Miriam Smith: Point to Happy [2011]

Point to happy. Point to sad. Point to hug. Give me a hug. The parent reads, the child points. It turns reading into a joyful, shared experience. Dozens of friendly photographs are compelling to look at and easy to understand. The text is clear and direct. By pointing to the pictures in the book - moods, activities, everyday objects, the rituals of going to bed and getting ready in the morning - children will learn to convey their wants and needs, their experiences and, most importantly, their feelings. The simple device of the pointer, with its soft, molded hand on a wand - safety-tested and 100 per cent nontoxic and PVC- and phthalate-free - begs to be held and used. And using it - the motor task of holding and pointing, again and again - is an effective tool to help a child focus.