Beginners Books

My 6 and 3 year olds both love this book and ask me to read it over and over and over again. We have several books from this series and love them all, but this is the one that they get out the most and ask me to read to them. Its not really tailored for a 3 year old, but mine is absolutely fascinated with it!
Its got some funny/cute pictures. For example, my kids think its hilarious that in his bathroom medicine cabinet, he has 'Fangpaste'

I bought this book for my second grade nephew and I think that it is very educational and informative. It states interesting facts about blood, and how important it is to the body. I think that the illustrations are colorful and cute. I love these Read and Find Out Science books for second and third graders. Appropriate for them at a level where they could understand about science. Contains lots of vital information.

As a college physiology professor and parent of two young children, I am very impressed with this book. It makes advanced physiological concepts readily accessible even to very young children. It covers some of the same concepts that I teach my college freshmen- platelet plugs, fibrin clot formation and retraction, the role of red blood cells in carrying oxygen, the role of white blood cells in fighting infection. I suspect that even some adults might learn something useful and interesting from this book. It never would have occurred to me to teach these difficult concepts to early elementary age children, but this book does a terrific job with it.
A natural intro to this topic is anytime a child falls and gets even a minor cut. I first read this book to my 5-year-old when he fell and injured his mouth and knee. It was so empowering for him to understand what was actually going on- why his cuts eventually stopped bleeding, how they turned into scabs, etc.
Highly recommended!

Ordering a Dell for my kids this past Christmas was the easy part. The hard part has been figuring out how to make it a peaceful part of our daily lives. (Why can't they share? Where are they surfing to? What does POS mean? And oh yeah, who might be stalking my kids online?!) This book provides some answers...



The "just a regular mom" author knows precisely what matters most to other parents when it comes to technology. Yes, the Internet is full of wicked information (i.e., "the average age of exposure to online pornography is 11 years old"). But rather than an issuing an all-system shut down, she recommends ways to stay safe by using kid-friendly browsers and filters. Her down-to-earth tone not only takes the mystery out of techno-speak, but it also encourages having fun with all of the new toys available.



In fact, my favorite parts of the book are when she lets her ample creativity shine. For example, who knew that blog isn't a four letter word when it comes to kids? She says that blogs allow kids to connect with others, practice commitment to keep the blog updated and build confidence in their writing skills. (Of course, she lists the possible dangers of blogs, too, such as not sharing too much personal info.) She encourages parents to go beyond just learning about the technology, and to find ways to incorporate it into a family's routine. After reading the book, you'll no longer vilify video games, but be ready to grab a joystick and play alongside junior!



Even though my kids are too young (by a nano-second) for text messaging and cell phones, this book has prepped me on what to expect when that time arrives. The extensive resources section lists web sites ahoy, including a "fun for kids" age-by-age guide that will stay perched by their computer as a reference.



I thought that teaching my kids manners and math would suffice, but I now realize that my responsibility extends to places that before never even existed. Responsible parents, take note! This is a wonderful, fun and important resource.

At first glance, even the most involved parent might think, "I'll never be able to keep up with my tech-savvy kids, so why even bother trying?" But author Sharon Miller Cindrich takes an otherwise monumental task and breaks it down into the manageable necessities for keeping parents and kids connected in our newly wired world.

Not only does she cover the basics--internet, television, cell phone--she even ventures into the fascinating-if-you-don't-already-know-about-it territory of global positioning technology, podcasting, and text messaging. Best of all, Cindrich is funny, often cracking jokes and making puns and anaogies that keep the prose lively and entertaining. E-Parenting such a pleasurable read, I bet you'll forget it's a how-to book!

Seems like bringing the whole family into the 21st century with the greatest of ease is what Cindrich had in mind all along in this quick read, which obviously required mountains of research on her part. Don't be surprised if you get halfway through this book and want to start taking advantage of the technological advances for yourself as well as for your kids!

A handy resource guide for parents, this book is written in simple non-techie language interjected with a bit of humor to teach parents about internet safety, cell phones, video and computer games, instant messaging, chat rooms, digital cameras, GPS devices and more. Tech-Tips are featured throughout the book to summarize important information. Each section of the book highlights a type of technology and provides tips on how to use the technology with your children as well as great ideas for using it to get your kids involved in family projects and activities such as creating digital memory books, family blogs, geocaching, and more. The index is full of online resources for homework help, safe websites for kids grouped by age, and more.

An earlier review talks about how well this book works for school-age students. I teach ESL to adults, and my students love this book. Some of them have copied the stories out of the book, even though I never give them an assignment to do that. The progression from Very Easy True Stories to this book (Easy True Stories) to True Stories is really well done. The English is closely attached to drawings in the easiest book, but as the series gets more advanced the drawings - the "training wheels" - gradually lose their importance.

The school-age ESL student I worked with found the stories to be challenging and intriguing. Topics such as a woman with hundreds of tattoos and a flying car kept interest high while working on reading comprehension skills. Each story is set up to be an independent lesson that can be effectively taught without any prior preparation.

This is one more of a remarkably effective and well-thought out series. I have almost every level so far and each book has added enormously to my English classes. Even so, I was hesitant to get this level because I didn't see how the layout was going work. I needn't have worried.

The previous level book (Very Easy True Stories) is set up so that there are illustrations with captions. This level has the the same clear illustrations, but the story is written in paragraph form on the the facing page. What I do is use the book as a speaking tool. I have my students read the story and then tell it to one of their classmates, or to me, pointing to the illustrations to help them continue. Having the story on the opposite page means that I can cover up the words and so they have to search their minds for the appropriate vocabulary instead of continually looking for the word on the page.

I have used this method with students from every leel and because the stories are so captivating, it works very well for all. The students are barely conscious that they are learning new vocabulary; they are excited to be speaking and telling an interesting story.

Each story is followed by exercises which reenforce the vocabulary and act as indicators as to whether the student has understood both the specifics and the general idea of the text.

I hope that the author comes out with a second part of this level as she's done with the first level.

As a college student I was introduced to this book during my first year, and I can say that it has really given me some insight as to what type of person I wanted to become. My favorite quote in the book is that "everyone is a Freshman at something". Now that I am a manager, I am making this required reading for all new employees coming on to my staff. The lessons that Will Keim addresses need to be revisited time and time again for all people, since we are all "Freshmen" every day of our lives.

Dr. Keim uses humor and common sense to cover many topics that college-bound students might encounter. A great graduation gift for a high-school grad!!!

Keim's The Education of Character is an excellent book to give as a gift for college students, especially first year students. Keim discusses some of the issues college students will face-- such as alcohol, multiculturalism, and finances. He also summarizes the key points of each chapter at the end, allowing people easy reference should they wish to refer back. I strongly recommend this book.

This book did a fantastic job of covering the wide range of emotions that children will encounter when they bring an adoptive sibling into their home. Both my four-year old and six-year old love it. It's great for beginning readers and has some remarkably touching moments for a children's book. HIghly recommended!

I bought this for my then 7 year-old to prepare her for the arrival of a new 3 year-old sibling. It is covers the homestudy visits, pre-placement visits, and the younger child's initial acting out during the adjustment period. It helps the older child understand that it will not all be 'fun and games' when the new child arrives, and that the new child will likely be confused, sad, and even angry. I highly recommend this book for families planning to adopt an older (beyond infant) child.

Christine Mitchell, author of Welcome Home, Forever Child: A Celebration of Children Adopted as Toddlers, Preschoolers, and Beyond and Adoption Awareness In School Assignments: A Guide for Parents and Educators

As a prospective adoptive family it is wonderful to finally have access to a book for our older children (ages five and eleven) that describes the adoption of a younger child from the perspective of the older sibling. The brother and sister in the story get off to a rocky start but gradually bond, helping young readers to understand that the integration of the new sibling into the family may not be easy - but is ultimately worth it. We got it for our five-year-old for Christmas, but both children love it!

Do you like star wars? Well this is a book about it. It has lots of star wars facts that you might not know. It has a lot of battles + space battles and Jedi vs. Jedi, Jedi vs. sith and clones vs. C.I.S. It has a ton of star wars things. So if you really love star wars than read STAR WARS EPIC BATTLES.

As the title suggests, "Epic Battles" is a look at combat in the Star Wars universe. It's a terrific premise for a book since young viewers have often found the fight scenes to be one of the most compelling dynamics of the story. The book takes a thematic approach and looks at land and space battles. The major conflicts are well covered including the campaigns that happened on Naboo, Geonosis, Kashyyyk, Hoth and Endor. In addition to the major space skirmishes, time is spent on the more exciting dogfights like Obi-Wan Kenobi's Jedi Starfighter vs. Jango Fett's Slave I. In addition, Author Simon Beecroft discusses the saga's most interesting lightsaber duels. The book does in excellent job of showing how the Sith are behind much of the galaxy's discord. A strength of the title is that is pulls the entire saga (all six films) together. A glossary is included. In terms of the illustrations, the vast majority were lifted from the films. While the pictures are high quality, the writing is also good. Given the 48 page length and vocabulary level, this title is best suited to readers on a fourth or fifth grade level. "Epic Battles" offers an exciting look at the great conflicts of the Star Wars saga.

I bought all the Star Wars DK Readers for my six year-old son. He was bringing home the most insipid reading books as homework, and was not interested in the content, or in reading them, at all. The Star Wars series and other super-heroes readers have had a huge positive impact on his eagerness to read. This book is aimed at an older age group, but we read it together and he is aiming for the day when he gets the 'certificate' for reading the entire book on his own (he is working up from the easier books).

This valuable book is loaded with imformation to help with work station and tool design, human anthropometrics, and much more. I highly recommend this book.

I picked up a copy of the first edition of this book while working on my master's degree in ergonmics. I found it to be a useful quick reference. Once working as an ergonomist it proved to be a valuable tool. It is small enough to be easy to carry along when going out to work sites. The various illustrations are simple and clear; handy when explaining a concept. I've recommended it to workers, managers and supervisors who wanted a low-cost reference. It is a tool they can use after I'm gone to answer basic questions. In short, if you want one book about ergonomics and are concerned about cost then this one would be an excellent choice.

great book for beginners! lots of wonderful simple to understand images and captions follow. very informative about the requirements of ergonomics in the design field and how it affects products. cheap enough to buy and keep for reference on your own bookshelf - very handy!

This book is great for kids who love math but may not find standard children's fiction interesting. My kindergarten has a fascination with numbers so she really liked the way the story wove in the math concepts. It's an enjoyable read.

I read this book in my second grade class. This is a funny book. Even Steven likes everything even. Odd Todd likes everything odd. For example, Even Steven would like 8 pancakes and Odd Todd would like 7 pancakes. Even Steven goes through hard work with Odd Todd. Then, Even Steven notices that odd and even are both good. My favorite part was when Odd Todd and Even Steven win their $50 prize.

My 8 year old had this book on her school reading list. She loved it and has read it many times. She thought it was really funny and loved the part about the gummy worms on the pizza. Any book that gets a child to read is all right with me.

This fantastic story will amaze you, make you laugh, and give you the satisfaction that your children are reading a great story!

Let me tell you how enjoyable this story was! It was filled with great characters and a fun and exciting illustrations! My children laughed and had a great time with this story!

Great characters and great use of imagination. This book is really cute and it is a great suspensful read for children.

I read this when the series first came out. I think it's for younger kids than the original Polk St. series was intended for, and the author is wonderful (I have written to her when I was little and have several hand-written letters from her!) she's a sweet, talented and creative "lady next door"!
I think I like the original Polk St. books better, perhaps because I was always a little older than the intended age group (I was 9 and 1/2 when I first started reading the original books; I read them even if they were for younger kids beacuse they were interesting, enjoyable, and I wanted to become a teacher/author too.)
These books about Stacie made me giggle, they were so cute. I couldn't stand her classmate Twana; she was obnoxious. I felt like slapping that big mouthed brat silly for being mean to Stacie! Shame on you, Twana!

I read this when the series first came out. I think it's for younger kids than the original Polk St. series was intended for, and the author is wonderful (I have written to her when I was little and have several hand-written letters from her!) she's a sweet, talented and creative "lady next door"!
I think I like the original Polk St. books better, perhaps because I was always a little older than the intended age group (I was 9 and 1/2 when I first started reading the original books; I read them even if they were for younger kids beacuse they were interesting, enjoyable, and I wanted to become a teacher/author too.)
These books about Stacie made me giggle, they were so cute. I couldn't stand her classmate Twana; she was obnoxious. I felt like slapping that big mouthed brat silly for being mean to Stacie! Shame on you, Twana!

I thought this book was pretty good. I liked how Stacey's kindergarten class was having a store. I thought that it was a good idea. It was cute when Stacey snooped in Mrs. Zachary's desk and found the fake money to spend at the store. Mrs. Zachary is Stacey's teacher. I liked when kids brought in stuff for the store such as teddy bears,banks, books, and other things. I reccomend this book.