The summer slide can happen anytime. As a greater definition the summer slide is that period when the kids aren’t in school and the things that they learned the previous year start to slip away from their mind. “I can spell cat!”, I remember telling my parents at the end of first grade*. It’s obvious my parents never did after school or summer work books to reinforce my studies. My response to said 7 year old would’ve been, “That is great, but what else can you spell?” As a family we do workbooks almost every day. The Star Wars Workbooks are some of the best out there for introducing or reinforcing math, reading or writing to reluctant kids who need a little Force fun with their education. Continue reading Star Wars Workbooks helps eliminate the summer slide
Tag: Children
The Play-Well LEGO birthday party for the kids built itself-and was great
We were provided with product to review. All thoughts are our own. When it comes to a child’s birthday party there are two ways to proceed, have it where you live or have it at a facility. Each option has its own pros and cons; and as hard as parents try to organize it, there will be a cost, either in time or money. For our 8 year olds birthday party we did something that involved the theme of this party, kept the party at home, was something that everyone enjoyed and didn’t have the parents flittering about to ensure that things were moving smoothly. The kids have been attending Play-Well LEGO Camps that they have in the summer for year. But, did you know that they also have the ability to do a more concise LEGO workshop and take said presentation to your home?
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Dino-Dancing is elementary school gold
If you’ve been to an elementary school library or have seen the books that your kids bring home then you’ve run across a book by Lisa Wheeler. From Dino-Baseball through Dino-Basketball and now Dino-Dancing her series of books; with illustrations from Barry Gott, illustrate anthropomorphic dinosaurs doing what kids 5 and up do, or either want to do.
For example, Dino-Racing is a favorite of our children, but they’re still at least 10 years away from driving anything. As a parent, I love this series because it extends the life cycle of our children’s interest in dinosaurs. Our oldest lost interest in dinosaurs when he was 6, but when he was in it, he was passionate about them. He could identify most of them based on their appearance and going to any dinosaur exhibit in town was mandatory.
Contest of Champions, in my backyard-with scaled down Hulk and Thor
Because Sakaar is too far away to get to in a timely manner, we had our own Contest of Champions in the backyard. In a perfect world the Grandmaster would be there to emcee and/or pardon some in the crowd. However, until that’s an option we had the kids play in the back yard while I organized the Backyard Games Contest. The best part for parents is that these games are all but free and can be done using things that you’ve already got, or will soon receive like boxes in the mail.
Continue reading Contest of Champions, in my backyard-with scaled down Hulk and Thor
Dog Man and Cat Kid is the stuff that makes elementary kids feline fine
The world of elementary school readers let out a big sigh of relief when Dav Pilkey followed up Captain Underpants with Dog Man. The two titles are quite different, but they both speak to elementary school boys like no other title out there. Dog Man and Cat Kid is the fourth book in the series and continue the half superhero, half police-dog adventures with more costumes, robots and Petey.
Continue reading Dog Man and Cat Kid is the stuff that makes elementary kids feline fine
Snow Beast Comes to Play, kids of all sorts do too
We love children’s books that effectively tell a story through absurd means. Giraffes Ruin Everything was one recently that had the giraffe playing part of the child who was having a bad day or couldn’t do something well. Snow Beast Comes to Play by Phil Gosier picks up that mantle in this winter themed book that teaches lessons that every kid needs to learn.
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Moko-Maki is a graphic design/kawaii, find-it book for pre-k and up
What’s a Moko-Maki? It’s perhaps simpler to explain what is kawaii. Kawaii is one of the under currents of Japanese culture. At its simplest kawaii is cute, but it has sub-genres that break it out to those beyond a normal adjective. Kawaii can also mean cute, with a very creative and fun bent. That is the angle that Moko-Maki by Satu Kontinen pursues and nails the definition of kawaii to the floor.
Continue reading Moko-Maki is a graphic design/kawaii, find-it book for pre-k and up
The World is Not a Rectangle, builds on a great life by Zaha hadid
When I was a kid I wanted to be an architect. More precisely, my father wanted me to be an architect. I remember taking drawing classes and being semi-dedicated to it until I realized that math was required. Had I continued down that path Zaha Hadid is a name that I would’ve known and studied. She was an architect who designed some iconic, world famous buildings and blazed a trail while doing it. The World is Not a Rectangle, a Portrait of Architect Zaha Hadid by Jenette Winter is about Zaha’s inspiration as a child, how they weaved themselves into her creations and the struggles she faced professionally.
Continue reading The World is Not a Rectangle, builds on a great life by Zaha hadid
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