This book was designed by Mike Rothmiller the inventor of Imagination Zoo Early Childhood Development Plush Toys with a primary objective of enhancing a child's cognitive abilities while learning the ABCs visually and with spoken words. Unlike other ABC books, this book is designed to focus the child's attention by eliminating irrelevant imaging stimulation from all pages thereby reducing "cognitive clutter." In young children, it is nearly impossible for them to separate and ignore task-irrelevant input from the environment or the unnecessary visual stimulus on a page. Too much information causes "cognitive clutter" which suppresses learning. The first five years of life are a time of enormous social, emotional, physical and cognitive growth. The early years provide a window of opportunity to establish a sturdy or fragile stage for what follows. By age three, a child's brain has reached approximately 90% of its full potential. By age 2, synapses in a child's brain are twice those in adults. Experiences of childhood determine which neurons are used in the brain's wiring. Neurons that are not used may die. A child's ability to be attentive, focused and follow directions emerges in the early years. Structured early learning fosters these abilities for success in school and life. Research indicates "critical periods" in development when a child's environment can influence how an individual's brain is "wired" for functions. The genesis of this book is the result of years of research to develop an ABC book that a small child can easily understand and one which the parent and child will enjoy interacting. Most importantly, the book had to benefit the child's mental development. Our findings demonstrated that the best method to achieve this result was via an ABC animal book incorporating real animal images with accompanying illustrations. And just as important, is utilizing Professor Hogan, a wonderful Golden Retriever as the instructor. Children are naturally drawn and relate to such peaceful animals. The final and most difficult step was developing the books imaging which benefited your child's imagination, creativity, verbal skills, abstract thinking, early stage critical thinking, social skills, hand-eye coordination, and all cognitive skills while simultaneously providing outstanding parent and child bonding. We believe this book accomplishes those goals. It is our belief that this book is so unique and indispensable to your child's mental development, and the parent child relationship, that it is covered by a US Copyright. This is the black and white interior version. A recommended full color copy is also available on Amazon titled, "Learning the ABC's with Animals and Professor Hogan."