One of my mentors growing up was Leah Klein, a librarian in Chicago and friend of my grandmother. She couldn’t afford to go to college after high school, but attended DePaul University night school on a course-by-course basis, graduating with a bachelor’s degree in her 60’s. She not only taught me perseverance, she schooled me in the arts and reading, and from there my love of literature grew.

While at the UJA General Assembly in Los Angeles in November, I found the booth for the Harold Grinspoon Foundation which was promoting a program called The PJ Library. The PJ Library mails age-appropriate Jewish-content books and, on occasion, parenting books or Jewish music CDs, on a monthly basis to children ages 6 months to 6 years.

The Springfield Jewish Federation is delighted to announce an agreement with the Foundation to provide Jewish-content books to our Jewish families with young children. We are very fortunate to have two local Jewish menschen, who wish to remain anonymous, whose financial support will mean that the first year of subscription will be free for all local participants. Second and subsequent year subscriptions will be provided for each family at a reduced rate of $18 with the Federation, through private sponsorships, paying the remaining $42 per child. We currently have interested families representing more than 20 children. The first books should begin arriving in June.

Families with grandchildren or others outside of our area who wish to participate may do so at a cost of $60/child. Please let Wendy at the Federation Office at 787-7223 know of your interest. We are delighted to offer this for our children, our future. - Gail Lieberman, Past President

TEN TIPS FOR READING WITH A PRE-SCHOOLER

Read with your child every day! Making story time a daily routine instills the message that reading and spending time together are enjoyable and important to your family.

It's never too early to start reading with your child. Babies enjoy being cuddled while listening to the sound of your voice whether reading, making up a story, or singing.

Older babies love to look at pictures and flip pages. Sturdy board or cloth books are great for this age group, who like to touch and sometimes even taste books!

Ask toddlers to name the things they see in picture books. Children like to be involved in the reading experience so encourage them to point out familiar things and tell you about what they see.

Repeat after me - repetition is a good thing! Toddlers often request to hear the same books and stories over and over again. Reading these favourites is both comforting to young children and helps them develop word recognition.

Reading can be an action-packed activity. Story time doesn't have to be sitting quietly time. Use different voices, sound effects or body movements to add some drama to the story you're reading. Try clapping or dancing along with your child to a funny rhyme or poem.

Help your child create their own book. Engage your child's imagination by having them paint or draw pictures to a familiar story or one they make up. Write out words to the story for them by hand or on a computer. Staple all the pages together and then read your child's creation together!

Visit the library. Libraries are great resources and not just for the multitude of books you can borrow. Many libraries offer free story time sessions designed to engage infants, toddlers and preschoolers. And librarians have a wealth of knowledge when it comes to suggesting books appropriate to your child's age and interests.

Read all kinds of books. Picture books, nursery rhymes, alphabet and counting books, fairy tales, non-fiction books on everything from dinosaurs to space ships, early-reader chapter books, magazines, comic books, cook books - help your child discover and enjoy a wide variety of reading material.

Reading doesn't always involve a book. You can incorporate reading into your child's day where ever you are by pointing out letters and words on signs, cereal boxes, menus, shopping lists - the list goes on.