song, "Skip to My Lou" is our current Raising Readers selection for 24-month well child visits. Many of the books distributed in Maine medical offices come complete with family friendly activities listed in the back. This book will be especially popular with those who like to sing and read--at the same time!

Dr. Lisa Belisle Prescribes Books for Sleeping Issues

A Post from Dr. Lisa Belisle:

This week is National Sleep Awareness Week , which has much relevance to our Raising Readers audience. Bedtime can be a stressful time for families. Some kids sleep well from the beginning of their lives. Others...well, they simply don’t.

Keeping a routine is one very important way of helping kids get ready for sleep. For more tips go to my website. Reading can--and should--be a part of this routine.

Reading has been an enjoyable part of our family’s evening routine for many years. We began with basic picture books when our (now fifteen-year-old) son and (now thirteen-year-old) daughter were very small. Our youngest child is now eight, and spends time reading to us. Don’t get me wrong: she still listens to us read. In fact our books have increased in length. Just last month Sophie and I finished the My Side of the Mountain Trilogy by Jean Craighead George.


Sophie and I still inject a regular dose of picture books into our bedtime routine. One of our favorites is this month’s “Raising Readers Recommends” book: Llama Llama Red Pajama by Anne Dewdney. In this wonderfully illustrated book, a young llama attempts to go to sleep without his mother’s help. Upstairs, alone, he calls for her repeatedly while she tries to get the chores done downstairs. Making sure he is in no danger, she responds:

Baby Llama,
what a tizzy!
Sometime’s Mama’s
very busy.

Please stop all this
llama drama
and be patient
for your mama.

Not only do I love the bold colors and rhymes of the book, I am also intrigued by the subject matter. You see, I have my own “red-pajamed llama.” My eight-year-old has a very specific bedtime routine, and gets annoyed when this is interrupted. (If this sounds familiar, you might want to check out some of the bedtime resources at www.kidshealth.org).


Another great bedtime read is Sleepy Places by Judy Hindley. This interactive book will be distributed to Maine 2-year-olds at their well child visits through the Raising Readers program in 2009. As an added bonus, this book has bedtime activities such as “Talk About It” printed in the back. For other sleepy-time picks, download our Raising Readers Recommends: Great Books, Great Topics.

Whether you chose sleepy places or llamas to lull your child to sleep, you’re sure to be a hit. After all, nothing beats a good read before bed. Just ask Sophie.

Raising Reader Author / Illustrator Wins Caldecott Honor

The Caldecott Medal is the highest honor given to a children's picture book. Awarded to illustrators each January by the American Library Association, the Caldecott Medal and the Honors are highly anticipated by illustrators, publishers, librarians, booksellers, and parents that know the awards to be the ultimate badge of excellence.

Picture book lovers across Maine had a great leap of pride when they heard the news that Melissa Sweet of Rockport, ME was awarded a Caldecott Honor for her illustrations for the book, A River of Words: The Story of William Carlos Williams.

Raising Reader families and medical practices will remember Melissa's wonderful illustrations in the book Welcome Baby: Baby Rhymes for Baby Times that was distributed in our birth bag in 2004. Melissa as a Maine author / illustrator has also appeared in two of our anthologies for 5-year-olds. In 2008 many five-year-olds were given an anthology with Sweet's Carmine: A Little More Red in it. Next year's five-year-old anthology will have Melissa's illustrations for the book Love and Kisses!

Three cheers for Melissa Sweet and for all the grand things she does for children's literature and for young readers in Maine!!

I Like the Sneezing Part!

Raising Readers welcomed over 700 readers to the Children's Museum of Maine last week for an evening of picture book readings, book signings, book character treasure hunts, and an overall grand celebration of families reading together.

There were FABULOUS conversations about books and reading in every corner of the museum.

In the read aloud room, kids were asked how many books Maine doctors had given out. They were asked to think of a REALLY big number. Shouts went up of, "10! 40! 100! 300! 1000!" When we told the gathered kids that there more than ONE MILLION books given away, "woahhh..." was heard throughout the room. It IS a big number to imagine! We agree.

At another point a four-year-old volunteered that she had gotten Bear Snores On (Simon & Schuster) at her doctor's office and that it was "really, really funny." Another kid turned to her and said, "Me, too! I like the part best when the bear sneezes!" Unprompted by their families, other kids chimed in that the sneezing page was INDEED the best. 4-year-old's having a discussion about books--now that gives us job satisfaction!

Our sincere thanks to picture book authors and illustrators, Melissa Sweet (pictured), Cathryn Falwell, Amy MacDonald, and John and Ann Hassett and Lisa Jahn-Clough (she could not come but her sweet Mom did!) for coming to the event and talking and reading to over 700 folks!

(Any 5-year-old who received the picture book anthology, Raising Readers: Stories for Maine Children, will recognize this group of authors and illustrators, because each of their stories appear in this unique collection published exclusively for Raising Readers by Houghton Mifflin.)

Thanks to the staff at the Children's Museum of Maine. We love your mission and adore working alongside you.

More Pictures from the Event

Raising Reader Book Celebration

Join Us...
Raising Reader Book Celebration
Friday, November 7th
5:00 - 7:00 PM
Children's Museum of Maine
142 Free Street, Portland, Maine
All Ages, Best for Birth - Six
Free Admission

As Raising Readers comes into its 8th year with over 1.1 million hardcover books given to Maine children, we will hold the Raising Readers Book Celebration to celebrate another year of families reading together!

At the celebration, children will have an opportunity to meet Maine authors and illustrators, Melissa Sweet, Cathryn Falwell, Amy MacDonald, John and Ann Hassett, and Lisa Jahn-Clough.

(Any 5-year-old who received the picture book anthology, Raising Readers: Stories for Maine Children, will recognize this group of authors and illustrators, because each of their stories appear in this unique collection published exclusively for Raising Readers.)

The authors and illustrators will read from their books and talk with families about their stories and process. Book signings will be held throughout the night. Children are encouraged to bring their copy of Raising Readers: Stories for Maine Children to have each author autograph it.

This anthology will also play a part in the activities for the night. Images from the book will be hidden throughout the museum for young readers to find. Upon finding all of the book images, children will receive a prize from Raising Readers.

Families will also be able to explore and read together in the Raising Reader Book Nook. The Book Nook is a quiet space in the Children’s Museum filled with books in English, Braille, Spanish, Russian, Vietnamese, Cambodian, Farsi and Somali and is sponsored by Raising Readers and MaineHealth.

Pictured: Cathryn Falwell reading SCOOT!