Author Archives: Aaron Heffernan

Cultivating a love for math and science through books

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In the current issue of Children’s Advocate, writer Aimee Lewis-St Rain offers practical advice on creating natural opportunities for parents to cultivate a love of math and scientific discovery in their preschoolers. By encouraging your child to count everything imaginable, creating natural opportunities to explore and discover, and supporting your child’s natural impulse to play, you can boost your preschooler’s capacity for confidence and critical thinking.

For the purpose of this blog post, I was happy to discover her list of fun books for …Continue reading →

Why parents should consider books with the eye of a therapist

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This quote from the great human rights leader Frederick Douglass reminds me of the emancipatory power of books.

“Once you learn to read, you will be forever free.”
— Frederick Douglass

As a therapist who works with traumatized children, I’ve seen how well-written, well-illustrated books can liberate a child’s life narrative in a way that traditional talk …Continue reading →

Finding time for literacy in a Blackberry-paced world

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As parents, we all wish we had more time to read to our kids. And we’re equally aware of how the rush of school, work and other family activities can crowd out those slow, quiet times necessary for nurturing our child’s love of books. As the father of three active children, it seems my wife and I never have enough of the “lap time” Emilie Buchwald refers to. …Continue reading this post

Positively impact a child through reading – donate to the Barnes & Noble book drive

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Did you know children who read regularly are more likely to succeed? Reading improves attention spans, enlarges vocabularies and exposes children to new ideas. Children who read tend to excel in school and social situations. Good reading habits can be developed long before children set foot in a classroom.

Now through the first of the year, you can positively impact a child’s life by purchasing a book at Barnes & Noble stores throughout Wisconsin during the retail bookseller’s annual book drive. …Continue reading this post