Subject Areas: Math.
Ages: 12 13 14 15 16 to adult.
Type: Handbook, Internet-Linked, Study Guide

Wow, has this book been helpful in our house! If you're like me you may have forgotten many of the specific math concepts you learned in Geometry, Algebra 1 and 2, Trig, and the sciences, yet you have to help your children with their homework and test preparation. Or maybe you never did learn them. Don't worry! This study guide has very easy to learn, illustrated explanations. The book is extremely well laid out too, and it's simple to find the section you need. It's also Internet-Linked and recommends websites for further study if you want it. Use the book and websites to strengthen skills for exams or SAT's.

Listen to what one woman said on an Usborne message board recently:
"This book is so necessary for parents to help their kids.On Friday I heard that my eldest son got only 56% on a Math quiz and had flunked "completing the square" in Algebra 3. I was able to look up what this meant and communicate to my husband who was with this son at an away Hockey tournament in another state. The problem was fixed by the end of the weekend! I was also able to review all about quadratic equations (stuff you really wanted to forget forever) and help him. He just reported that the test today was easy. Thank you to the Illustrated Dictionary of Math."

One other wonderful feature -- it's in a flex binding that makes it hold up really well, at the same price it had when it was only available in paperback!

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Of Interest To: Parents, Teachers, Librarians and Media Specialists

Series: Dot to Dot Series.
Subject Areas: Numbers.
Ages: 4 5 6 7 8.
Type: Activity book

Since I wrote about the First Learning Series, the next logical follow-up is Usborne's bright and colorful Dot-to-Dots. These workbooks give kids a simple and entertaining way to learn number recognition and counting, with the added bonus of questions to answer on each page. Each workbook features a topic such as Nature, Animals, Dinosaurs, Farms and more.

Usborne's Dot-to-Dots have a feature I love -- there is a number line at the bottom of each page so if kids get stuck, they can figure out the next step themselves. As with the First Learning Series workbooks, you could cut these apart and slip them into vinyl page protectors for repeated use. There is a combined volume of 7 separate titles available also -- a great bargain!

Look inside Dot-to-Dot Nature

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Of Interest To: Parents, Teachers, Preschools

Series: First Learning Series.
Subject Areas: Reading, writing, numbers, shapes, arithmetic, time, colors, counting.
Ages: 3 4 5 6.
Type: Workbooks

Fourteen years ago when I first discovered Usborne Books I fell in love with this series -- they've since been updated and made even more colorful and fun. These very popular consumable activity books teach skills that children need for the years ahead.

My kids loved them so much that I made them into nonconsumables - by taking the pages apart and inserting them into clear vinyl page protectors, then used wipe-off markers or crayons. We used them many times over in the car, in waiting rooms, and more. You'll find ones that teach colors, numbers, counting, letters, opposites, shapes, basic addition, telling time, matching, getting ready to write, getting ready to read, and some other subjects. One I like immensely is Odd One Out (a British expression I think!) which helps kids learn to match pairs of items, and figure out which one doesn't go with the others. The workbook called Time is available as the Time Kid Kit, too, with a sturdy manipulative clock.

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Of Interest To: Parents, Teachers, Preschools

Subject Areas: Art. Ages: 9 10 11 12 13 14.
Type: Internet-Linked

I've always wanted my children to love and appreciate art. Like books, art adds enjoyment to every area of life. This book highlights various media, artists, styles, and periods in art history. You'll find both familiar and unusual works of art. This particular book was written by Rosie Dickens, who studied art in Paris and has authored several children's art books, including Usborne's Introduction to Art.

Some of the artists highlighted include Michelangelo, da Vinci, Monet, van Gogh, O'Keeffe, Warhol, Picasso and others. Biographical details are provided as well as information about how the artist created his particular style. Landscapes, portraits, still-lifes and more fill the pages with lovely large illustrations. The book concludes with a glossary and page on using the Internet safely.

I checked out some of the suggested Internet Links -- they were great! I loved this one: "artists can make us believe that stone sculptures feel as soft as flesh and that painted canvases are as cool as water. How do they do this?" and "portrait detectives", as well as a site where you could choose a painting, add sound, and send it as an e-card! These links get kids looking at loads of art examples. There is some nudity in paintings by Michelangelo and Botticelli.

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Of Interest To: Librarians and Media Specialists, Parents, Teachers

I apologize for the gap in posting. We just had a wildly busy month in Usborne with recruiting over 3000 new consultants all over the USA! Today I hope to get back to a more normal pace.