Family Friendly Comic Book!

We love comic books here in the NerdFamily! NerdDad and I both read comic books but finding good ones for that are appropriate for the kids take a little looking. So when I received a review copy of Boy, I'd Hate to be Made Out of That Stuff! through FRN I was stoked!

Lunar Antics sets up this comic series where moon people invade earth to avoid the outrageous tax on the moon. It is advertised as science fiction for normal people;). This is a clean and fun comic. It has some sarcasm and a lot of wit! It is so cute! While the main characters are moon people (who are bright, a bit egotistical and very good at math) the strip is really about humanity.

I recommend this book! I think it is a fun gift for your favorite comic lover be they children or adults! Right now if you order a copy you can get it signed for free! I am a sucker for autographed books;).

Our Secret Weapon to Teach Reading

We have always been a fan of the Bob Books that help kids learn how to read but we have a new favorite. We were given a set of Reading for Fun (Enrichment Library), A Beka, Kindergarden

book by a good friend (love Sue!) since her kids were done with them. Well, I looked at them and they seemed a little advanced because they didn't just concentrate on one syllable like the Bob Books.

So they sat for a little bit on the shelf. NerdDad picked them up a few weeks ago and said he was going to start taking the 4 year old through them. They are set up with "words to sound" and "words to know" in the front cover. Then it has a little story. There are many books in this set and they build on each other. The copyright date in the ones we have are 1979 and I don't know if they continued to print them. So you may have to look for a used set but it is totally worth it!

Reading and Learning While Little

Recently I have been part of a few discussions about how hard it is to find non-fiction books for young readers. I can say here in the NerdFamily house it has always been a challenge. With our oldest we struggle with a child who can read quite well for his age but at the same time the non-fiction books at that level contain such advanced data that it is hard for him to really comprehend the information. With NerdPie she wants to learn real information but is still really developing her reading ability. Then we have our 4 year old. He can't read but he loves to be read to. I want to encourage him to understand what I am reading so I don't want books that are to hard. With all of these kids it would be a shame to lose this sponge like time.

At my local library I have found a few different series that we have used. Typically what happens is that I find 1 in a series, like it, and then request every other book they put out. So in order to help others, in a way I wish someone would have helped me, here are a few series that I have found. I am not going to really talk about math because I have already posted a bit about some good options here and here.

History:

Spirit of America, Our People Series

Time for Kids Series (they have great history and science)

Headlines from History Series

Science:

Our Galaxy and Beyond Series

Let's Read and Find Out! Series

So there are just a few. What do you use with your early elementary school kids?

New World Kids Review and Giveaway

I recently received a copy of New World Kids: The Parents' Guide to Creative Thinking to review. We all know that it is important to teach our children how to think critically through reading, math and other concrete methods. Well, this book looks at why and how we enable our children (or other children you tech) to think creatively.

I am not the most creative person in the world (heck, even in most rooms) and I wonder where I lost that childhood delight in the creative. I also wonder how to impart that creativity which are so important, in my opinion, in the world our children face. Between new software applications, new media and everything else that will be open for them to create in the new world careers how can I prepare my children for a career of innovation?

This book patiently goes through the many tools that we have to help teach and encourage creatvity. It looks at how we all think creatively when we match our clothes and other normal life activites but also how we can further develop that. This wasn't just a theoretical book. It gives concrete examples and exercises that you can do with your kids to help them think creatively. I really like that this book isn't creatively snobby. It values people who like pattern and balance just as much as people who are abstract thinkers.

Overall I think this is going to be a tool that I use frequently with my kids and their educational path. This book is beautiful with its striking graphics and stunning pictures really makes the point. It ties imagination into communicating what would be considered very concrete and critical thinking ideas.

Now after hearing how great it is, how would you like to have your own copy? Well, you could go over to Amazon and buy a copy of New World Kids. Or you could win it!

Win it!
How would you like to win some of your own copy of New World Kids?

To enter:

* Just leave me a comment about education and imagination!
* A random winner will be selected and notified on July 16th.
* The winner will then have 3 days to claim their prize.

To earn extra entries, you may do one or all of the following. Each one counts as an extra ticket but you must leave a separate comment for each one.

* Subscribe to my feed (if you already do, that counts).
* Mention this giveaway on your blog with a link back here.
* Subscribe to my Twitter
* Tweet about this!

This giveaway is open to addresses within the US. Please leave a way to contact you in case you win.

If you want to see more giveaways pop over to Making Money Keeping Money to see more giveaways on Contesting Monday

Side-Yard Superhero Review

I recently received a copy of The Side-Yard Superhero (Life in Degraff: An Automythography) by Rick Niece and it was delightful. The author calls this an Automythography. It is the first time I heard that term but I think it is sweet. This is the tale of his childhood exploits as a paper boy in a small town. It was a book of innocent anecdotes about the various personalities on his route and in his life. I really enjoyed this book. This is the first of a series and I can't wait to read more. I think that my 8 year old will also be enoying this book. So if you are looking for a sweet, innocent book that leaves you feeling good this is the book for you. So go order it and give it to others!

(This is an FRN review)

The Perfect Baby Handbook: Review & Giveaway

The day I got a pre-release copy of The Perfect Baby Handbook: A Guide for Excessively Motivated Parents I was in serious need of levity. Lucky for me I got it! This book is a refreshing mockery of all the "how to get the perfect kid" talk we here and read. Now I will admit I sometimes try a little to hard to get the perfect kids but sometimes I need to be reminded to take it easy. All to soon these kiddos will be grown so lets find the humor! This book was so funny. I laughed so hard my eyes were watering.

Walk into any bookstore and you’ll encounter a ludicrous number of “expert” baby-rearing manuals. Although The Perfect Baby Handbook provides a solid foundation, it goes without saying that you’ll need to read them all. A sampling:

* Are You My Mother and, If So, Must You Slouch Like That?
* Infants and Their Little Anxiety Attacks
* No Ifs, Ands, or Buts: How to Parent Without Using Certain Grammatical Constructions
* Throat Lozenges of the Baby Whisperer
* 10,001 Great Baby Names Selfish Celebrities Have Already Snapped Up
* The No-Cry-from-4:01-to-4:03-a.m. Solution
* The Obviously Gifted Child: A Guide to Spotting Glaring Brilliance
* Layettes of the Aztec Kings
* What to Expect When the Word “Expect” Becomes Meaningless
* Because You’re a Terrible Daddy Who Just Smoked a Gigantic Joint
* Creating Insecurities in Your Baby—So He Can Triumphantly Overcome Them
* The Tale of Peter Rabbit’s Unfortunate Speech Impediment
* An Angel Fell Out of the Sky and Landed in Our Nursery, Slightly Injuring Our Baby

Win it!
Wants some more humor? Well, you can win your own copy of The Perfect Baby Handbook: A Guide for Excessively Motivated Parents? Well I have 5 copies to giveaway!

To enter:

* Just give me a moment of hilarity from your own parenting experiences.
* A random winner will be selected and notified on April 4th.
* The winner will then have 3 days to claim their prize.

To earn extra entries, you may do one or all of the following. Each one counts as an extra ticket but you must leave a separate comment for each one.

* Subscribe to my feed.
* Mention this giveaway on your blog with a link back here.
* Subscribe to my Twitter

This giveaway is open to addresses within the US. Please leave a way to contact you in case you win.

If you want to see more giveaways pop over to Making Money Keeping Money to see more giveaways on Contesting Monday!

Nana Star Review

We recently received the Nana Star doll and book to review and the NerdPie loved it! This soft doll is just precious and comes with her star and the twig he sits on. The book is sweet and well illustrated. The only bad thing that could be said is that is was a bit short. But it is so sweet and also comes with a cd. This is that perfect grandparent gift because NerdPie will have this doll and book for years! They also have a Moonman for boys and it is also very cute!

So go check it out!

You Can Call Me Hoppa!

I have just read the cutest book that would make an awesome gift for a new grandparent! You Can Call Me Hoppa! The Grandparents' Guide to Choosing a Name that Fits is all about finding a special name for each grandparent that fits them like a glove. Lauren Charpio does a great job of listing various traditional and non-traditional names for both grandmothers and grandfathers. This book helps to address the fact that grandparents are all different ages, ethnicities and even in different amounts per family (we have 8 in ours) with the names but also with sweet little anecdotes. And at 50 pages it is a great gift book because it has an inscription page, grandparent name tree, and a page to place the chosen names.

So it boils down to I love this book! Not only do I plan on giving it as a gift, I am planning on using it myself. We have Grandma “so and so” and Grandpa “so and so”. I much prefer to have a sweet personal name for each! So go get this book for any first time grandparent in your life!

(This is a Family Review Network review!)