Rockin' the SchoolHouse vol. 1
Named Top Selling Children's Educational CD

Rockin' the SchoolHouse vol. 1
Named Top Selling Kids/Family Children's Storytelling CD

April 2009

Be Creative at your Library
Reading keeps summer from turning kids' minds into Jello

As another long summer away from school approaches, many parents are wondering how to keep their children busy doing something constructive. While certain T.V. shows and video games can be educational, nothing seems to beat good old fashioned reading. Or for very young children, being read to. Summer reading programs are a great way to provide children regular opportunities to read books, play writing games, and listen to stories. While children might be more focused on the fun and prizes involved, educators know that these sorts of programs help little kids get ready to read and big kids raise scores.

A study conducted by Jimmy Kim at Harvard's Center for Evaluation found that reading four or five books over the summer months had an impact on fall reading achievement comparable to attending summer school. (Kim) Another study concluded that, "children who read more than a half an hour per day during the summer had significantly higher reading comprehension gains by the fall compared with children who did not." In addition, the study showed that "children whose parents read to them at least twice a week over the summer also improved comprehension skills more than children whose parents did not." (Phillips and Chin)

Public libraries all over the country are busily gearing up for the 2009 summer reading program "Be Creative at your Library". The program is sponsored by the Collaborative Summer Library Program (CSLP), which is a grassroots consortium of states working together to provide high-quality summer reading program materials for children at the lowest cost possible for their public libraries. The CSLP began in 1987 in the state of Minnesota and has since grown to include libraries from virtually every state in the country.

"Be Creative at your Library" is not only a wonderful free program that promotes parent/child involvement, but also gives kids an opportunity to have fun while learning valuable skills. Program coordinators often incorporate puppet shows, crafts, skits, and other fun activities to help children interact with the characters they read about and make various subjects come alive for them in a meaningful way. There's even a theme song for "Be Creative at your Library", sung by the children's cartoon character Billy Gorilly. The song was produced by Flying Kitten Music whose unique songs, stories, and educational materials are prime examples of the creative learning tools parents and kids can discover through the library.

To find out the details about dates, times, and registration for this summer's program, call or visit your local library. And to learn more about effective and engaging children's educational materials visit these websites:
www.scholastic.com
www.billygorilly.com
www.pbskids.com

News Release
For Immediate Release…

Flying Kitten Music / Kingman Publishing
contactus@billygorilly.com
626.966.7760

Billy Gorilly to Perform at
Ronald McDonald House Charity Event

Children’s cartoon characters Billy Gorilly and the Candy Appletree Family and McDonalds Glenquarie will be combining their efforts to raise money for the Ronald McDonald House Charities in a special live show Saturday November 17, 2007. The admission free show will feature Billy Gorilly and his pals performing songs from their award winning CD and will take place at the McDonalds Glenquarie, Sydney Australia McHappy Day celebration. A portion of the proceeds from the food sold at the day-long event will be donated to help critically ill children and their families. For details visit www.billygorilly.com/mchappyday.html

Covina, CA March 5, 2007: “Billy Gorilly and the Candy Appletree Family” children’s music CD has been named a distinguished iParenting Media Award Winner for the Best Products of 2007. The CD, created for children 2-8 years old, was given the award after being thoroughly evaluated by an experienced team of reviewers. The innovative combination of cartoon characters, story, and songs prompted one of the reviewers to comment, “The music is well produced and timeless in style; like Dr. John for kids. It has a nice mix of educational and social development themes, which are presented in an entertaining manner. The retelling of Aesop’s fables reminded me somewhat of Mr. Peabody and his pet boy Sherman from the Rocky and Bullwinkle Show!” A color illustrated lyric booklet is included to allow children to follow the characters and sing along.

The evaluation process created by the iParenting Media Awards program is internationally certified to provide a credible and objective method of recognizing the year’s best products. “We’re very honored to be an award winner from the premier media company focused on parents and families,” says co-writer/producer, John Maellaro, of Flying Kitten Music. Consumers can feel confident purchasing products that display the iParenting Media Award seal knowing the products’ quality and value have undergone a detailed review by real parents, children, and industry experts.

Co-writer/producer Charles Hardman, of Kingman Publishing states “John and I were working together in the recording studio on other productions when we recognized the need for intelligent children’s music, what I like to call, “smarts wrapped in fun”. The collaboration between Flying Kitten Music and Kingman Publishing, resulting in the creation of Billy Gorilly, proved to be a winning combination. The companies received the iParenting award along with some of the other top names in children’s products, including PBS Kids, Scholastic Media, Sony Pictures, and Walt Disney Home Entertainment. Flying Kitten/Kingman’s mission is to provide unique, high quality entertainment that parents, teachers, and librarians can rely on to inspire and educate young children.

The product’s website www.billygorilly.com offers free downloadable activity pages and a Story Time Resource Kit designed to be used with the “Billy Gorilly and the Candy Appletree Family” music CD. In keeping with a strong commitment to encourage kids to learn while having fun, Billy Gorilly has recently recorded a theme song to promote the 2007 public library summer reading program “Get a Clue @ your library”, and will soon debut the first in a series of educational podcasts called “The Billy Gorilly Show”.

For more information about Billy Gorilly and the Candy Appletree Family visit billygorilly.com or contact Jennifer Rowes at 626-966-7760. The award winning CD is available on-line at CDBaby.com, iTunes.com, Amazon.com, Target.com,

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