FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: Mason Crest’s EDUCATIONAL VIDEOS GAIN ATTENTION AS THE NEWEST INNOVATION TO THE PUBLISHER’S UNIQUE reading comprehension tools PHILADELPHIA, Pa.– Mason Crest announces its newest element to the company’s Key Icons to Look For…Educational Videos. In the fall 2016 line, the non-fiction, young adult book publisher will introduce this new digital component into many of the company’s new series. The educational videos are accessed by using QR codes within the chapters, that when scanned, take a reader to a short video clip that shows a moment in history, a clip from a monumental speech, news coverage of a historical event, and much more. It’s the newest element in the list of Key Icons to Look For, which the publisher originally launched with five components in the 2014 publishing season. Those consisted of Words to Understand, Sidebars, Text-Dependent Questions, Research Projects, and Series Glossary of Key Terms. In the upcoming line, Educational Videos will become the 6^th element in this list of reading comprehension tools. “We had such great success with our original key icons over the past two years that this was the next logical step in connecting with the students where they are most comfortable…in the digital world,” says Louis Cohen, Mason Crest President. “In our STEM in Current Events series a student can read about how to power their cell phones with plant power and then scan QR codes with their smart device to watch a news story about 3 students who came up with the experiment to do just this,” says CEO Dan Hilferty. Additional examples of educational videos include actual clips of the greatest moments in various sports history in the new series Inside the World of Sports. In The Making of the Modern World series students can scan QR codes to watch clips from historical moments such as live footage of Neil Armstrong’s first walk on the moon in 1969. “The key here is that this is all exceptional supplemental material, vetted by our consultants and editors, to complement the text and introduce a secondary means of learning into the books,” says Cohen. In recent reviews, School Library Journal reviewers have printed extremely complimentary reviews about the original key icons to Mason Crest books. Some examples include:

• “Each chapter starts with a "Words to Understand" section, which points out important vocabulary, and ends with "Research Project" and "Text-Based Question" portions that expand upon what has already been discussed and encourage students to search more deeply for evidence in the text.”
• “The concise, engaging writing is aptly accented by symbols that alert readers to special vocabulary words, ideas for research projects, and sidebars brimming with supplemental insights.”
• “Readers are encouraged to think through these issues through text-dependent questions and suggestions for research projects. Sidebars and color photos are an additional plus.”
• “Text Dependent Questions” will assist with closer reading and research activity.”
• “Suggested research projects are strong and engaging.”

Definitions of Key Icons to Look For: “We have received incredible feedback from industry professionals about the addition of the educational videos to this great list of tools that have already proven useful to our readers. We look forward to reaching more students in this inventive way this year,” says Hilferty. To learn more about Mason Crest Publishers, call 866-MCP-BOOK or visit www.Masoncrest.com. ### About Mason Crest: Mason Crest evolved in 2002 with a goal to become known as the leading line of non-fiction, young adult, school and library books covering a variety of socially responsible, high-interest, and forward-thinking topics.  Annually Mason Crest publishes over 200 new titles for Middle and High School students. We are Publishing What Matters, in areas such as Global Studies, Math, Science, Careers, Finance, Country Studies, American Studies, Drugs, Family, Health, Nutrition, Fitness, Contemporary Issues, and Biographies. With each series we create, we obtain Senior Consultants, editors, and proficient authors. The key to our content, is not just research, but that we have people involved from the start, who have devoted their careers to the subjects we are publishing books on. Mason Crest is currently offering over 2,000 titles that reflect the company’s dedication to quality. A complete list can be found online at www.masoncrest.com.