Heavy topics for kids
583925
Beware- one part of book is inappropriate for younger kids. References STD's. Other than that, positive message and good.
2575375
I love that this book contains problems for both elementary and middle school since I have one of each.  The problems in each set start easy and then get harder.  However, don't think "easy" is super easy.  They all make the kids think and some of the problems challenge adults!
252832
I really like the questions in this book. They are thoughtful and encourage self discovery. However, this probably wouldn't be for most younger children, below grade 3.
3200301
The book has a pretty heavy theme to include bullying and suicide.  If you think your middle schooler is mature enough to handle the topic then it's an excellent read.  Jessica cannot be seen by anybody until Francis a boy that is into design and artsy stuff starts to talk to her.  He feels alone in the school and then Jessica was not an accepted student either.  They grow close and then another new, misunderstood student comes to the school, Andi, and she too can see and talk to Jessica.  It's a reallly good read just a very intense subject matter.
4546791
This is a good book to have kids get interested, which is not always an easy task.  Want to see more
4327924
NB: I received a complimentary copy of the book in exchange for my review.
This is nitpicky, but I feel that a book that children will be reading ought to contain excellent grammar and spelling so that they learn the proper way to do things. I neglected to make note at the time, but I did notice a few errors. That aside, the story line is cute, and I expect it applies well to young teens. The topic of bullying is dealt with nicely, I thought. However,the protagonist does make a couple of questionable choices, such as not bringing concerns to teachers or parents. This may be a topic for conversation with your children. All in all, a nice summer read!
1409059
The book Paper Wishes can introduce your kid or anybody tok a heavy topic. Kids who are sensitive to pets dying or being taken away may have a tough time with this book. All the less we should encourage our children to read this beautiful book and answer any questions they may have. This book is a pretty little gem for sure.
2547867
This workbook covers a larger variety of topics than the ones I usually see, but I did find that it's mostly too easy for my son. I bought it for him when he was 3, but he has always been a bit advanced in his education. I think this would have been a great workbook for him when he was about 2 1/2, but most 3 year olds and probably even a lot of 4 year olds would benefit from it. It's fun and colorful.
1558564
Awesome for kids who won't talk about anything else.  My son is in 1st grade, but loved the grade 1-2 version so much that I got this too.  This one is interesting to see what concepts he WILL be learning - it has more fantasy stories in it to read to him, and builds vocab.  The grades 1-2 has a little too much explanatory text i.e. what is a creeper etc.  I prefer the reading success books to the math books...but probably because my son needs more help with reading.  I'm sure the math ones good for kids who need catching up with math...ALL awesome tho.  Thanks for producing these!
308464
I really enjoyed the book for my kids, although I had thought it was more of a story book.

It's great for my Baha'i kids and children's classes but I feel hesitant to read it at their school because some pages are very "God heavy" and in our class the teacher will have to review it first. But overall a great addition to our home library.
4651887
Our kids love using this book. There is a variety of things for them to do
635864
i would think fourth or fifth graders can handle such an thick heavy book like this. the question iswhere is leo,pieper and annabeth? cause it is foucused on hazel, frank and percy. look ay my other reveiws on books.
3198129
This book contains the following themes: Alphabet, Apples, Spiders, Bears, Pumpkins, Thanksgiving, Fire Station, Leaves, and Monsters.  Each of these themes has a number of items, projects, etc. for that theme.

Here is an example of what is included for the Alphabet theme:
Rhyming cards
List of 9 books on the ABCs
Alphabet facts
Make letters, letter creatures, edible letters
6 activities/games for kids to match letters, words, sounds, etc. to the alphabet
Curved, straight, or both sorting
2 Writing/spelling names activities
1 Sensory bin activity

In general, I like some themes better than others mostly due to preference or perceived value in the content (I am not really that interested in monsters but spiders are cool.)

Also, many ideas are run-of-the-mill if you already have a ton of books on this topic... or took teaching classes.... or attended preschool yourself and can remember what you did.  However, its a good place to start if you have not taught before and needs some ideas.  I personally never thought about doing themes before (outside of the seasons), so its exactly what I needed to open my eyes to the different ways of presenting curriculum to pre-k students.

I am pleased with my purchase and have enjoyed the ideas because I intend to homeschool my son for pre-k due to his allergies.  This will help me make my "classroom" more true to what he would have experienced in school.
3432112
My children really enjoy this series and love to discuss the topics with me and each other. Opens up a lot of good conversation on topics that would not always come up.
198477
I'm a teacher, and exciting, world opening books for 6th graders are not on every shelf. This is one that we read out loud in groups so we can discuss the topics inside. If any parents are reading this review, please consider reading books out loud with your child, even if they are in 6th or 8th or higher grades! You will help raise their reading levels, you will have an opportunity to discuss ideas and values that come up in the book, you will DEMONSTRATE that reading is important, especially if you do it with a good attitude, and you will DEMONSTRATE that the child is important, worth putting aside other activities and cellphones for....
Anyway, this one introduces the idea of a child who engages in truly evil behavior, talks about people taking responsibility for all of their own choices and attitudes, discusses on several levels the needs of society and the needs of an individual, and the responsibility of society and the responsibility of an individual....
Adults, if you read this with your child you will not be bored.
2221992
The majority of the questions are word problems, which I like very much. It's clear Common Core methods were implemented because many questions use number lines, multiples of 10s and other tools to teach number properties. Some are very cool, like grid multiplication which represents the "carrying over."  I appreciate the different ways to explain mathetmatical properties of Common Core, expanding beyond the usual ways we were taught when we were younger.

I found other "Critical Thinking for Math" Spectrum books had oddly worded questions. Maybe I got used to the company's phrasing, but this one's questions were better written. Maybe it's because older kids can handle longer, more descriptive questions without getting too bogged down with overly complex math problems.

There are 97 perforated pages of worksheets, with the answer sheets in the back. It's a good workbook for kids entering 4th grade, maybe even for soon-to-be 4th graders who need to reinforce what they learned.
3963929
This book was part of a curriculum package I purchased for my son for fifth grade. Although he is in fifth grade is on the spectrum so is several years behind where he should be due to common core and standardized testing. Even at his age of 12 (almost 13) I found issues with some of the topics included in  the book. Abortion was the main one. This is not a topic I discuss with my child and neither does anyone else. I think that topic is okay once in a higher level of high school but at a fifth grade or middle school level it is not never appropriate.

The book does an excellent job of explaining the writing process and getting kids interested in writing. It breaks down the process in small steps that the child can easily process and understand and doesn't rush the child to do it all at once.  It also gives the child a chance to write about a topic that he or she has interests in rather then telling the child to write about why I want to visit the moon. I like the way the book encourages thinking and writing among the child.

Bookwork and writing is tough on a child with autism but this book is not too overbearing where my child can do little steps and actually enjoy doing some written work instead of all oral and hands on which is more up  his alley. I want to make sure my child regardless of his mental state has a great chance at achieving all his dreams and this book is a step in the right direction. I do wish though it would be updated and the extreme topics would be removed.