The following is a press release, and reading list, from Raising a Reader MA. The books are available from the Brookline Public Library. 

Raising a Reader MA, a local affiliate of a national nonprofit dedicated to early childhood literacy, today announced a new blog series providing information and insights into brain development in children.  Executive Director Donna DiFillippo, a seasoned advocate for childhood education, will author the series, which is featured on Raising a Reader MA’s website, www.raisingareaderma.org. The first entry contains a list of DiFillippo’s favorite children’s books, suggests fun ways for parents to bond with young readers, and outlines opportunities to increase critical literacy skills.

DiFillippo’s list includes:

• "The Napping House" by Don and Audrey Wood
• "The Very Hungry Caterpillar" by Eric Carle
• "Brown Bear, Brown Bear, What Do You See?" by Bill Martin Jr and Eric Carle
• "The Little Mouse, The Red Ripe Strawberry, and The Big Hungry Bear" by Don and Audrey Wood
• "Eating the Alphabet" by Lois Ehlert

According to the Carnegie Foundation for the Advancement of Teaching Report, 35% of U.S. children enter kindergarten unprepared to learn, with most lacking the vocabulary and sentence structure crucial to later academic success. Raising a Reader’s mission is to give every child an equal opportunity for achievement by engaging parents from low-income communities in a routine of daily book sharing with their children from birth through age five.

Founded in 2006, Raising a Reader MA provides parents resources so they can regularly engage in book sharing with their children, birth through age five. They partner with the early education and care community, who in turn provide families with bright red bags filled with award-winning books.  Every week, children take home a book bag with a new selection of high quality, culturally and age-appropriate books, while parents receive a "Read Aloud" video, available in three languages.  The video offers parents the know-how and support they need to make the shared book experience successful, even if they themselves cannot read.

The first entry is now available on Raising a Reader’s Mass website, at www.raisingareaderma.org.