A few months ago, Rachel Payne at the Brooklyn Public Library asked if I would like to co-author a “First Steps” column with her for School Library Journal. I readily agreed, and here is the result of our efforts:
Conversational Duets
The Mother Goose on the Loose Blog
The results are in…. MGOL Hatchlings
We have just wrapped up the first pilot year of Mother Goose on the Loose Hatchlings. The wonderful Elaine Czarnecki was in charge of all evaluations and surveys and she just sent the Hatchlings steering committee the results. Hatchlings is a winner! Here are some of the results:
And this:
Followed by this:
And finally….
So our new program for working with expectant parents, and then parents with newborns really has made an impact. YaHoo! If you want to learn more, come to our presentation at LibLearnX, or at the Maryland Library Association Conference, or visit the website: https://mgol.net/mgol-hatchlings/.
The MGOL Newsletter
In January of 2015, the first MGOL Newsletter was sent out. Since then, the newsletter is published online once a month or once every other month. It is a combination of my personal stories, relevant research for children’s librarians and early childhood professionals with phrases or sentences that can be used as developmental tips for parents highlighted. It also has lists and links to resources, comments from readers, news and ideas, a rhyme of the month, a developmental tip of the month, and other eclectic selections.
This month’s newsletter is scheduled to be sent out to inboxes tomorrow morning, but if you want a sneak peak, look here! https://mailchi.mp/9bce450df21f/enjoy-your-mgol-newsletter-4805298
School Papers
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!
Patterns and Nursery Rhymes
Yale University has been doing interesting research on babies’ memories. They’ve found that babies’ brains use “general patterns to help them understand and predict the surrounding environment.” This includes patterns of sounds that make up the words in a language. Nursery rhymes are full of sound patterns. Perhaps that is why they are such a powerful learning vehicle for our youngest children….
https://news.yale.edu/2021/05/21/brains-memory-center-stays-active-during-infantile-amnesia