The Friendship Puzzle is a wonderful kids book written about and for those children who interact with other children who have been diagnosed with an Autism Spectrum Disorder. This story is about a young girl, Mackenzie, who goes to school with a young man that she tries to be friends with. She notices that he doesn’t seem to have any friends and so she attempts to engage him but doesn’t understand why he doesn’t respond to her attempts at friendship.
There are some behaviors that the young man, Dylan, does that confuse Mackenzie Mackabee. He sits and swings alone for long periods of time. He covers his eyes and his ears for no apparent reason. He doesn’t seem to smile or talk back when any other students talk to him. One day, the kids are playing soccer when out of the blue, the young man runs and takes the ball and continues running. The kids are upset thinking that he is trying to stop their game.
Mackenzie consults her teacher about her questions regarding young Dylan’s behavior. The teacher is thrilled to have an opportunity to explain that Dylan has Autism and how that affects him. She explains that she is sure that Dylan isn’t trying to stop their game or trying to be a bully.
You will have to read the wonderful story to see how the situation is resolved and how a little understanding can go a long way to helping others to include someone who is a bit different from themselves. This is a wonderfully written book and the colorful pictures on the pages help to show how students can learn about one another and appreciate their differences. The emotions of the characters are reflected in the artwork so that the reader can empathize with the characters in the story.
I think this is a wonderful story book for any classroom setting; but, especially any classroom that may include special needs students who may be struggling to feel acceptance from their peers. The author of the story is Julie Coe and the illustrator is Sondra Brassel; the story was inspired by the children of Jennifer Maloni. I like the fact that these women intend for this book to make a difference in how children see another child who is a bit different from themselves and appreciate and include them in their social lives! There are even some great activities to promote positive interaction between children who are living with Autism or any other challenge that sets them apart from their peers and others who are in their daily lives. After all, everyone deserves the opportunity to be accepted for who they are and to feel like they fit or belong with others in the peer group. Pick up this book and let it be an inspiration to teachers, students and families everywhere!
The book can be purchased at: http://www.amazon.com
Oregon Trail is a children’s book that explains what the Oregon Trail was and why it was so important to the development of the United States. When the pioneers set out to make their mark out west there was one way to get there and that was the Oregon Trail. It started in Independence , Missouri and ended in Oregon City, Oregon.
The book has great pictures and maps showing the way that the pioneers had to travel on their way out west to grab their own piece of land to start a new life. The book explains about all of the dangers that the travelors faced on their trip and talked about what the settlers would need to make the journey. It is interesting to note that there were certain times of the year that the pioneers could travel because of the changing seasons and weather conditions. Traveling by covered wagon was not as fast or as safe as traveling today.
Some interesting facts are that there was a mountain trail that was so narrow that they called it the Devil’s Backbone because both people and the wagons with the animals had to walk single file along it’s ridges. Did you know that there are still to this day wagon tracks that can be seen on parts of the Oregon Trail? This book is educational and fun to look at and imagine what it would be like to travel across the country in the same way that the pioneers did.
Oregon Trail was written by Sarah Tieck and was copyrighted in 2008 by ABDO Publishing Company. You can visit their website here: http://www.abdopublishing.com
Nancy Bourke has written a wonderful children’s book of poems filled with expressions of childlike awe and joy of everyday experiences that life and nature provide. As people grow up, they somehow lose their appreciation of the small things in life; like the feel of grass beneath their feet, or their amazement as the seeds of a dandelion are taken away like little miniature dandelion bubbles on the journey of the wind.
Nancy Bourke, the author, tells of her inspiration for writing Dandelion Bubbles; it was a spring day at the park with her son who was three years old at the time. Mother and son were blowing the white fluffy dandelion flowers into the wind when her son called them dandelion bubbles. Those words inspired the title of the poem that she wrote the next day…it also became the title of the book. The book became a family project as Nancy’s husband Kevin Bourke took some of the photos that were published in the finished book. Speaking of the photos, the feel and ambience of the words is captured visually through the skilled photos between the covers of the book.
The book, Dandelion Bubbles, reacquaints the reader with the feelings of their childhood when everything that they witnessed about the world around them filled them with excitement. A child’s joy is contagious. Adults need to merely listen to the words of a child to be inspired to find their own appreciation of the seasons and the environment. The poems in this book, written for young readers ages birth to approximately seven years of age, will encourage your child to describe the world around them in ways that will fill you with amazement; and, remind you to enjoy the world around you. I highly recommend this book for you to share with some special young reader who holds your heart in their hands.
If you would like to purchase this book you can go to Nancy’s website here: http://www.dandelionbubbles.com/home.html or you can purchase the book at: http://www.amazon.com . This book was received by me from the author as a free review copy.
This kids book is exactly what the title says it is, a book called All About Vegetables. I love all of the bright, bold colors of the pages and covers of this book. It is eye catching and really makes the pictures pop out. The author, Vic Parker, answers the question; what are vegetables and where they are grown. He goes on to talk about how we eat vegetables and why our bodies need them.
There are some really great kid friendly sidebars that include suggestions for certain vegetables and even the occasional recipe. There are vegetable facts such as which vegetable is good for your brain, which one for your eyesight and even which vegetables are good for your heart. There is information about how many fruits or vegetables people should eat to stay healthy.
This book may even inspire some young readers to want to grow some of their own vegetables in a garden. The pictures really help to explain the process. I highly recommend this book for ages 4-10 years of age. It was well done.
All About Vegetables was copyrighted in 2009 by QEB Publishing, Inc. You can visit their website here: http://www.qeb-publishing.com
For Hannah Montana fans this book, Hannah Montana The Movie Secret Crush is going to be a treat. It basically details the movie that Miley Cyrus made last year. It tells the story of Hannah/Miley who lives a double life as a regular country girl from Tennessee who makes in big as a pop star and who now lives in California. However, she gets so caught up in her pop star life that she begins to loose sight of who she is on the inside by neglecting her friends and family and being content to live her life on the surface of glamour and media attention.
Hannah realizes that she needs to reconnect with herself and her life before the life of a popstar, and that includes her horse Blue Jeans, her grandmother, her town and her other friends and family.
There are some really great pictures from the movie. The story reminds Miley/Hannah of who she is and that her friends, family and new boyfriend are what is really important to her as a person. It is a good value to instill in the young tween and pre-teen readers who will find this book appealing. The book was published in 2009 by Disney Press. It was adapted by Kate Egan and based on the screenplay written by Dan Berendsen.
A Kid’s Guide To Earning Money is a hardcover book of juvenile literature which through wonderful pictures and illustration and carefully researched wording talks about how and when kids go about finding ways to earn money in today’s world.
Inside the covers of the book are charts to help motivate the young ones to reach their financial goals. There are ideas for raising money or jobs that are age appropriate. Guidelines are given for a kid to help compute their free hours that they have to work into their schedules to help them decide if they have time for a job. This encourages them to consider their schedules and to make earning money a priority in their life. There is information that expresses the importance of planning what kind of equipment or cost is needed to perform a job. There is a section on budgeting your money so that you don’t spend all of your income on supplies to complete a job. Information that applies to making enough money to cover all expenses and still make money is addressed in the book.
There is a chapter on the legalities of working…what is required if you want to work and you are under age. Some jobs require you to be a legal adult to do a job…this book talks about that as well. It teaches critical thinking when discussing getting a job and making money.
The book was written by Tamra Orr and was copyrighted in 2009. It was published by Mitchell Lane Publishers and their website is: http://www.mitchelllane.com . If found this book informative, attractive and I think it teaches children to really look at making money from several different angles. I would recommend this book for children from ages 8-13.
Kids Like Us is a fun filled picture book for children ages three and up. The over-sized book is delightful with it’s colorful pictures full of children what they do best, having fun by…playing and using their imaginations. The book was written by Carole Lexa Schaefer and was illustrated by Pierr.
The book starts off asking the question who is on the yellow bus that pulls away on a drizzly day! This book is great for young preschoolers who are just learning the joys of co-operative, imaginative play together. The children use their imaginations to ride the bus, to pretend to ride the fire engine, put out fires, and save people. The use their imaginations to travel to the jungle and become dinosaurs, bears, clowns , knights and princesses and march in a musical band.
What child could resist the words and imagery and cry out…there’s nothing to do MOM? I like this book and I think most parents and children will too. The book gently reminds everyone to clean up and do their share.
Kids Like Us was published in 2008 by Viking, a division of Penguin Young Readers Group. You can visit their site here: www.penguin.com/youngreaders . Enjoy!
Eileen Spinelli has written a wonderful picture book for the children of military men and women who are serving the United States overseas. This book helps children to validate their feelings of seperation and grief over the loss of time and experiences that they have previously shared.
Through the illustrations and comfort bringing ideas; children are given ways to help them process the time without the parent who is gone serving the country. The words of longing speak from the heart which gives the reader the impression that they are not alone in how they feel. The story talks of connections through words and deeds which can make the parent child relationship stay strong. Most of all, by the end of the story it gives the reader hope that a glad reunion is coming to him or her and their family.
The sacrifice that military families make for the security of our country is real and can be destructive if not handled properly. This picture book can help a young child to understand the situation and to help heal the feelings of sadness, loneliness, anger, loss and anxiety.
While You Are Away was illustrated by Renee Graef. It is realistically and beautifully done. Each page evokes true emotion and a visual picture of what someone in this situation may be experiencing. The colors are comfy and subdued. I highly recommend this book. It was published by hyperion books for children in 2004. You can view their site at: http://www.hyperionbooksforchildren.com