Background Information

Contact: Dave Blumberg/Ann Morris

Healy Communications, Inc.

Preschool Teacher of the Year Award Winners

Provide Parenting & Teaching Tips

The four national winners of the Story Reader™ Preschool Teacher of the Year Award were asked to provide advice to both parents and teachers of preschool-aged children. Below are some of their top tips:

Preschool Teacher of the

Year Winner

Tips for Parents

Tips for Teachers

Wendy Butler-Boyesen

EWEB Child

Development Center

Eugene, Ore.

“Let children experience things. Let children do for themselves and follow their own interests, which means if a child really wants to put the wrong shoes on the wrong feet, let him do it and experience it and decide for himself that it’s uncomfortable. What matters most is that the child is getting the satisfaction of doing things for themselves.”

“We don’t stay in our classroom. We’re not limited by our four walls and we’re not limited by what we can bring into the classroom. We take long walks and take buses to wetlands places. Whatever I would have liked to do more often with my own children, that is what I want to do with these children. I’m doing what their parents would like to do with them if they had all the time in the world to do it. That’s what we’re here for.”

Karla Lyles Our Lady of the Gardens

Chicago

“Read and talk to your children. When you’re walking down the street with them, look at the trees and talk about the colors. Or count the street lights. Even when you are cooking with them, they’re using their hands and learning how to communicate. Or, when you are in the car, just talk about having the car window go up and down. And please just read to your child, even if it’s just a cereal box. At the preschool stage they’re so eager because they want to learn, and they can grasp it.”

“I pull from different philosophers and theorists, but I feel what’s most important is for children to know that when they walk into a classroom, their teacher is there to treat them as individuals. Each child is different both emotionally and physically, and the teacher should be nurturing; she should be caring. When I walk into the classroom, it’s about them (the children). I want to attend to each child’s needs. I feel that children learn from play.”

Lisa Frank McCloskey

Elementary School

Philadelphia

“I encourage parents to read to their children every night, and to limit the amount of TV their children can watch. I try to read four stories a day to kids while they are with me in the classroom, and I always ask parents to read to their kids at least twice a day. It’s also important for parents to label things in the house so kids can read and better understand the meaning of the words. I also call upon the talents and skills of my students’ parents. For example, one father is a member of a jazz group and he came in and played for the class and gave them a new learning experience.”

“My teaching philosophy is sort of simplistic - it’s that the children can learn and have fun at the same time. I also make sure that they are immersed in literacy. I read to them at least three times a day. I always go to the Internet and search for new poems and finger plays so it’s not always the same thing out of a book. I also teach children how to get organized. I like to transform my classroom into whatever theme we’re talking about. When you transform your room, the kids really love it and they feel that they’re experiencing the real thing. They go home and they say, ‘Mom, we went to Hawaii today.’”

Geralyn Dunckelman Oakshire Elementary School

Houma, La.

“Spend as much time with your child as possible. Also, the attitude you have is so important -- if you have a positive attitude, of course your child will, too. You are not only the primary caretaker, but also the primary teacher of your children. By the time they reach me, their values have already been established. I realize that a lot of parents work, but be a parent to your child and make the most of every minute because you may never have this chance to again.”

“You have to be able to embrace not only students, but also their families and the communities in which they live. It’s teamwork that’s necessary to provide the best educational opportunities for the children.

Preschool is not necessarily seen as an integral part of the learning environment. But I would tell my peers who come into my classroom to open your eyes to the possibilities of preschool, and realize that, especially in today’s society, we are a vital link to the total education of children.”

Story Reader, the product behind the Preschool Teacher of the Year Award, is the first-ever portable electronic storybook reader for kids aged three to eight that is now the best-selling line of preschool books in the nation. This success prompted PI to introduce two new products to the Story Reader family in 2006: Story Reader™ Video Plus™, which combines the classic Story Reader with the appeal and entertainment value of video, and My First Story Reader™, a smaller, re-designed version of Story Reader for kids aged six months to three years.

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About Publications International, Ltd.

Publications International, Ltd. (PI), a privately held company based in Lincolnwood, Illinois, is the world’s largest publisher of children’s products that combine traditional printed books with electronic features that deliver interactivity, learning and entertainment value. Since 1967, PI has provided consumers and retail partners with products defined by creativity, quality and value, operating with the mission to “get as many books into the hands of as many children as possible.” PI introduces hundreds of new children’s titles annually and sells more than 20 million traditional and electronic soundbooks each year. The company is actively involved in philanthropic literacy efforts, donating books to children’s charities and schools to stimulate the love of reading in young people. In addition to its rapidly growing children’s book division, PI also publishes widely popular cookbooks, the New Seasons line of albums and journals, and a wide variety of general and specialty titles. For more information, please visit www.pilbooks.com.