I’m reorganizing my office and going through a pile of school papers, from high school and up. One of them called “The Importance of Various Stimuli in Child Development From Before Birth to The Age of Five” has a quote in a footnote that jumped out at me:

“It is my belief that there is no “parents’ aid” which can compare with the book in its capacity to establish and maintain a relationship with a child. Its effects extend far beyond the covers of the actual book, and invade every aspect of life. Parents and children who share books come to share the same frame of reference. Incidents in everyday life constantly remind one of the other — or both, simultaneously — of a situation, a character, an action, from a jointly enjoyed book, with all the generation of warmth and well-being that is attendant upon such sharing.”   (Dorothy Butler, Babies Need Books: How to share the joy of reading with your child. (Great Britain: Penguin Books, 1982), p. 9.

On a totally different note, I also found a paper I wrote for driver’s ed in high school, which I have photographed and will reprint here. 

My dad (who drove me while I was taking the pictures) and I sent a copy of my paper to someone in the Department of Transportation. We never heard back. But since then, as I drive in that area, I notice that there is plenty of signage for the Cross Westchester Expressway!