Editorial Review

The producer of An Inconvenient Truth, Laurie David's new mission is to help America's overwhelmed families sit down to a Family Dinner, and she provides all the reasons, recipes and fun tools to do so.

Laurie David speaks from her own experience confronting the challenges of raising two teenage girls. Today's parents have lots to deal with and technology is making their job harder than ever.Research has proven that everything we worry about as parents--from drugs to alcohol, promiscuity, to obesity, academic achievement and just good old nutrition--can all be improved by the simple act of eating and talking together around the table.

Laurie has written a practical, inspirational, fun (and, of course, green) guide to the most important hour in any parent's day. Chock-full chapters include: Over seventy-five kid approved fantastic recipes; tips on teaching green values; conversation starters; games to play to help even the shyest family member become engaged; ways to express gratitude; the family dinner after divorce (hint: keep eating together) and much more. Filled with moving memories and advice from the country's experts and teachers, this book will get everyone away from electronic screens and back to the dinner table.

... Read more

Reviews

The Family Dinner, October 19, 2010
This book is a Home Run for anyone trying to get their kids to eat better (and with less meat). My teenagers ate the black bean burgers after complaining "it wasn't a burger" and actually asked for seconds! This is so much more than a cookbook, it is a guide about how to have more fun with your kids and make dinners something to look forward to. I personally like the gratitude section in the book where everyone goes around the table and says what they are grateful for. The pet peeve and idiosyncrasy game Laurie suggests can be a real eye opener about the people you know and love! I would highly recommend this book to anyone with kids or grandkids.

A must have book.... in every kitchen... and around the table..., October 28, 2010
This book is one of a kind.... Not the kind that sits on the shelf but the one that will be passed around the table... The one that will get dirty by being around the kitchen.. The one that could finally break the ice and teach that food is not your enemy... Embrace the simplicity of it and have fun with it!!
I know what I'll be giving for Christmas!!! Thanks Kirstin and Laurie.

No more solitary grazing at odd hours, October 16, 2010
"The Family Dinner" should be number ONE on any bridal registration list. And, search no further, it is also the best present for a baby shower. You can even give a copy to the grandparents. This cook book works for all ages. It is informative, easy to use, fun to browse, bursting with healthy recipes and original tips. Furthermore, if you are looking for advice on a good divorce, check out page 188.
As the French say: "� table!"...this book will bring everyone to the table...and make them stay there...the family dinner matters.

Family Dinners Should be Delicious AND FUN!, October 14, 2010
Finally a practical book for the kitchen (or kitchen table!) that really helps us, parents, make the most out of our time preparing and enjoying a few minutes of delicious fun at the family dinner table! This is a fantastic idea and a great book to help start and maintain a wonderful tradition of sitting down together to share our day, our lives and some food amongst those we love! Great tips and creative tricks for engaging kids in the preparation (and enjoyment) process too! Thanks!

Inspiring and Fun Guide to Family Dinner, October 18, 2010
Laurie David has accomplished something amazing: she's blended research, recipes, advice and an unrelentingly charming and enthusiastic point of view into one book that's brimming with usable tips, great food, and wonderful stories. Oh, and there's poetry and fun facts too - enough stuff to run the risk of getting a few spills on the pages by keeping it on hand, right near the dinner table. This is a book that families can dip into time and again, for conversation starters, quizzes and games, and mealtime ideas (especially Friday night, when everyone thinks they're too tired to cook). As much fun as this book is, it also serves as a clarion call to families everywhere - for sitting down at least once a week (if not more) together to share a meal and conversation is one of the most healthful things a family can do - even if you're serving take out.

Every Family with Young Kids Should Buy & Use This Book!, November 26, 2010
As the author of two books on family traditions (latest is The Book of New Family Traditions) and a mother myself, I'm a huge believer in the absolute value of shared family dinners. I give lots of ideas for fun and memorable dinners together in both my books. But The Family Dinner takes this focus much deeper, adding recipes and cool activities. This book is absolutely loaded with really good, often clever, suggestions and ideas. I love and agree with Laurie David's 10 basic rules, and was delighted with her fresh ideas for things like decorating the table and getting kids to help in every stage. A whole other dimension is the emphasis on being environmentally responsible in relation to family meals.

I cannot recommend this book highly enough!

Always at our kitchen table!, November 5, 2010
I love cookbooks and I read them like novels. This one however is one step further with not only great recipes but wonderful tips on what to talk about at the dinner table, games and other neat stuff. Kirstin's recipes are easy and delicious, I have so far tried the kale with tahini, green pesto and the pea nutty noodles... best of all, my kids like all the dishes and are happy to help cooking it. And the photos! Very inspiring. Great job Kirstin and Laurie!

The Family Dinner, November 2, 2010
Laurie and Kristin are really onto something here. A wise woman once told me that if we don't sit down and really listen to our kids one day they'll just stop talking. The Family Dinner offers sound advice on how to set aside time in our busy day to really sit and get the conversation going. Bring some of these games and conversation starters to your dinner table and I think you'll be amazed at how fun and effective they can be.

THE BIBLE FOR CREATING A SACRED RITUAL AND A HAPPY HOME, November 1, 2010
There isn't a mother I know, who doesn't profit greatly from the ease and access afforded them by technology --but who doesn't fear its overall impact on her children --and herself-- in the future. It has completely destroyed any sense of non-working time and privacy. This book is a reminder that the entire universe exists within our homes when our families are with us. Nothing is more important than cultivating these connections, and this book gives you insightful, creative and effective ways to establish bonds that will endure for generations-all while learning how to cook delicious dinners that are healthy for your family and the planet, as well. The resource guide at the end of the book is worth the purchase alone!

Amazin Book, October 22, 2010
"The Family Dinner" is a recipe for your family's happiness - this book
has really kept my family around the dinner table! Great for beginners
as well as experienced cooks - this book has lots of yummy and healthy
recipes that are quick and really easy to make. And the photos are
gorgeous -- I've never spent so many hours going through a cookbook!
This is a must-have cookbook for every family. (And a great gift idea
for the holidays!)
... Read more

Editorial Review

The ultimate DIY project guide for techie dads raising kids in their own geeky image, in the spirit of The Dangerous Book for Boys

Today's generation of dads grew up more tech-savvy than ever. Rather than joining the Little League team, many grew up playing computer games, Dungeons and Dragons, and watching Star Wars. Now with kids of their own, these digital-age dads are looking for fresh ways to share their love of science and technology, and help their kids develop a passion for learning and discovery.

Enter supergeek, and father of two, Ken Denmead. An engineer and editor of the incredibly popular GeekDad blog on wired.com, Ken has created the ultimate, idea-packed guide guaranteed to help dads and kids alike enjoy the magic of playtime together and tap into the infinite possibility of their imagination. With illustrations throughout, this book offers projects for all ages to suit any timeframe or budget. With Denmead's expert guidance, you and your child can:

•Fly a night-time kite ablaze with lights or launch a video camera with balloons

•Construct the "Best Slip n' Slide Ever," a guaranteed thrill ride

•Build a working lamp with LEGO bricks and CDs

•Create a customized comic strip or your own board game

•Make geeky crafts like cyborg jack-o'-lanterns or Ethernet cuff links

Brimming with endlessly fun and futuristic tidbits on everything from gaming to gadgets, GeekDad helps every tech-savvy father unleash his inner kid-and bond with the next generation of brainiacs. ... Read more

Reviews

Not just for geeks... or dads, May 21, 2010
Perfect for families looking for creative and amazing projects, Geek Dad had me bookmarking favorites to try right away. Many involve science in a fun, lightweight way. I can't imagine a child who wouldn't be excited by the prospect of some of these activities: the ultimate outdoor obstacle course, the light-up nighttime kite, the finger-painting with windup toys. The directions make each step simple and understandable.

Each project has a table that describes the concept, lists the tools and materials needed, and gives ratings for cost, difficulty, duration and reusability. Costs are from $0 up to over $100. Difficulty levels begin with primary-school kids up to high school age. Duration is from 0 to 15 minutes up to 3 hours or longer. Reusability ranges from one-time-only use to "good forever."

Throughout the book are drawings, maps, diagrams and tables. Everything's in black and white.

Here's the chapter list:

Introduction: About Being a Geek and a Dad
Make Your Own Geeky Games and Crafts
1. Make Your Own Cartoons
2. The Coolest Homemade Coloring Books
3. Create the Ultimate Board Game
4. Electronic Origami
5. Cyborg Jack-o'-Lanterns and Other Holiday Decorations
6. Windup Toy Finger Painting
7. Create a Superhero ABC Book
8. Model Building with Cake
9. Pirate Cartography
10. Parenting and Role-Playing Games
11. A Never-Ending Demolition Derby
Geeky Activities for the Great Outdoors
12. See the World from the Sky
13. Best Slip `n Slide Ever
14. Fireflies for Every Season
15. Video Games That Come to Life
16. Fly a Kite at Night
17. Build an Outdoor Movie Theater
18. The "Magic" Swing
Awesome Accessories
19. Smart Cuff Links
20. Light-up Duct Tape Wallet
21. Crocheted Dice Bag of Holding
Geeky Kids Go Green
22. The Science of Composting
23. Home Hydroponics
Build / Learn / Geek
24. Build a Binary Calendar
25. Portable Electronic Flash Cards
26. Wi-Fi Signal Booster
27. Cool LEGO Lighting from Repurposed Parts
Geeky Potpourri
Ice Cubes Fit for a Geek
Exploding Drink Practical Joke
Afterword: Pneumatic Wiffle Ball Cannon -- Failure as a Project
Appendix A: Resources and References by Chapter
Appendix B: RPG Character Sheet
Appendix C: Projects Listed by Rank

Don't take my word for it ... Take my Daugters word for it !, May 15, 2010
Hey I'm a geek and a Dad so right off the bat this book is full of win for me. The real test though is the kids. If the kids don't dig the projects then it's a geek book. In the words of my 10 year old daughter after flipping through the book "We are totally doing some of these projects". What more can a Geek Dad ask from a book of projects?

Easy to follow, inspiring, May 25, 2010
Geek Dad has a wide range of projects, from those requiring simple items you already have around the house, to a few that might inspire you to designate a piggy bank ahead of time. There are plenty of crafty ideas sprinkled in with electronics and robotics- even a crochet project!

The instructions are easy to understand and adaptable for different skill levels, including non-geeks. Both my 10 year old and my 6 year old found projects they want to try ASAP.

These projects offer kids a chance at hands-on experiments, something they frequently miss in today's test-focused school day.

Intresting, but not worth making a book of it., September 14, 2010
This is an attempt to join the DIY movement targeted at those of us that are fathers. The book gives ideas of what can be done, some tips, ideas, and that's about it. No fully fleshed out projects, no build lists, no instructables. It makes for a great source of inspiration, but falls short for giving a 'how-to' on some real projects. Not a bad book/reference, but not worth the $15.

Fun & Creative Projects, May 6, 2010
Great ideas for ways to spend quality, geeky time with your kids, packaged up in a entertaining read. The projects will get the kids to tinker right along with you, and maybe even learn something while they're having fun!

Incredably Awesome Book, June 6, 2010
Ken and his crew have come up with some great ideas and this book is the culmination of the hard work and insane fun that comes from being a geeky parent. If you are on the fence about this book, do yourself a favor and just buy it. The fun and adventure you will experience throughout your reading of this book will make it worth your wild.

Awesome!, June 4, 2010
Even thought most of the activities require a lot of money (build your own outdoors movie theater? I mean, seriously), this is an OUTSTANDING book. I now have a lot of ideas on my own to spend time with my daughter, all of them based on this book!

Buy it, even if you're not a father! I can bet a lot of people will perform the activities on it without even being a parent, you just need to be GEEK!

Big disappointment, August 13, 2010
I was very excited for this book. I was expecting to find many projects I could do with my 6 and 10 year olds. I found 5 that I might do. There were several reasons I ruled out projects: too much like arts and crafts which isn't what I bought the book for; we already did something along those lines; didn't seem interested to young kids; too elaborate to ever get around to it. I got science experiment books at the library and am much happier with those.

These are just our preferences. Obviously, other reviewers like the ideas.

I might have given it only 2 stars, but I have to give the book credit for pointing me towards Arduino boards and ThingM products.

Can't Wait to Try These Projects!, May 7, 2010
I've read a few chapters so far and I recommend this book whole-heartedly. I'll disclose I contributed to one of the chapters and received a gracious complimentary copy for that. It's an enjoyable read, infused with dry wit and winking geek culture in-jokes. The book is a great gift for Mother's Day, Father's Day, and pretty much any occasion with a kid involved. The projects it contains will be perfect for upcoming summer days, ways to forge family memories more lasting than video game high scores. My 10-year-old son, thumbing through it, exclaimed, "This is so cool. I love this book!" He already picked out the first project he wants to try, "Make Your Own Cartoons." That's the best endorsement you could want.

Must have for any Geek Dad!, May 5, 2010
Received the book yesterday and after the first read the book is great. There are great projects that I will be doing with my son as he grows up. What else is there to say? I highly recommend this book to any parent who enjoys geeky hobbies, and wants to share them with their geeklet. ... Read more

Editorial Review

365 fun, creative activities to stimulate your toddler every day of the year.

This book contains 365 activities (one for each day of the year) for one-and-a-half to three-year-olds using things found around the home.It shows parents and day-care providers how to:

Editorial Review

* Is your child halfway through first grade and still unable to read?
* Is your preschooler bored with coloring and ready for reading?
* Are you worried that your child will become lost in overcrowded classrooms?
* Did you know that early readers hold an advantage over their peers throughout school?
* Do you want to help your child read, but are afraid you'll do something wrong?

SRAs DISTAR� is the most successful beginning reading program available to schools across the country. Research has proven that children taught by the DISTAR� method outperform their peers who receive instruction from other programs. Now for the first time, this program has been adapted for parent and child to use at home. Teach Your Child to Read in 100 Easy Lessons is a complete, step-by-step program that shows patents simply and clearly how to teach their children to read.

Twenty minutes a day is all you need, and within 100 teaching days your child will be reading on a solid second-grade reading level. It's a sensible, easy-to-follow, and enjoyable way to help your child gain the essential skills of reading. Everything you need is here -- no paste, no scissors, no flash cards, no complicated directions -- just you and your child learning together. One hundred lessons, fully illustrated and color-coded for clarity, give your child the basic and more advanced skills needed to become a good reader.

Teach Your Child to Read in 100 Easy Lessons will bring you and your child closer together, while giving your child the reading skills needed now, for a better chance at tomorrow. ... Read more

Reviews

This book is WONDERFUL!, July 14, 2000
I'm so impressed with how this book was put together. The lessons are fool proof for the parent, as they are written with detailed directions. New sounds are gradually worked into previously mastered tasks so that the child is never given more than he/she can handle (this does wonders for my daughter's reading confidence). Before you know it, your child is reading three and four paragraphs, and the process of getting there wasn't painful at all!

One note: I have read other reviews from parents using this book with 3 and 4 year olds. Certainly, if your preschooler shows an interest in reading, this book is an excellent choice. But NOTHING will work unless your child is READY to learn, not even "100 Lessons." Reading readiness happens at different ages (like every other milestone in childhood), and we as parents must respect our children's personal timetables (difficult to do sometimes, I know). Hey, remember when WE were in kindergarten? We spent our days playing, painting, napping (do they even nap anymore these days). Reading came along in first grade, and many of us may not have been ready to learn until then.

That said, buy the book and use it when your particular family is ready ~ ENJOY! :o)

Ignore the slow start, this book really works!, October 25, 2002
This book starts painfully slowly, but my advice is "hold on." At first, I couldn't stand the agonizingly plodding pace. And it wasn't just impatient me. My three year old didn't see the point of saying the list of words as slowly. But we gave it a chance anyway, after all the good Amazon reviews and marketing hype on the book itself. By a quarter of the way through, we began to look forward to reading time. One small addition I made to the scripted course was to invite in stuffed animal guest teachers (see suggestion 1 below). It worked like a charm.

I love the way the parent's part is scripted. The script turns anyone who can read into a patient, supportive master teacher! I love the way all sorts of short activities make up each lesson - very balanced. Best of all is the way this book's lessons touch all the bases. They connect letter sounds with words with stories with writing and finally, with reading comprehension, the point of the whole exercise. I really appreciate the short stories and the picture from the story with discussion questions. Now that I've talked to some teachers, this balanced, comprehensive approach is a perfect way to start a child reading. It doesn't lack any aspect that they will use later, or emphasize one to the exclusion of the others.

I didn't expect the writing, but I am very happy that it's in there. I bought the book for my three year old, but I am putting my 5 year old through it too, because it is so complete and methodical.

When I first saw the phonetic alphabet, I thought it was a little strange. But my child has no trouble recognizing the joined "sh" symbol as an "s" and an "h." And the "sh" is a single sound in his mind, as are "s" and "h." The notation caused us no problem at all, and I only mention it because another reviewer found it problematic. We did not. Likewise, I wasn't disturbed by short e not being mentioned sooner. Who cares? The order presented was gradual, and as logical as any other.(Although it led to a lot of stories about ants.)

I would also offer a few suggestions:

1. If your child loves his or her stuffed animals (or Power Rangers, etc.), then you can use them to be "guest teachers." When I started with this book, I hadn't yet come up with this diversionary tactic, and sometimes working through a lesson was harder than it needed to be. With a beanie baby teaching, my three year old is far more interested in the lessons. My boy picks which animals will help each night, and then he listens intently to them. They help sound out words, rhyme, and watch him write. They are much more interesting than old Daddy, as they are allowed to have excessive personality! When it is time to find certain words in the story, my son doesn't like to just point to the requested word. He prefers to race the beanie-baby guest teacher to the words. (The beanie baby invariably loses.) When it is time to write letters, the beanie baby counts them in Spanish. And so on.

2. Check out some of the "We Both Read" books to supplement toward the end of this book. The "We Both Read" series has a complicated left page for the adult, and a simple right page for the child. You take turns reading, and continue the "reading together" experience beyond the 100 easy lessons.

So after a slow and frustrating start, which in retrospect was absolutely necessary, we both look forward to our daily reading time. We brought in the beanie babies to inject the missing element of fun. I know Matthew will have a solid foundation in all the parts of written communication, and Matthew likes the fact that his favorite stuffed animals are teaching him to read.

Five stars. Awaiting "Human Relationships in 100 Easy Lessons."

Great book - but don't fall for the 100 "easy 20min" lesson, March 13, 2000
I had to write this after reading the rave reviews from parents of 3 year olds who taught their kids to read in 12 min. a night in less than 3 months. Don't buy this book if that is what you expect.

Don't get me wrong this is a GREAT book. I highly recommend it. But, it is NOT EASY (at least not for every child).

My nearly 5 begged "Please, please teach me to read Mommy". After about 20 lessons of this book she begged "Please, please I don't want to read". So we put it aside for a few months. When she asked to start again we started over at lesson 1 and went more slowly. We reviewed the previous lesson, did a new lesson, read a "Bob Book",played letter bingo. Some days we didn't do a new lesson - we just read a "Bob book" or reviewed an old lesson. YOU HAVE TO GO AT YOUR KIDS PACE. TAKE YOUR CUES FROM YOUR CHILD.

We're on lesson 94. I don't know if she reads at a 2nd grade level and I don't care. She is reading and excited about reading - and that's what it's all about.

Former Kindergarten teacher wishes she had this book!, June 10, 1999
I taught Kindergarten for three years before staying home with our first child. I wish that I had this book when teaching those eager five-year-olds! I am confident that all of my students would have been reading at a second grade level by the end of their Kindergarten year. I have been teaching our 3 1/2-year-old daughter how to read using this book and I am very impressed with the results. From teaching experience I can tell you that there isn't much better than this on the market. It is fun, easy for anyone to teach, and most of all, it works! Don't listen to those advocates of whole language reading--this curriculum uses phonics and teaches comprehension also, which is equally as important. This book will be all you need to turn your child into a successful reader. So, if your child is at a place where alphabet recognition and beginning phonics are boring, get this book! It is worth much more to me that the it costs to buy, and we will be using it to teach all of our children to read.

I thought this was ok, but then I tried out another program, September 1, 2004
I learned to read with 100 Easy Lessons, and have taught many children to read using this program (as a tutor.) 100 Easy Lessons works, but it is boring - for the parent AND the child. A new program has come out, by the same author that is 100 times better - called Funnix Beginning Reading. The program is on the computer. There is no script to read ( the computer does all the narration!) it is animated and has two levels. Plus, students start out reading with regular looking letters from the beginning.

Having used both programs extensively, I would try Funnix first!

Great results with one challenge, February 17, 2001
I taught my two boys to read with this program. The reading results were outstanding. In first grade, they both were reading on a 2nd to 3rd grade level or above. The only challenge I found later was that though this program teaches phonics (combined letter sounds, and multiple sounds for single vowels), it does not teach all the spelling rules. For instance, you teach that a silent e at the end of a word makes the vowel before it long, but there is never any mention in what e does in a word like "have" or "able." The e in "have" for those of you who don't know prevents the word from ending in v (no English words end in v), and in the word "able," it serves as the vowel for the second syllable "ble" (all syllables must have a vowel). The a in "able" is long because when a vowel ends the syllable as it does here being the only letter (one vowel can make up a syllable) it makes the long sound. My boys had trouble with spelling although they were good readers because they were not taught these rules along with the phonetic sounds. I am now using the Spaulding method which incorporates spelling with phonetics with my 6 year old daughter and she is not only reading well, but she understands the nuances of spelling. The Spaulding's book, "The Writing Road to Reading," (it may be under a new title) is put out by the Riggs Institute. I went back and taught these rules to my boys and they are now doing fine, but I believe I hampered them by not teaching them up front along with the phonetic sounds. (Wanda Sanseri, an expert on the Spaulding method, has a set of materials "Teaching REading at Home and School" in which she organizes the "The WRiting Road to Reading" in easily taught steps.)

It works!, December 20, 1999
I have now purchased two copies of Teach Your Child .... The first I purchased 7 years ago to teach my daughter. The second I purchased a year ago to teach my now 4 1/2 year old boy.

The negatives associated with the book are minimal - yes, there are a few typos and the lessons are rather bland. But on the whole the books is beautifully layed out, with easy progression and ample repetition.

I cover 2 lessons a night with my boy. The first lesson is a review of last night's new lesson. The second lesson is the next lesson in sequence. We spend about 30 minutes reading.

My boy is on lesson 70 now and he is quite excited about his new ability to read words! He sounds out words on billboards or on the back of the cereal box and seems to get a big kick out of the process. Reading is opening up a new world for him and I know he enjoys it.

As for my daughter, she entered school knowing how to read because of this book. I don't think the teacher believed me when I said she could read but I figured the teacher would find out soon enough. She did and adapted appropriately.

Yes, being ahead of the game may have lead to some slow days at school for my daughter, but I'd FAR RATHER her to be ahead than behind! And you should feel this way, too!

Truly, I believe that teaching reading to your child is one of the best acts of love you can ever give. This book accomplishes everything I had hoped for.

After the lessons are over, you still need to find some easy readers for your child. There are few books around that are just right, but be persistent. Spend another six months with your child with easy readers and you'll find that your child will take off on his or her own after that.

The overall time it took me to teach my daughter using the book was about six months. I expect the same with my boy. With my daughter, we went through the 100 lessons and then went back again through 60-100 to reinforce the earlier work.

I think you can (and probably must) modify the lessons to suit your situation.

Good luck!

It Works--Thoughts and tips from a dad who taught his 3 kids, January 19, 2004
Overview: The book does what it says, pretty much. In just 100 lessons you child should learn to read on a first-grade level. Not just decode words, but read and understand. The lessons are generally easy. I wondered how the book would get across difficult concepts such as short and long vowels and letter sometimes having different sounds. These are worked into the lessons just like everything else-a little bit at a time and in the right order-and they were no problem. There are no big concepts to teach, facts to memorize, etc. Some parts of some lessons might be difficult, but the concepts are broken down into pieces and taught over several lessons, so there are no stumbling blocks. Just 10-15 minutes for a lesson each night.

Other Books: I can't compare this to other books. This was the only one I could find when I started to teach my children and so I've not seen any others to compare it against. I know one book has a title of 20 lessons. After my experiences, I don't think 20 lessons is enough to learn anything useful.

My Experience, Child 1: I started with my oldest when she was 5. I was learning about how to do this while she was learning how to read. She was (and is) strong-willed and got upset easily when she had a problem. With the book's method, when the child makes a mistake you just tell them what they should say and let them try again until they get it right-very little pressure. However, my oldest would get frustrated when she could not get it right the first time. She would get so frustrated we would had to stop in the middle of a lesson and start over in a day or two many, many times. We also did not have a lesson every day. When she started kindergarten, I stopped the lessons because of the problems we were having and the fact that she was learning phonics in school. However, what she did learn gave her a head start and helped her. My experiences with my other two children showed that her experience was an exception. I think the problem was my lack of experience and her strong-willed nature. If I had it to do over, I would have continued the lessons though kindergarten.

Child 2: I started child 2 when she was 5. I had learned a lot from my first attempt and we did just fine. I did not remember to give her a lesson every day so it took a while to finish. We were only at 50 when she started kindergarten but we continued anyway. Starting at about lesson 60 or so she really seemed to catch on and each lesson got easier. She is now reading on level 3.2 half-way through first grade.

Child 3: I just started child 3 when he was 4 1/2. We are at lesson 25 and he is doing even better than child 2. We are having lessons almost every day and he should be finished when he is 5.

Tips:

1. Skip the "Writing Sounds" section of each lesson. This is the last part of each lesson where the child writes the letters they are learning. My first child had a problem with the "Writing Sounds" part of each lesson. She spent more time on this that the rest of the lesson and got frustrated with it very easily. On the advice of an elementary teacher, I started skipping this. She did better after that. I skipped for my other two and they did just fine without it. It does help reinforce learning the sounds, but it is a lot of effort than can discourage the child for a small return in learning.

2. Be on the look out for typos. There are quite a few of them in the book. There were all in the words for the parent, so it's not too bad. Most of them are words in the wrong color-red verses black.

3. Don't be too literal with reading exactly the instructions the parent is supposed to read to the child. In particular, the phrase "Don't get fooled" appeared a lot. This got old very quick and didn't apply anyway so I started leaving it out.

4. The book teaches pronouncing "was" as "wuz." This is an acceptable pronunciation, but I believe that "woz" is more correct. (And I'm from Alabama.) I taught mine to say "woz". You might want to do this also. (This is one of the few words like "is" and "said" that can't just be sounded out.)

5. The hardest thing for my children to learn was the leap from saying the sounds in a word to saying the word-from s (pause) a (pause) m to sam. This is really the only hard thing in the book. If you child has a problem with this, work on this with them. Tell them to try to keep saying one sound until they start the next one. They will eventually get it right. It took my second from lesson 15 until about lesson 40 to get this right. With my third child I knew this going in and emphasized the "rhyming" and other parts in the first 20 lessons and he picked it up a lot quicker.

6. Before you start, read through a few lessons throughout the book to get a feel for how the lessons progress. This would have helped me a lot with the first child.

7. Don't get stressed. It really is 100 easy lessons. If your child has a problem, feel free to backup a few lessons.

8. Try very hard not to skip days. This was really a problem with my first two. I've been better about it with my third and it seems to help.

For introducing reading or remediation at school or home, May 31, 2000
Distar/SRA Cirriculum. Simple & easy to use. Very helpful for preventing decoding errors and for those with learning disabilities such as dyslexia.

I was introduced to this program in my undergraduate elementary education training. I used it successfully to remediate a large group of elementary-aged children who were illiterate. Within 5 weeks, they were all reading fluently, at the end of a 1st grade level. My colleagues used it successfully to teach 1st grade students to read, with the same success.

Fifteen years later, I was home schooling my own children, relying on it to un-do the "whole language" decoding reflex my children developed in the public school system. They were taught to memorize the way words looked, rather than to sound them out. I guess that might work, if we were studying Chinese!

This system is phonetically based (as is 85% of the English language!). It is simple and easy to use, with clear instructions for the instructor, giving precise pronunciation guidelines for you to model sounds accurately for your student. There is little if any preparation time involved. Furthermore, letters of the alphabet that are commonly reversed and confused, such as d and b are set in different type. This helps eliminate a lot of decoding confusion for the child. I highly recommend it!

A real life saver., December 15, 2000
I bought this book while my son was in first grade. The school he attended used phonics and whole language in an "integrated" approach. This sounded great at the outset... the best of both worlds. We quickly found, however, that this "integrated" approach meant a disorganized approach. After three quarters of first grade, my son still could not read basic words and ranked at the bottom of his class for reading. He was placed in a special reading group for children below grade level. Although my son received additional help, this special class was very hard on his self esteem and we eventually removed him from it and increased the time we spent tutoring him at home. We began using the book at the recommendation of a retired special education teacher. My son's reading progress was very slow at the beginning of the book and we became somewhat frustrated but continued on. After completing 70 lessons, things began to click. A foundation had been built. We completed the book and later bought several other books based on direct instruction methods. We have been enormously pleased with the results. My son was tested during the first quarter of second grade and placed in an advanced reading group of children reading at the third grade level. This progress occurred over six months!! If schools used this method it would markedly improve the literacy rate in the USA. Our 4 year old son is currently completing the book and now reads at a first grade level. Buy this book if your child is having difficulty with reading. For the price, it is a great investment! ... Read more

Editorial Review

Fifty Dangerous Things (you should let your children do) is the first book from the people who created Tinkering School. With projects, activities, experiences, and skills ranging from "Superglue Your Fingers Together" to "Play with Fire," along with 48 other great ideas, the book is a manifesto for kids and parents alike to reclaim childhood. Easy to follow instructions, fun facts, and challenging undertakings that will engage and inspire whole households.Why Fifty Dangerous Things?First off, Five Dangerous Things just weren't enough (although the audience at TED thought it was a good starting point).More importantly, there are many "dangerous" things that are interesting, eye-opening, enlightening or just plain fun!And while there are aspects of danger in virtually everything we do, the trick is to learn how mastery actually minimizes danger.Most of us learn how to walk without toppling over at a very young age, so that walking is no longer dangerous.Next we learn to negotiate stairs.Why stop there?Why not practice and become proficient at walking on the roof or walking on a tightrope?These are just a few of the Fifty Dangerous Things that we invite you to try.Take a peek and step into a world of danger and discovery. ... Read more

Reviews

Release your kids from the bubble wrap, January 4, 2010
I discovered Gever Tulley on [...] and was fascinated by his speech entitled "5 Dangerous Things you Should let your Children do." Among the list of five things that Mr. Tulley suggested that children should do: play with fire, drive a car and own a pocketknife. Let me say that these suggestions initially tormented this helicopter mom.

Yes, fellow parents, I can feel the cringes now. But, let's think about it. We used to be free-range children. We rode our bicycles without helmets. We played in the neighborhood/woods all day long, only returning home for dinner refueling. We whittled with pocketknives, and yes, most of us probably played with fire. We probably survived these experiences unscathed or with minor scrapes.

The "5 Dangerous Things" lecture was the precursor to his new book which has just been published, and it is called "50 Dangerous Things (you should let your children do)." My tween daughter and I are working our way through this hands-on activity book, which has space for your own field notes.

Mr. Tulley's book promotes learning, and believe it or not, safety. Quote from his website: "There are many "dangerous" things that are interesting, eye-opening, enlightening or just plain fun! And while there are aspects of danger in virtually everything we do, the trick is to learn how mastery actually minimizes danger."

As parents, we need to give our children opportunities to tinker, explore and experiment. We must endeavor to raise the next generation of great thinkers. We already have our copy...where's yours?

Clear, helpful, inspirational, appropriate, January 26, 2010
I'm a parent of young children, so I certainly understand the urge to be protective. Still, sometimes it's more important to know when you're *too* scared of what might happen, and that's when this book comes in very handy indeed. Tulley and Spiegler do an excellent job of balancing caution with excitement; each of the fifty things has enough danger to be interesting, and enough background insight to be intriguing. The lack of sexism is also refreshing; this is a book for *all* kids, boys and girls alike.

All parents who want their kids to develop more confidence and skill in the face of hazardous life situations -- and isn't that *all* parents? -- can benefit from this book. Even if you don't do *any* of the things listed, the overall attitude -- that confidence comes from skill and from knowing and managing risk -- is very helpful and affirming.

I just have to comment on the one-star review here by "L. Helw." I am not sure why that reviewer got so upset at the concept of an activity book such as this, but most of their complaints seem to be addressed at some other book altogether. In particular, Fifty Dangerous Things is very clear that parents and kids should do only the things they find enjoyable, but the one-star reviewer seems to think the book is demanding that all kids do all fifty things. That's only one example of how the one-star review is based on, at best, a very shallow and hasty reading.

Great book!!!!!!!!!!, January 13, 2010
This book is absolutely fabulous. It is so important to teach children how to be safe during the adventures you know they will have. The book is cute, clever, thorough and simply wonderful. We couldn't get enough and bought copies for all of our friends with kids! Such a creative and great way to introduce fun stuff for children to explore. Highest recommendations!!!

a list for people who need help thinking of dangerous things to do, January 8, 2010
I'm all for allowing one's children to do dangerous things, and I think the list that Mr. Tulley provides is a good and well thought out list for those parents who are concerned about letting their children do things that may seem overly dangerous at first glance. This book has plenty of possibilities, and plenty of warnings about the very limited danger that their children will be facing by attempting each challenge. Many children will be thrilled with receiving this book and with the idea that their parents are going to be complicit in the danger introduced by the experiments.

My only complaint is that there is a necessity for the book to exist in the first place. Childhood is naturally a place where dangerous activities are readily at hand, and parents should take the opportunity to help their children through these dangerous times spontaneously when the child is ready to confront the dangerous thing they want to do. For a child to be looking up dangerous things to do in a book of ideas generated by a stranger, rather than dealing with the naturally occurring danger in their own experience, is a sad comment on the overprotected lives most youngsters live these days.

It's like a science workbook... only more fun, January 15, 2010

This is a great book. The focus on "danger" hides the reality, which is that it's a book of simple real-world science experiments that are fun and interesting. The design and layout of the book is terrific -- it's like a workbook, with lots of space to jot your notes, and little facts about each activity. My son is a little too young for some of the activities, but I plan to keep the book around for years and let him pick out activities to try. Even if you're not an "overprotective parent", this is just a great piece of work.

Set the children free, January 14, 2010
Great book. We love things like this at our house.

All I can say is that I'm damn glad I didn't grow up with anal-retentive helicopter parents. I've done everything in this book, and a lot more. I'm still here, I'm sane (IMHO), I'm successful, and I'm going to make sure my own daughter also has every possible opportunity to have fun, learn responsibility, and understand consequences while she explores the world and finds her own place in it.

She already knows how to drive a car, and last night we played with fire. Tonight we're going to build a fart simulator (from Howtoons)and fry a CD in the microwave. She's 8 years old.

Set the children free. The last thing the world needs right now is more timid, fearful, uptight people. This book is a positive step towards helping the next generation experience the thrill of discovery, cope with the temporary dismay of failure, and gain the courage to try new things.

Working Our Way Through This List!, February 11, 2010
This is a really great way to have fun with your kids. My 9-year old and I are having fun being "dangerous" and learning all sorts of interesting things. Experimenting with various items in the microwave was incredible (and also useful... while an egg from the fridge will explode, a cracked egg makes an easy snack!)... and marshmallows (oh don't get me started they're awesome, we even caught them on fire -- ICK!). The outcome is that your child will learn responsibility, purpose and feel a sense of mastery and autonomy. What more could you want from such simple activities. I am looking forward to doing the entire list... things I haven't even done myself! We Gever Tulley!

A great resource - best for 6 to 10-year-olds, April 29, 2010
Bought this mostly because I loved the concept. The activities are fun, and each one explains to the parent why this is a good activity to do with your kids, as well as how to keep it reasonably safe. Activities are rated in terms of duration and difficulty, and each includes what materials are needed to stay safe. There is also a "supplemental facts" section for each activity that helps parents explain to kids what is going on. For example, in the "Stand outside in a hailstorm" activity, there is a paragraph on how hail is created and how it is studied.

If you're a worried parent that wonders how far to let your kid go, this would be a good start. You can start off with easy, low-risk activities and then gradually choose more challenging ones as you and your child gain confidence.

The best age for kids to use this book (in my opinion) is 6 to 10 years old. Older kids will appreciate some of the more difficult activities (like "build a bomb", which is all about chemical reactions and making a Ziploc bag pop). Younger kids will need to stick to the very simplest activities.

Highly recommended.

Just Like ... But with less stuff, September 23, 2010
I think the surge of books that advocate children doing adventurous things is past due and there is a genuine need for it in our Helicopter Parent Society.

This is a good example but I would recommend a couple other books over this one.

The Dangerous Book for Boys

The Daring Book for Girls

Geek Dad: Awesomely Geeky Projects and Activities for Dads and Kids to Share

Theo Gray's Mad Science: Experiments You Can Do At Home - But Probably Shouldn't

Are a few that come to mind and are much better either because they have more complete list of supplies or in the case of the Dangerous Book for Boys and Dangerous Book for Boys, it isn't just stuff to do its stories and history that kids will actually enjoy.

50 Dangerous Things, May 14, 2010
This is a good little guide to carefully bringing real experiences to our children today. Most of these things were done spontaneously when my husband and I were children. There is a great deal of value to being in the moment of an adventure. This guide allows parents to be part of the adventure lacking the possible emergency room visit. I am planning on using it as part of my fun curriculum for this summer with my boys. ... Read more

Editorial Review

What's in the picture? As children find out in Connect the Dots, they practice counting from 1-10 as well as improve fine motor skills and eye-hand coordination. ... Read more

Reviews

Fun, Fun, Fun!, June 10, 2000
My children just love this book. They go back to it time and time again. Solving the puzzles and getting to see the pictures is a real treat.(and it encourages problem solving and persistance.) I highly recommend this book for children between 2-5.

Cute book, January 19, 2009
I purchased the book as a filler item to get my free shipping. Once I received it I thought it was super cute and my three year old loved it. I like that the connect the dots are easy to read and the numbers start small (1-5). Cute book.

numbers 1-10, September 1, 2010
A fantastic 1st dot to dot book. This book only uses numbers 1-10.

My 3 1/2 year old can do these easily by himself. He likes it, but tends to prefer the dot to dots in the Kumon 1-70 number games book. Unlike Kumon, you can kind of tell what the picture is even before connecting the dots (reason I docked a star). He likes the greater mystery of the Kumon dot to dot.

Perfect book for 4 years old, November 30, 2009
I bought this book as a filler item for my purchase so that I can get the free shipping. I gave it to my 4 years old daughter and she had so much fun to find the numbers and connect the dot. The graphics are pretty and nice and I found that it is an educational book for children to do during weekend.

not worth it for the price, September 29, 2009
I only bought this as filler to get free shipping....
It was over a dollar and definitely not worth a dollar. There's not many pages, you can get much more for your money at Walmart or dollar store....but it works as a free shipping filler I guess... ... Read more

Editorial Review

When you learn to awaken your family’s creativity, wonderful things will happen: you’ll make meaningful connections with your children in large and small ways; your children will more often engage in their own creative discoveries; and your family will embrace new ways to relax, play, and grow together. With just the simple tools around you—your imagination, basic art supplies, household objects, and natural materials—you can transform your family life, and have so much more fun!

Amanda Soule has charmed many with her tales of creativity and parenting on her blog, SouleMama. Here she shares ideas and projects with the same warm tone and down-to-earth voice. Perfect for all families, the wide range of projects presented here offers ideas for imaginative play, art and crafts, nature explorations, and family celebrations.

This book embraces a whole new way of living that will engage your children’s imagination, celebrate their achievements, and help you to express love and gratitude for each other as a family.

To learn more about the author, Amanda Soule, visit her blog at www.SouleMama.com.

Click on the thumbnail to view a larger image.



Pages 58–59



Pages 60–61



Pages 62–63 ... Read more

Reviews

A sweet book, but a little disappointing., November 14, 2008
I thought this was a sweet book, and a pleasant read. Amanda Soule is a wonderful writer. I was a little disappointed that there were no new ideas presented here though. I felt like I was reading the same Waldorf family book I've read several times before. People say "everything has been done before", but I feel that authors can still incorporate new ideas or put their own twist on things. I did not see this here.

I was also disappointed with the craft projects. Aside from the fact that many were the same projects found all over the internet and in many other craft books, I found that most of them were projects geared towards adults with small touches added by children. I was expecting more projects actually for children, or where children played a much bigger role.

I think this would be a perfect book for someone who is new to Waldorf and Montessori philosophy and was looking for ways to incorporate these philosophies into their family life, or for someone who is looking for a simple, pleasant read paired with beautiful pictures. If you've been involved in simple family living for quite some time and are looking for something new, I would look elsewhere.

A really sweet book about celebrating your family, April 5, 2008
"The Creative Family" is really, very simply, a sweet, gentle, and dear book on family traditions and togetherness.

Most of the ideas in this book were not new to me. In fact, much of it could be written about my actual family life. If you are familiar with the Waldorf tradition, and books such as "You are your child's first teacher", "The Children's Year" and "All Year Round", "Heaven on Earth", or some of the other little "Waldorfy" craft books out there, then many of the ideas in "The Creative Family" will not be new to you, either.

But I don't think that "being new" is the most important thing about this book. I think that it is really fantastic that Amanda Soule has taken many of these tried-and-true (perhaps less well-known/mainstream) ideas about parenting, family life, and creativity, and blended them together into one simple, easy to read, compact and easy to reach for, updated resource.

The photography is really beautiful, and the projects are all simple enough to be done by a pre-schooler (some with more help than others).

This is more than a project book, however (in fact, I would not even describe it as being a project book). It is more about a way of life -- taking a step back, learning that a "no" really can be a "yes," and so on. Her thoughts about toys were excellent -- again, exactly what our family has already practiced since our first child was quite small -- but, in observing so many of my friends with young children, ideas that would help many an overwhelmed family learn to say "no" to too much stuff.

I was most inspired by her tips on art supplies -- a good comprehensive list of supplies, along with tips on their storage. It's one thing that I don't think we had a good system for before, and I will definitely be incorporating some of her ideas into our life.

This book is a gem. It's small and simple. It suggests simple steps that any family can take to make their lives more family-centered and joyful.

For your child... and your inner child, April 23, 2008
You may think this is an arts and crafts book. But really, it's a parenting guide. Though it's filled with things you can do with your children, it also brings out the kid in you, and in the process helps you become a better mom or dad. The activities involve getting dirty with your kids, going outside and finding things like cool leaves and bugs, or drawing with crayons. Most are best suited for families with preschool- through elementary-aged kids.

The book is divided into four sections, each with three chapters:

Part One: Gathering
1. Preparing Your Creative Mind
2. Gathering Materials
3. Being Resourceful

Part Two: Playing
4. Encouraging Imagination
5. Supporting Your Young Artist
6. Sharing the Tradition of Handmade

Part Three: Living
7. Exploring Through Nature
8. Capturing Moments
9. Everyday Rituals

Part Four: Connecting
10. Celebrating Your Family
11. Handmade Holidays
12. Creative Connections

At the end of the book, a six-page resource guide lists other books and websites on the same topics.

Even though my daughter is 14, we both found this book worthwhile. For example, we set up a Nature Table. Before, all the tiny miracles we brought home in our pockets ended up in the trash. Now we have a spot. At the moment it has a handful of seashells, three skate egg cases, some hot pink sea whips, an orange sponge and a sparkly rock she snared last week on a trip with her dad out to the Grand Canyon.

consider me inspired!, April 1, 2008
This book is pure, unadulterated creative dynamite! I wanted to review this book knowing that I would enjoy it, but I had no idea to what extent it would challenge my family and I. Amanda and the rest of the Soule family do an excellent job in this book of inspiring creativity, of living artfully and of helping other families reach their creative potential as well. Last night, after reading a little over half of the book throughout the day, I could not sleep for hours (and I usually have no problem) but my mind was stewing, in hard-core overdrive imagining all the fun things we can do together as a family, thinking of all the neat projects that my two little boys are old enough to do now that are in this book!


Some of the exciting projects include little hands learning to felt, sew, make stuffed art, knit, and embroider. Other projects that stood out to me were family drawing time, making traditions, handmade holidays, art placemats, and "craftivisim" . If you have thought about the level of creativity in your house, and desire it to ebb and flow out of all of you and yours, The Creative Family by Amanda Blake will be a sweet dream that can be your new reality, an amazing place that after you have entered you'll know you just gotta stay. The best thing is that kids are drawn to create and it need not be something you are apprehensive about, take it from Soule, she believes that, " as human beings, we are all born with the ability, the desire, the passion, and the drive to be creative. We may become anxious about "teaching" creativity to our children, but there is really no need for us to teach. They know how to be creative. The know it with every ounce of their being- it isn't conscious or rational. It is simply who they are. Until somethings stands in their way [...]they will be creative" (p. 13).

Consider me inspired: Yesterday I set up an inspiration wire (p. 21), and several times I noticed my little one checking out his art on the wall with intense pride. I went out and found some things that our art cabinet (dresser)(p. 25) was in need of, and I was dying to do the projects in the book. Today, after reading the section on letting your kids use good quality things I (must admit reluctantly) let my four-year-old paint with my paint brushes...the results were just beautiful, let me tell you that next time I will not hesitate, he can use my brush! This weekend we are going to do the freezer-paper stenciling (p. 74) after I find the shirts we need, and because our "inspiration wire" is already way too full I am going to put together some sturdy art clips (p. 83) up at some point in the near future. The project that I am incredibly excited about though, and have already been eyeing materials for is the incredible "Banging Wall" (p. 197) I cannot wait to get that up in our backyard! Those are the projects that have inspired me, since yesterday...and there are many more in this book waiting to be used as well.

One of my favourite aspects of this book is the desire to bless others with your art, for whom you want to express love or care for. Here is an especially great quote on just that, Soule says, " Living a creative live is made all the more fulfilling and rewarding when we are creating with, for or because of others. Much creative drive is certainly internally driven, but there is such benefit to creating beyond ourselves, beyond our family, and beyond our homes, for our community and the world around us. Connecting with and creating with others can be a powerful and inspiring act, as well as a wonderful gift for our children, teaching them how to connect and share their own passions with others" (p. 191). It is beautiful to allow art to not only influence your family, but to impact those around you as well. Kids and parents alike learn life lessons from such acts.

This is one of those books that come around very much too infrequently that you would like to buy 100 of and give one to all your friends because you know they would love it too...but then you do the calculations and realize that would not go over too well with family budgeting. No, seriously I will buy this book for several of my close friends who I know will love it just as much as me, and to all the rest of my friends who would also love it just as much I will give it the highest recommendations possible. All I can say, if you believe in creativity, or would like to start...buy this book and you will want all your friends to buy it too!

Oh, and check out her pretty much daily blog at: http://soulemama.typepad.com/soulemama/

Gorgeous book, best for new moms, has some flaws, September 24, 2009
I waited over a year before reviewing this book because I wanted to give it a 5-star review. I love the idea behind the book, and I enjoy the author's blog a great deal. When I couldn't rate the book as highly as I wanted to, I decided not to review at all. However, I always look at the 1,2, and 3 star reviews before selecting a book because they give usually give the most useful information, so I'm going to point out where I think the book shines and where I think it falls short.

First, this is a beautiful book with lots of inspiring photos of the author and her children being happy together, and of pleasant spaces in and around the author's home. The projects are simple and, as other reviewers have noted, nothing that you couldn't find in other craft books, blogs, and magazines. However, they provide a good selection of techniques and media, and they are well-presented.

This would make a great book for a new parent looking for ways to nourish her own and her child's creative spirit. I would give it to moms who already had a creative mindset but I think it could also make a good gift for a parent who isn't especially crafty, because there are plenty of ideas for simply providing open-ended materials for kids (and adults) to play around with. I think it would also make good reading for families who've lost touch with their creative selves or with each other.

I wouldn't recommend this book to anyone who already has a creative, nurturing family life or who already 'makes stuff' with her kids. There really isn't anything new here for such readers. Even if you're an avid bibliophile like me, I would hold off on this one in preference for something with more projects or more in-depth discussions of how to nurture children. The writing style is enjoyable but the content is a little shallow and there are too many passages that sound vaguely familiar, as though the author is repeating herself in slightly different words.

I would also warn readers that the author sometimes comes across as condescending or smug. Her advice to buy small quantities of high-quality art materials rather than a whole lot of crap is good as far as it goes, but she is a little too sanguine in her reliance on thrift stores and surplus sales. Yes, sometimes you can get extremely lucky at the thrift store or a yard sale, and perhaps some art schools really do sell off surplus materials, but in the end most of us will have to budget for markers, paints, fabric, and yarn and we will have to make compromises based on what we can afford. The 'resource list' at the end of the book is painfully brief and includes only moderate to very expensive retailers. The book would have been better with a longer list of resources and more ideas about what materials to splurge on and what materials to buy cheaply.

In another section, the author encourages readers to find a 'special spot' out in nature where they will feel 'grounded and connected to the earth.' She urges us not to let 'financial or geographical circumstances get in the way of having a spot.." because nature can be found in the middle of a city! Coming from someone fortunate enough to live in coastal Maine, this is a bit much. I live in the city and yes, we have wildlife of the plant and animal kind here, but it does make a difference, contrary to what the author says a few pages later, "whether it's a small patch of dandelions on a tiny strip of city grass or a remote, wide-open lake with room to explore." It's silly and a little insulting to pretend that place doesn't matter.

Many readers, looking at the photo of the author's children paddling a canoe or playing on the beach will feel a little wistful that they can't provide that kind of experience for their children very often or even at all. Those of us who live in cities (or in poorly-planned suburbs) know that, despite cultural amenities and public transportation, the noise, crime, grime, and nature deficit all take their toll. Those of us who struggle financially know that it's impossible not to allow financial constraints to 'get in the way.' On the other hand, I almost feel I should praise the author for even alluding to a subject many authors would simply have ignored. I also feel I should thank the author, because she inspired me to begin writing a zine about enjoying nature and living creatively for limited-income urbanites like me!

That note of privilege and blissful ignorance is present throughout the book, as is a mild dose of self-congratulation. I think it's pretty easy to get past that and to enjoy the evident joy and pleasure the author takes in her children and in her lifestyle. It's refreshing to read about a homemaker who finds the work fulfilling and rewarding, especially because the decision to be a homemaker is almost incidental. Although the author can sometimes seem repetitious or a little smug, she also comes across as a happy, fulfilled mother who has lots of good ideas to share.

Misleading Title, November 1, 2008
I had this book on my "wishlist"on Amazon for some time & decided on a splurge for myself instead of a new treasure for the kiddos. I wished I'd checked her blog before I bought, I could've save myself some money. This is a classic case of don't judge a book by it's cover. The front is very captivating w/ the author & her beautiful children giggling & creating together. I was bummed to find that there are very few actual art projects in the books and the ones that are in the book are rehashes from old Martha Stewart Kids magazines or that we'd already done through Waldorf classes.
For those who are in awe of her parenting style, have they never heard of Waldorf? This book would be more aptly titled, "Living the Waldorf Life". You may be money ahead to find some Waldorf books on Amazon. All is not lost though, the photgraphs were fun to get a peek at her life & precious children. The photo of her son putting on make-up is priceless, what a handsome little boy. I also have to admit that I am a tad jealous of the armoire that they found by the side of a road as a freebie. Why aren't my curbside finds that good?!
Honestly though, this is really just a book on living the Waldorf lifestyle.

wishing every parent could have this book, April 7, 2008
I was excited to receive an advance copy of Amanda Soule's new book. The Creative Family is her sweetly inspiring collection of projects, ideas and thoughts on family life at home. Home with little ones- precious, curious children just beginning their own creative adventures. Like her blog, the book is a clever handbook of the ways that a family can simply play and learn together, enriching each other's creativity with imagination and invention.

I am loving this little book- small enough that it sits perfectly on top of the stack here. It is beautifully designed and easy to dip into, though harder to put down. Most of all, I love the way that Amanda's parenting style fills their lives with creative discovery. Children are natural teachers too, their gentle ways instilling respect and affection for siblings, a calmer pace for the household. I like the accessible crafts that the family has created- sewn, built, mixed from simple materials and resources. Handmade knitting needles (how cool!), art-on-the-go bags, a banging wall from kitchen pots and pans. Rituals, traditions, parlor games, all within budget, without commercially marketed products. Fabulous, thrifty, home-made fun.

You know how you hear people jokingly say over the heads of their children, Where's the owner's manual? I think it's here, in the pages of thoughtful books like Amanda's. This wonderful book reminds us that there is no better, or more natural way to nurture our children- and ourselves- than with our own enthusiasm, patience, care and creativity.

Very Inspirational, May 16, 2008
I love this book SO much - it's so simple, yet holds a lot of inspiration and joy. As others have said, it goes beyond just crafting, and explores a way of BEing with your kids, appreciating what (and who) you have around you. I am deeply connected with my boys, but I never did a lot of crafty stuff with them; I never believed I was 'talented' enough to do that. I got inspired after reading Amanda's book, and the boys and I are choosing things to do together. They are 9 and 15, and have really enjoyed it, so it's definitely NOT just for younger kids. Her ideas and examples have also provided jumping-off places for them to create stuff on their own, that they might not have tried otherwise.

I highly recommend this book for all families.

Didn't love it, July 11, 2008
Do yourself a favor and check out her website before you order this book. If you like the sugesstions and tips she has there then you'll probably enjoy the book. I found it to be way too simplistic. She repeats a mantra of our ancestors being naturally creative because they had to, be creative and your children will be.... Just not what I was looking for.

A book to create much more than home projects, April 6, 2008
I just received this book, read 2 pages, and knew that this was just what I needed! The ideas, and information that are in the book are things that as a child 30 years ago my family did together and the book takes me there and away from what today's society has created for our children. Some of us easily get caught up with what is on your local chain store shelves as being educational and fun, rather than looking in our own back yards and with items that we already have to create memories, education, and beautiful projects. I love the section that talks about sharing blessings at the dinner table, for an agnostic family I loved the examples and traditions that were thankful but not based on beliefs that we are not part of.
For someone who would like to SIMPLIFY, and create more bonding and memories in there family life, to get away from consuming more with the parenting of today, this book is perfect! Like the others I am truly inspired and so excited!
... Read more

Editorial Review

The revised and updated edition of a groundbreaking special-needs activity guide

This revised edition of the companion volume to The Out-of-Sync Child includes new activities that parents of kids with Sensory Processing Disorder can do at home with their child, along with updated information on which activities are most appropriate for children with coexisting conditions such as Asperger's, autism, and more. ... Read more

Reviews

Very practical solutions, March 31, 2007
I have two children with autism and bookcases full of theory on what works best for them. None are as practical and hands on as this book. These are great ideas that don't reguire tons of extra planning and effort. They are fun and they really work. They are also great for ideas for autistic and neurotypical kids to praticipate in together. Most of these ideas would be fun for all kids not just children with sensory processing difficulties.

Great Resource, May 11, 2007
We got this book right after our son was diagnosed with autism. It is the kind of book that you can constantly refer back to as your child progresses and learns new skills. Our child has really enjoyed participating in the activities. Also, the activities are interesting enough that our other son, who does not have autism, enjoys participating as well. This allows for some great peer interaction. I highly recommend this book to anyone who is dealing with a child with sensory integration issues. It is just great!

Just what we needed!!!, March 21, 2007
Having a son that has just been diagnosed with autism and feeling helpless, this book is just what we needed. This book helped me play wiith my son in ways that were so helpful to him. The book gave me ideas that made my own creative juices flow and I found myself wanting to make toys instead of purchasing them. And we all know that toys can get very expensive. I think it's a must for parents of autistic children.

Great Resource for Parents and Teachers, May 29, 2007
The Out-of-Sync Child Has Fun is a great resource for parents and teachers. As a teacher of special needs kids, I'm always looking for materials to share with parents, and this one is really meeting the need. Ms. Kranowitz knows her topic. Her ideas for simple, fun activities that teach are easy to follow. This is a book I will use over and over again.

Back To Basics, January 9, 2007
I think that with technology as it is, we sometimes forget how beneficial basic play can be and how greatly it aides in our child's development.
This is such a great book and is so well organized. Every parent and gradparent/childcare giver of children should have this book, Sensory issues or not!

Very Helpful, July 26, 2008
Contains many practical and easy activities that are fun for any child, not just "out of sync." Tried several already and found my grandson loved the originality and the use of everyday objects as situations for play.

Therapy that doesn't feel like therapy, March 29, 2009
Being the adoptive mother of a wonderful little girl with Special Needs, I am ALWAYS looking for new and fun ways to add to her therapy that doesn't feel like therapy. Having found the "Out of Sync Child" book a tremendouse help in our day to day lives, I was hopeful this book would prove beneficial to our play time. And it is. My daughter suffers from Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorders, a condition that is the result of her being prenatally exposed to alcohol by her birth mother. Her challenges are many, including; Severe Sensory Processing Disorder, OCD, ADHD, Short Term Memory Loss, Cognitive Delays, Emotional Delays, Behavorial issues, just to name a few. Many of these challenges seem to accompany MOST of the brain disorders. So I think this book would be a great addition to the library of any caregiver, teacher, therapist, anyone, that faces these challenges with their child / client.

A must have for parents of children w/autism, June 20, 2008
I've had this book for a couple of years and I love it. I've purchased at least twenty books on autism and this is one of the two I have kept. The ideas are practical, involve materials you can buy inexpensively (or you probably already have around the house) and it's fun for ALL kids. My nt daughter enjoys these activities just as much as my ASD son!

Easy and fun activities, October 4, 2007
While this book is especially helpful for families with children with sensory processing disorder (SPD), all children will enjoy these creative ideas. The summary of different types of SPD at the beginning is useful to show other family members and friends who want to understand your child better.

A great collection of ideas!, July 14, 2010
I purchased this book when our oldest was first diagnosed with having some sensory processing difficulties. The book contains a wealth of ideas for sensory challenged children and each of the activities is sectioned within a chapter pertaining to a particular sense, like vestibular activities, tactile activites, auditory, etc., so that you can customize your play regime specifically to the needs of your child (or just try a little of them all, they are great fun!) This book outways any fancy toy or jungle gym by far. The games are easy and inexpensive to play, most using items you probably already have around the house and many contain variations to spice up your routine. Some you may recognize as things you did yourself as a child and you may find it fascinating to read how these particular activities helps our sensory growth. These activities are great fun for unchallenged children as well (our younger child had a blast doing them with our older one), making great boredom busters for rainy days or out of school summers. The age range is listed with each activity, most of them around 3-teen, making it easy for parents to pick and choose as well as quick summaries on what skills the activity builds. For parents of children with and without SPD, this is a great resource book for play activities that invite creativity, learning, and fun to your home. I would highly recommend this book to any parent of small children. ... Read more

Editorial Review

An all-encompassing guide to entertaining, amazing, and possibly even educating children, Be the Coolest Dad on the Block provides the perfect excuse to stand on a balloon, play with grated cheese in the microwave, and unroll an entire roll of toilet paper, all in the name of spending time with your kids.

Written by a comedy writer and a cartoonist with thirty years’ combined experience as dads, Be the Coolest Dad on the Block is a cornucopia of practical parenting advice, like how to skip stones or teach a kid to ride a bike. It has answers to the pesky questions kids love, such as “Why is the sky blue?” or “Where do babies come from?” And it can help dads entertain large groups of kids with slapstick gags (“burp the alphabet”) or cool tricks (“the hole in the head”). Be the Coolest Dad on the Block also contains spooky myths for telling around the campfire and loads of quizzes and jokes for rainy days or endless car rides.

With a range of ideas to suit all situations and sensibilities, Be the Coolest Dad on the Blockgives any dad the right stuff to be the wackiest and smartest guy in the room. ... Read more

Editorial Review

365 FUN, CREATIVE ACTIVITIES TO STIMULATE YOUR PRESCHOOLER EVERY DAY OF THE YEAR

This book contains 365 activities (one for each day of the year) for three- to six-year-olds using things found around the home. It shows parents and day-care providers how to:

• Save money by making your own paints, playdough, craft clays, glue, paste, and other arts and crafts supplies.

• Prevent boredom during even the longest stretches of indoor weather with ideas for indoor play, kitchen activities, and arts and crafts projects.

• Stimulate a child's natural curiosity with fun reading, math, and science activities.

• Encourage a child's physical, mental, and emotional growth with ideas for music, dance, drama, and outdoor play.

• Celebrate holidays and other occasions with special projects and activities.

• Keep children occupied during long trips or cross-town errands.

The Preschooler's Busy Book is written with warmth and sprinkled with humor and insight. It should be required reading for anyone raising or teaching preschool-age children. ... Read more

Reviews

a great resource for caregivers of energetic preschoolers, March 4, 2003
I have gotten a lot of use out of the author's book for toddlers, and feared this book might contain too much overlap, but I figured it was worth a few dollars to find out and I was pleasantly surprised. This edition dives into math, reading readiness and more challenging crafts. Kudos to the author, who could have been lazy but wasn't!

The book is nicely organized and the author writes with humor and affection. A chapter of introduction helps you plan, supply and mentally prepare for those long days when you are running out of ideas, and subsequent chapters organized projects into the following sections: Rainy Day Play; Kids in the Kitchen; Outdoor Adventures; Out and About; Reading, Writing, 'Rithmetic and More; Music, Dance and Drama; Arts and Crafts; and Birthdays and Holidays. Most activities are simple to set up, generally using two to four common household items. Appendices list recipes for basic paints, doughs, glues and clay; activities for a Crazy Can (a random drawing setup implementing activities that aren't messy and need little supervision); gifts children can make; best books for young children; and resources. The index lists projects (but not materials, which would be helpful in later editions).

The book subtitle, 365 Creative Games and Activities to Keep Your 3- to 6-Year-Old Busy, says it all. I found quite a few good ideas in this well-organized, friendly guide.

Just as wonderful as the Toddler Busy book, October 10, 2005
I ordered the two books together and they are highly recommended. Ms. Kuffner doesn't repeat (much) in the books so it's worth it to have both. My 3 year old and his 11 year old sister love the activities in this book as well as many adults who have played with us.

I have been using both books to put together a homeschool preschool program for my 2 sons, and they're great for that.

A great resource idea book!, September 27, 2005
I get a TON of ideas from Preschooler's Busy Book by Trish Kuffner. I'm a home daycare provider and I'm always looking for ideas to do with my daycare kids. I don't know what I would do with out this book. It'a MUST have for home daycare providers and parents of small kids

Great for anyone who needs a creative boost, October 21, 2004
I am a working mother with an active, highly imaginative 3 1/2 year old. I used to be a teacher and always prided myself on being able to come up with great lesson plans. But with the fast-paced, frantic lifestyle of a working mother trying to succeed at 3 and four full time jobs (career, mother, wife, housekeeper), I have temporarily lost that creative spark.

I was shocked at myself when I realized I had fallen into the easy TV trap and was encouraging my daughter to watch TV so I'd have some time to take care of all of my things. I knew that something else had to be done, but I couldnt' come up with any great ideas on a spur of the moment, and I didn't have time to sit and figure out activities. This book was an exciting discovery. I have expanded the book's idea of a "crazy can" and developed several categories-including activities she can do by herself while I'm making dinner, paying bills, etc, and do-togethers for quality time together. Everything is already planned out for me, so we can use the time we have on the activities, not planning and wondering what is age-appropriate.

They are simple, engaging, creative, and quick enough that they don't over extend short attention spans. Most of the materials are already on hand. And, they are "Mom-tested". The first time I read this book my daugther was asleep and I wanted to wake her up just to do them because I knew how excited she would be. She loves the activities as much as I expected and I am able to decrease her TV time, and increase her mind, and our time together.

A "must have" for a new mother with a todler., March 12, 1999
This book has been a saving grace. I have a very active todler, and just had a new baby. This book offers great ideas for keeping my todler busy and entertained. My favorites are "Rainy Day Play" and "Out and About." These activities are easy to prepare and convenient to take along on errands and/or Dr. Visits.

A Mother's Sanity Boost., February 5, 1999
Hundred's of great, fun, and SIMPLE activities a child can do with limited supervision. I don't know who will enjoy this book more--the child (because of the activities) or the parent (because of the free time and the happily occupied child). Get one today!

Great Ideas, September 8, 2005
This book has ideas for activities for preschoolers that don't take a long time to set up. They are short enough for a preschooler's short attention span and yet if they really are enjoying the activity it can keep them busy for a longer period of time. My son really enjoyed painting with marbles, the alphabet clothespin game and of course homemade bubbles. It puts together all of those recipes for bubbles, playdough, clay, paper mache and homemade silly putty into one book. I wasn't that creative at coming up with things for my son to do and this book really helped me with that.

Great Resource or Gift, August 26, 2003
I love these books. I had The Toddler's Busy Book, too. These books are the source of my most admired activities -- people are so impressed when they see a picture of my daughter in our indoor rice crispie "sandbox". (not all the ideas are that bold!)
My daughter had immune problems as a toddler and we were housebound during the winter in a condo with no yard. I don't know what I would have done without these books!

I love them so much I buy them as gifts for people. My best gift for a mom who is expecting who already has a child is this book (or the Toddler one if more appropriate), along with a rubbermaid storage box with individual baggies filled with some of the projects ready-to-go. During crazy times or when the older child is bored, she just has to pull out one baggie, I have copied the directions sheet and it is already in the bag with the supplies. My finest gift!!! And not expensive, either.

The busy book series, help for the out of ideas parent, January 20, 2002
Before I had a child I felt that I was a pretty creative person, but I soon realized that I had run out of ideas. It was difficult to figure out projects that my toddler, now preschooler could do and that we could do together. We only recently purchased this book and have done several of the projects. The projects are inexpensive and the things you will need are easy to find. My son and I have enjoyed what we have done so far and look forward to doing many more of the projects listed in the book. The projects are grouped in such categories as "Rainy Day Play", "Outdoor adventures", "Music, Dance and Drama", "Arts and Crafts"... so things to do are easy to find. We love it.

Busy Preschooler, Happy Mom!, April 6, 2001
Great activites in an easy to read, easy to use format. I particularly liked the "Rainy Day Play" and "Out and About" chapters, as well as all the great recipes for everything from home-made silly putty to face paint and peanut butter playdough.

It got me enthused again about spending quality time with my child! ... Read more

Editorial Review

All new parents are eager to help their baby discover the world around them, and BABY PLAY was designed to help parents engage their infant in activities that will encourage developmental skills. From the first month home through the twelfth, BABY PLAY offers doctor-approved, age-appropriate activities that stimulate discovery, begin communication, and nurture parental bonding. Developed in close consultation with the play experts at Gymboree Play & Music, the book contains an introduction that explains the value of "play with a purpose," information on how babies learn, and tips outlining what a parent can do to help their little on get off to a good start.

The book also includes a glossary of key terms in child development, beneficial to any new parent, as well as detailed information on how parents can identify development skills as they emerge in their baby.From stretching exercises to puppet games, BABY PLAY encourages learning during that first critical year of life.

Look at what this book offers:

** Includes over 100 activities for babies 0-12 months.
** Organized by appropriateness for each month of life.
** Includes wide variety of play activities, from ball rolling to imitative play.
** Developed in consultation with the play experts at Gymboree.
** Contains a useful glossary of key terms in child development. ... Read more

Editorial Review

Recognizing likenesses and differences will prepare your child for reading and solving math problems. Help your child develop this valuable skill in Does It Belong?, one of School Zone's colorfully illustrated preschool workbooks. ... Read more

Editorial Review

Make leaf rubbings, learn the neighborhood bird songs together, turn an aquarium into a worm hotel, create a firefly lantern. There are garden projects, both for the outdoors—grow a container snacking garden, a pumpkin patch in a pot—and the indoors, i.e., how to use something called "indoor garbage gardens" to grow pineapple tops, sweet potato vines, peanuts, and more. Cooking projects, both in the sunshine—baking in a solar oven—and in the kitchen—what child will ever forget the time the two of you made Potato Volcanoes with Lava? And lots of rainy-day activities for times when nature's in a cranky mood.

Created by Sharon Lovejoy—a grandmother of four and the author of two classic books of garden activities for grown-ups and kids, Sunflower Houses and Roots, Shoots, Buckets & Boots—Toad Cottages and Shooting Stars is an ecologically inspired guide that combines more than 130 green activities with timeless grandparenting advice. Illustrated with Lovejoy's distinctive, delicate watercolors, it's an inventive resource for grandmother and grandchild to connect with each other through nature. It is the book to make sure an afternoon, a day, or a weekend turns into a memory that lasts forever.
... Read more

Editorial Review

To compare and contrast the items in these exercises, your child must look for significant details-a critical reading readiness skill. Funny, full-color illustrations, predictable formats, and easy-to-follow directions ensure engagement and success. ... Read more

Editorial Review

Based on the key Montessori principle that children learn best through active experience, Teach Me to Do It Myself presents simple activities through which children explore and develop their skills. These skill areas include sensory perceptions, body coordination, language, understanding of numbers, and movement. This practical, color-illustrated parenting book is filled with activities and instructions for overseeing children as they carry out a variety of learning activities. Most activities will seem simple to parents, because once mastered, adults perform them automatically. However, toddlers experience a sense of accomplishment and self-worth when they learn to perform them independently. The many activities start with dressing and personal hygiene, then go on to include . . .

Editorial Review

With just a few ingredients and a few hours of time, your kitchen can become the perfect setting not only for a delicious meal but for experiencing the greatest blessings in life.
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In Grace Before Meals: Recipes and Inspiration for Family Meals and Family Life, Father Leo Patalinghug (yes, the same Father Leo who defeated Bobby Flay on Throwdown!) helps you make family meals a way of life. Combining more than 30 simple but delicious recipes related to personal milestones, family holidays, and faith observances, along with scriptural references and short essays offering wisdom on faith, values, and family togetherness, Father Leo shows that mealtime is the perfect setting for discussing the major issues all families face. In fact, research shows that frequent family dinners can reduce many risks facing children, including drug and alcohol abuse, teen pregnancy, depression, eating disorders, and poor academic performance. These are meals that nourish body and spirit. ... Read more

Editorial Review

Editorial Review

Reviews

extensively rich and historical review of winter customs, February 7, 1999
This is a wonderful text full of history and thought, and beautiful illustrations. The author extensively explores the origins of numerous Christmas traditions,e.g., lights, evergreens, yule logs, etc. by tracing these customs to the occurance and celebration of the winter solstice, and in later history, to many Roman celebrations. The text adds greater richness, understanding, and appreciation to many Christmas traditions. The author also offers suggestions for celebrating the winter solstice as the important celestial event that it is.

Great book!, January 19, 2003
Very complete with history and lore as well as activites. Two thumbs up on this one. Great pictures too. Information is presented in a very straight-forward way. I love this book - made for a much more meaningful christmas for me this year. The table of contents has:

1) The Solstice Dream (this chapter talks to Solstice celebrations and lore across the world and across the ages - from egypt to china to Rome. Poetry and prose from other sources are included.) All chapters end with celebration activites

2) Child of Wonder (this chapter talks to the birth of different gods across the ages - such as apollo, mabon, jesus)

3) The Green Bough (this chapter talks to the symbolism of the tree, the use of evergreens versus cherry tree etc. Green man is also discussed)

4) Old Sir Christmas (this chapter talks to the jolly old elf as well as the Shaman in the Tree and others across the cultures)

5) The Solstice Animals (this is about the slaughter of animals - 'nough said there - go vegetarian!)

6) The 12 days of Christmas

At the end of the book is a few pages on additional resources/references which is pretty good.

Great book! Most complete I've found and I like how it looks across cultures.

Tradition and ritual without faith, November 14, 2004
I've always loved Christmas. But a few years ago I deconverted from faith; I found myself, as an atheist and humanist, longing for a connection to the holiday I loved. This book helped me forge a new perspective on, and a new connection with, Christmas as a worldly and human celebration.

Each chapter provides cross-cultural connections to the ideas, customs, and icons of Christmas. Even when Matthews seems to be reaching a bit, it makes for engaging reading, and provides the rest of us with a way to connect with America's (and much of the Western World's) most important holiday season. It's especially engaging to know the origins of certain figures and beliefs; rarely are the origins religious, but cultural and traditional. [My favorite chapter was on the Twelve Days of Christmas.] The presentation of faith-free rituals at the end of each chapter was especially welcome, and I have already incorporated some small, new traditions into my holiday activities.

I recommend it to readers of all faiths or non-faiths. Every open-minded reader can find something of interest. Only literal Fundamentalists will be offended!

An excellent text on the history of winter, February 4, 2000
One of the better books I have seen when it comes bringing religion and folklore together - from the origin of the Christmas tree to the meaning behind the Twelve Days of Christmas. A must buy to the pagan as well as the Christian.

Great book on Yule, March 24, 2002
I almost didn't buy this book because it had Christmas in the title and I supposed it would not have much in the way of the pagan holiday. I was very wrong. This is the best book I have ever read on the solstice. It tells of celebrating Yule before Christianity abducted it. "The Winter Solstice" has the look of an arty, coffee table book but it is definitely worth the read. It offers a couple of small rituals and some great phrases for ceremonies. It is more of a scholary history than a magickal book. I cannot wait to read it again next December to get me in the Yule spirit!

A gathering of winter traditions from many sources, February 6, 2005
Most people who celebrate Christmas know that numerous elements of our modern traditions come from older religions than Christianity, but the range of source traditions astounds me. There is, for instance, no one source of the practice of observing the winter solstice itself, of myths involving the death or sacrifice and rebirth of a deity, or of father and son symbols for the old year and the new. Many sources are cited in the book as possible origins of Santa Claus, of the giving of gifts, and the custom of bringing greenery indoors.

It's not the diversity of customs that fascinates me so much as the variety of myths and stories that impact on an emotional level. When I consider the winter solstice traditions presented here, as a whole, I realize how similar all cultures are in their most basic concerns. The winter solstice was a time of great disquiet to people who lived close to the earth, more than a couple of centuries ago. The shortening of days, scarcity of food, and intense cold of winter carried far deeper implications for those who lived directly off the land and couldn't quickly transport needed goods. It's no surprise some important and deeply meaningful traditions arose from the resulting insecurity about the future.

Whatever the reason behind the timing of Christmas so near the solstice, and whatever your beliefs about it or your reason for reading, you'll find a wealth of information in The Winter Solstice. This impressively researched book even contains ideas for creating celebrations and traditions of your own. It's a fitting tribute to this most ancient holy day. If your celebration centers around the birth of Jesus, never fear. There's a wealth of commentary and research included on traditions specific to Christianity. But an open mind is required to sift through the myth, legend, history, and blending of customs. This is not a book conducive to fundamentalist thinking about religion-any religion, Christian, pagan or otherwise. It's far better suited to those with a penchant for myth and speculation.

A few of the subjects covered in the first chapter are The Returning Sun, Chambers of the Sun and Sun-Rites, with mention of those ancient structures built for the purpose of calculating or demonstrating the sun's return at the turn of the solstice, such as Stonehenge in England, New Grange in Ireland, and Mayan ruins. Zuni houses in North America contained objects and windows designed to catch the rays of the returning sun. Saturnalia, New Year rites, the Celtic Calendar, and the sun gods of Egypt and elsewhere are also mentioned, as well as a fifteen hundred-year-old Jewish commentary on the Babylonian Talmud. This is just a taste, mind you, and only from the first chapter.

The information is presented in short sections, so it's easy to pick up and read a few paragraphs. But these paragraphs will easily draw you in for a longer read. It can be read straight through, or enjoyed as a coffee table book to share with friends, and to stimulate discussion and speculation. It's a must-read, for me, during the December holidays.

A beautiful and informative book, December 30, 2002
The Winter Solstice (as with the solstices and equinoxes) hold a special place in our world because anyone can celebrate them. So many cultures and religions have customs, beliefs, rituals that occur on or around the Solstice.

This book highlights some well known and not so well know European Solstice and Yule customs. It also delves quite a bit into Christmas customs that were influenced by eariler Pagan ones. But the information in this book is extended outside the Euro realm and reaches many cultures - really emphasising a common bond between all people.

The book is nice enough to offer as a gift or a coffetable treasure. It has a wonderful layout and lots of beautiful pictures, drawings, and poems. In the back of the book it has a couple of Rituals/ Plays that are suitable for public Ritual or a seasonal play.

This book can be enjoyed by anyone but definitely appeals to Pagans or curious/ liberal Christians.

A beautiful and thorough resource, November 12, 2009
I'm a teacher and the author of a book on the winter solstice for children. I wish this book had been available as a resource when I was writing mine. My book Is extensively researched, but I had to pull the pieces together from many scattered sources.

Mr. Matthews has done a remarkable job with this very slippery subject. The origins of solsltice traditions and its symbols are shrouded in the mists of time. It's not easy to disentagle the historical truth from myth and legend.

When I was teaching elementary school, the children in my class were from China, Japan, Mexico, the Phillipines, Saudi Arabia, and many other countries. Teaching about the winter solstice allowed me to bring all the various traditions together and to emphasize my students' common humanity.

Hats off to Mr. Matthews!

Ellen Jackson, author
THE WINTER SOLSTICE
The Winter Solstice

Solving the Mystery of Our Traditions, January 2, 2007
I absolutely loved this book and found it a great companion for the holidays. The author explains the background and history of Solstice, Christmas, Santa Claus, plant and animal symbols. He even explains the 12 Days of Christmas and includes activities, recipes, and rituals to celebrate the sacred days between 12/1 and 1/6.

This book is highly recommend for people wanting to know the why behind the celebrations.

Wonderful Guide to forming your own traditions, January 27, 2007
My family was looking to develop our own traditions and to understand why traditions where as they are today. This book was a wonderful source. ... Read more

Editorial Review

No longer content to sit on rockers and bake cookies, today's grandparents are involved in the lives of their grandchildren more than ever before. The Grandparents Handbook features dozens of activities that will guarantee hours of fun, educational quality time—from building dollhouses and catching fish to flying kites, baking bread, making your own mini golf course, creating a family newspaper, and much more. These illustrated instructions will lead grandparents down surprising paths of discovery as they teach the youngest generation about family, friendship, and the world around them. It's the perfect gift for any grandparent and grandparent-to-be! ... Read more

Editorial Review

Games play a crucial role in a child's development, helping children to discover and understand the world around them. Parents are always on the lookout for new games and activities to play with their kids.

The Great Big Book of Children's Games features more than 450 indoor and outdoor games for kids.

Arranged according to appropriate agegroup, the games run the gamut in theme and mood. There are games designed for quiet times and intellectual stimulation as well as those that contribute to physical development, such as strength and wrestling games and races and relays. This book presents parents with a vast array of games for children of all ages, including:

• Card games
• Word games
• Sidewalk and blacktop games
• Tabletop games
• Party games, road games, and more

Reviews

From the Board Games Editor at BellaOnline.com, December 15, 2005
The Great Big Book of Children's Games is full of fun games of all sorts: Ball Games, Water Games, Chase Games, Card Games, and so on. Many of the games are well-known childhood classics, but many of them are either foreign or totally new.

The book offers lots of ways to play versions of popular games with a make-your-own version. Naturally, it doesn't tell you explicitly, "Don't buy game X, you can make your own!", but it does give great instructions on how to make paper playing boards for games like Shut the Box, Beetle (like a drawing version of Cootie), and also how to get the most out of a game like Checkers.

As far as outside games, it can't be beat, there are dozens of variations on classics like hopscotch, hide-and-seek, and that eternal favorite: tag!

This book is a great gift idea for Moms, Teachers, Daycare Providers, and it's a great one to leave around for the teenaged babysitter if you're going out and you don't want the kids to spend the evening in front of the TV. Wonderful!

What a great book!, April 29, 2005
I do not own this book, but I put it on my "wish list". I currently have it checked-out from my local library for the second time. What a wonderful book for such a great price! I plan to use it for birthday party activities, kids church activities, etc. This book is well worth the price!

a keeper, August 8, 2007
This is such a great book! I was looking for some activities to keep the kids from being bored. What a wonderful surprise! This book was way more than I expected. There are tons of activities--card games, outdoor games, pen and paper games, travel games, table top games, blacktop games, and much more. As we looked through the book I remembered some of these from my own childhood, but I probably wouldn't have recalled them without this book to prompt the memories. I was very pleased and the kids love it. There are so many games that they will not be bored for a long time.

Terrific Resource, January 10, 2010
A brilliant book, full of classic, familiar games, along with new ones. Simply the most complete resource out there.

This is a book kids below chapter book reading level will probably not use by themselves--it's really aimed more at adults or older children who are game leaders.

I used this one for years in after school care and a summer program; because it's so encyclopedic we were able to settle disputes about the rules of traditional games (capture the flag, etc.) using this book.


This book, along with "the ultimate indoor games book," kept the kids (ages six to ten) busy all summer long!

lots of fun, August 6, 2009
Great book. Filled with lots of games and indexed so that they are easy to find. Could be used for the whole summer.

Great Book!, November 23, 2008
I purchased this book hoping it would give me some ideas on how to keep my 4 year old busy. Unfortunately most of the games were for older children, so I will definitly be referenceing it in the future. There are a few for children his age so I would not pass it over just based on that. I really like this book. The only reason I gave it 4 instead of 5 stars was that it did not have as many games for younger ones.

A great resource for Preschool teachers., October 31, 2008
I bought The Great Big Book of Children's Games as resources for preschool teachers who are participating in a series on Early Literacy. The games in the book are a wonderful way to teach children language and social skills and to begin developing "executive function". Thanks for good products! ... Read more