Series: Usborne Activities Series.
Subject Areas: Art, Crafts, Drawing.
Ages: 5 6 7 8 9 10.
Type: Activity Books, Hands-On projects

The Usborne Activities Series is a large and varied collection of fun things to try. We've been testing some of them and plan to highlight a number of them over the next week or so. First, we'll look at Amazing Magic Tricks, which is also available in a Spanish version or in a Kid Kit version. (I highly recommend any of the Usborne Kid Kits. They provoke children to read by pairing a book with an activity they’ll love. You can find loads of other kid kits by clicking on the "About Usborne Books" link in the sidebar, and typing kid kits in the search box.)

Most of the tricks are done with ordinary items found in your home -- paper, tape, coins, cards, string, etc. My 10-year-old likes the card tricks the most, and I love having him do them because of what it accomplishes aside from keeping him busy! Learning to follow step-by-step instructions improves reading comprehension skills, since you have to understand what you are reading to make the tricks work, and learning to follow directions in an orderly fashion builds test-taking skills too. I have him read through all the steps first, practice by himself until he feels comfortable with the trick, then he tries it out -- usually on me, his dad, and his older brothers and sister. After it's perfected, he'll do it for friends. I have found it's valuable to do activities like these to help kids get over being shy and learn not to take themselves too seriously when they make a mistake!

There are many other sleight of hand tricks in the book, some are easy and some are more challenging. My favorites are: the banana that is already sliced when you peel it, the jumping rubber band, and the finger in a matchbox trick (sort of gross!). At the bottom of each page is a silly joke, too, which kids in this age range love.

The book includes 180 stickers that can be used on projects. The last page gives a few tips for putting on a show. If you purchase the Kid Kit version, you'll also get a wand, deck of cards, matchboxes, string, balloons, paper clips and rubber bands. This would make a great birthday gift!

Take a Look Inside This Book

Purchase

Awards: Lifeworks Real Life Award was given for Christmas Activities from this series.

Of Interest To: Parents, Teachers, Spanish Teachers, Librarians and Media Specialists, Activity coordinators