Dr. Dina Lieser, former Council on Early Childhood Chair, with Dr. Sells.

Last weekend more than 10,000 pediatricians descended upon Chicago for the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) National Convention. I always return from this meeting both exhausted and inspired. It was fabulous; yet contradictions abound. Never have health care and children's well-being felt more under threat. And, thankfully, never have pediatricians and other advocates been stronger voices for children.

I have the honor of Chairing the AAP's Council on Early Childhood, and I was thrilled that our education session focused on supporting parents of young children. The context was familiar to many of us, highlighting the foundational need to promote safe, stable, nurturing relationships while mitigating the impact of toxic stress. A growing coalition of pediatricians and our partners across disciplines are focused on early childhood. It was wonderful to gather with Reach Out and Read leaders from across the country, and to have the program highlighted as a foundational, systemic strategy to support nurturing parent-child relationships and early brain and child development.

At the same time, sobering topics like racism, gun violence, physician burnout, environmental toxins, teen suicide, homelessness, and hunger were continual reminders of the extreme inequities facing children across America, and the world. As this message comes to your inbox, Congress is threatening again to pass a bill that would gut the Medicaid program and irreparably harm children and families.

Yet there are incredible bright spots of collaboration. Today we highlight our working engaging families with early math, as Mathematica lays out the research behind this exciting partnership. Read on, and consider how you can join us in creating a state and country that gives everyone an equitable opportunity to thrive.

Jill Sells, MD & the Reach Out and Read Washington Team