Family Activities Books

Teach Your Child to Read in 100 Easy Lessons

Siegfried Engelmann, Phyllis Haddox, Elaine Bruner

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Customer Reviews:
Total reviews: 424 Average rating: 4.5 of 5

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.

The Creative Family: How to Encourage Imagination and Nurture Family Connections

Amanda Blake Soule

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Customer Reviews:
Total reviews: 30 Average rating: 4.5 of 5

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.

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The Out-of-Sync Child Has Fun, Revised Edition: Activities for Kids with Sensory Processing Disorder

Carol Stock Kranowitz

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Customer Reviews:
Total reviews: 14 Average rating: 5.0 of 5

A wonderful book for ALL children 5 out of 5 stars.
0 of 0 people found this review helpful.

This is a wodnerful book for parents of children with special needs. Weather it be autism, ADHD,Asperger's, anything!!! Wonderful activities! It is also a great book for teacher's of ALL types of kids! I keep this book handy all the time when I'm looking for ideas of things to do with my kids.

a bible for every parent who has a special needs child 5 out of 5 stars.
0 of 0 people found this review helpful.

being a mother of a special needs child, i wanted some new ideas for activites my child could do in and outside, this is the perfect book.

A must have for parents of children w/autism 5 out of 5 stars.
0 of 0 people found this review helpful.

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!

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.

Mom's Family Calendar 2009

Sandra Boynton

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Editorial Review:

A superstar, just like Mom herself. What is it about this bestselling calendar? Is it those irresistible cows, hippos, chicks, penguins, and piggies skipping and prancing through the pages? Or is it the innovative and ultra-practical wall-calendar-meets-planner format? Yes...and yes! It's the whole package: a calendar that looks great and is indispensable for families on the go. Mom’s starts in September and runs 16 full months. Spreads feature an oversized, vertical grid with five columns across (one for each family member) and the days of the month running down the left side. With just a glance, Mom and Dad can see who is doing what, and when. Includes a new drop-down storage pocket, plus 500 stickers and a write-on, wipe-off magnetic phone list for the fridge.

The Toddlers Busy Book

Trish Kuffner

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Customer Reviews:
Total reviews: 87 Average rating: 4.0 of 5

Worth the $10.00 Investment 5 out of 5 stars.
5 of 5 people found this review helpful.

As some people have said in the 1-3 star reviews, many of the ideas in this book are no-brainers we could have come up with on our own. I cannot deny that fact, and yet I must say 'kudos!' to the authoress for writing the ideas down and earning an income for her brood as a result! That said, I loved the book. I checked it out at our library and my severe impulse to underline things and fold down pages caused me to realize that I must buy a copy. And as for being able to come up with the ideas on my own, I have three sons between the ages of 7 months and 4 years and simply don't have time to look around for creative ways to keep them all busy. Call me lazy, but I'd rather shell out $10 (or in my current state whip out my library card) and save time. The book is not only great for a quick pick me up for bored children (days and days of rain in the midwest, anyone?) it also has so many tidbits for ME, like gentle reminders that though stressful at times, being a mom is one of the most rewarding experiences in my life.

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:

• Prevent boredom during 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 entertaining math, language, and motor-skills activities.

• Encourage a child's physical, mental, and emotional growth with ideas for fun music, food, water, and outdoor activities.

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

The Toddler's Busy Book is written with warmth and sprinkled with humor and insight. It should be required reading for anyone raising or teaching toddlers.

Baby Play (Gymboree)

Wendy S Masi, Roni Cohen Leiderman, Dr. Wendy S. Masi, Dr. Roni Cohen Leiderman

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Customer Reviews:
Total reviews: 45 Average rating: 4.5 of 5

if you have any parental intuition, you're doing fine and don't need this book. 2 out of 5 stars.
1 of 1 people found this review helpful.

i found the activities in this book uninspiring. i was already implementing 99% of them just in my everyday interactions with my infant. i was hoping for something that would further enhance the development of my child, but it turns out the things that naturally occur to a parent are just fine. my baby is only 3 months, so perhaps the activites for older babies will be more interesting. the play for newborns was a disappointment.

Great book! 5 out of 5 stars.
0 of 0 people found this review helpful.

I love this book! It is filled with great ideas, and organized by age range. The pictures are large and very helpful along with the descriptions of the activities. Even if you think you may have thought of some of these ideas on your own, it's hard to know when to introduce each activity and what specific skills it is building. This book is a great resource.

Editorial Review:

Direct babies with interactive activities that are easy, skill building, and fun! Over 100 activities for babies 0 - 12 months. A variety of activities organized by appropriatemess for each month of life. Developed in consultation with the play experts at Gymboree.

Unplugged Play: No Batteries. No Plugs. Pure Fun.

Bobbi Conner

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Customer Reviews:
Total reviews: 15 Average rating: 4.5 of 5

a reader from Ohio 1 out of 5 stars.
4 of 7 people found this review helpful.

After reading many great reviews I purchased this book thinking it would be a useful resource for games and activities for my children. I was greatly disappointed. Almost every activity is the same, just a different variation. Most require yet another trip to a store to buy some plastic "toys" If a parent already had what the author has listed as a "well-stocked" toy room they should have no problem thinking up the games listed in this book. For any parent or caregiver with even the slightest bit of imagination this book is unnecessary. In place of this I would recommend Playful Learning from Le Leche League or any book from Bev Bos. They require more imagination and less trips to a store.

Editorial Review:

From the joy of smearing glue on paper to the screaming delight of a bubble-blowing relay, kids love to play. In fact, it's every kid's built-in tool for experiencing the world at large. A parent-friendly encyclopedia, UNPLUGGED PLAY ("A wonderful guide," says Daniel Goleman) offers hundreds and hundredsof battery-free, screen-free, chrip-and-beep-free games and fun variations that stretch the imagination, spark creativity, building strong bodies, and forge deep friendships...and keep kids busy at the table while mom or dad makes dinner.

Team-Building Activities for Every Group

Alanna Jones

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Customer Reviews:
Total reviews: 21 Average rating: 4.0 of 5

The best activity book 5 out of 5 stars.
4 of 4 people found this review helpful.

I'm a peer facilitator, and this is definitely the best group activity book that I've used. I've always gotten the best response from the activities in this book...they seem to be the most fun for the kids to do, while still teaching important lessons. The book is also very easy to read and understand.

My fellow Peer facilitators and I have about 25 different activity books to choose from, and this is always the one that we each try to grab every week before anyone else gets to it!

Editorial Review:

107 interactive games and activities can be found in the pages of this easy-to-use book. Each game is fun, experiential, easy to lead, unique, and requires minimal resources. With 65 team challenges and 42 activities that help any team get to know one another, become comfortable with each other, and open up, there is something for every group.

If you work with youth, corporate groups, therapy groups, church groups, scouts, families, school groups, sports teams, at camp, or with any other group who must work together you will find helpful games and activities in this fun, energetic, and purposeful book!

Preschooler's Busy Book: 365 Creative Games & Activities To Occupy 3-6 Year Olds

Trish Kuffner

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Customer Reviews:
Total reviews: 32 Average rating: 4.5 of 5

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.

I Love Dirt!: 52 Activities to Help You and Your Kids Discover the Wonders of Nature

Jennifer Ward

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Customer Reviews:
Total reviews: 10 Average rating: 3.5 of 5

Buy this one for every new baby and all of the parents and teachers of young children on your shopping list! 5 out of 5 stars.
4 of 4 people found this review helpful.

I LOVE DIRT!, with its enticing cover photograph of a small child headed down a dirt path into the woods, will call to the very audience for which it is intended--adults (parents, grandparents, and teachers alike) who love children and who want to feed their spirits in the best way possible, with time together outdoors in nature. With a foreward by none other than Richard Louv, author of the acclaimed LAST CHILD IN THE WOODS, this book is a compendium of ways to spend that time together in every season. No adult who wants to take a child outdoors need ever again be at a loss for ideas.

Rather than just a book of games or crafts, this book, by an award-winning children's author and elementary school teacher, focuses on meaningful experiential learning experiences. The timeless activity of gathering leaves in the fall grows to become a lesson on gravity. Rather than just watching birds, Ward invites children to keep a journal as Audubon did, sharpening their observation skills as they do.

The trim size invites adults to tuck the book into a pocket, purse or backpack. And you'll want to read it with a small stash of post-it flags at hand, to mark each of the appealing activities you'll want to try out with the children in your life!

Editorial Review:

I Love Dirt! presents 52 open-ended activities to help you engage your child in the outdoors. No matter what your location—from a small patch of green in the city to the wide-open meadows of the country—each activity is meant to promote exploration, stimulate imagination, and heighten a child's sense of wonder.

To learn more about the author, Jennifer Ward, visit her website at jenniferwardbooks.com and to learn more about the illustrator, Susie Ghahremani, visit her website at boygirlparty.com.