Showing posts with label preschool. Show all posts
Showing posts with label preschool. Show all posts

45% Off Discounts: Best Buy for Press Here Review

Press Here

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Press Here Review

When we talk about interactive picture books we're usually talking about pop-up books or tactile books with fuzzy/bumpy details. When we talk about picture books that break down the fourth wall, we're usually talking about titles that approach the reader directly with a narrative like The Monster at the End of this Book or Don't Let the Pigeon Drive the Bus! or Can You Make a Scary Face? So where do we slot the little French import Press Here by Herve Tullet? Interactive but also reliant on the paper format, this here's an entirely new breed of book. One that has its finger firmly on the pulse of what kids are used to, while at the same time finding a way to both upset and exceed their expectations.
You know what kids love? Being told what to do. Seriously, it's a thrill for them. Take Press Here. From the title onward children are given specific directions like "press the yellow dot again" and "try shaking the book". For every action the child takes, the book seems to respond with the turn of a page. Dots flit and fly in all directions. Sometimes child readers turn out the lights. Other times the dots grow huge on the page with every clap of the reader. By the time you've reached the end all the book has to say is, "want to do it all over again?" and you can bet that every reader in the room, tall or small, will scream out an appreciative "YES!!!" in response.
I wonder . . . is this the first picture book of the picture book app age? Could you have published a book quite this specific ten or twenty years ago? Does Press Here (called just Un Livre in its native France) in fact mark the start of a whole new genre of children's fiction? Which is to say, fiction for children that are familiar with interaction and, indeed, demand it. I say that in full knowledge of the fact that only a certain privileged segment of the current youthful population has the opportunity to play with interactive electronic toys. Still, I've enough faith in both the small techies and their non-electronic kin to believe that if you tell them to rub a circle in this book, they'll still have the wherewithal to know to turn the page afterwards. I think.
I've heard people say that while an eBook or an app of a book may be amusing, it doesn't have the smell of a book. Smell is important, I'll grant, but I've sniffed enough picture books with nasty rotting cheapo glue in their spines to know that not being able to get an olfactory whiff of a title is sometimes a blessing in disguise. No, the real advantage any given book has over its electronic counterpart is the tactile experience. With screens all you'll ever feel will be a slick, smooth surface. Books (ironically once deplored by the gatekeepers of children's literature if they ever included interactive parts) have the distinct advantage of getting to be furry, fuzzy, softy, plushy, or downright chewable from the start. Normally such tactile books are relegated to babies. Yet every book is, in its way, a physical experience. Take Press Here. First off you've got these thick cardboard covers, clearly built to withstand some serious blows and shakes. Then you've the pages inside, which are shiny and thick enough to give you the impression that you're really accomplishing something when you turn the page. And that, right there, is yet another advantage over the electronic form. While on a screen you can turn a "page" with a mere flick of your index finger, here kids get to revel the pleasure of lifting the thick luscious pages themselves. It's a magic trick that never stops giving. The page has now become the lifting of a curtain on the world's most basic stage.
As a children's librarian I had to consider the readaloud potential of this book. Sure, it's beautiful for one-on-one experiences. It would even work well with kids who've enough experience reading that they know what it's saying at any given moment. But what about for storytimes with big groups of kids? Since the book is constantly telling "you" what "you" should do next, the reader would have to read the text and then do the instructions themselves. That could be fun, but if I know anything about toddlers and preschoolers, you know that you had better have some pretty long arms if you're going read this aloud to them. Otherwise you might find them approaching you like small determined zombies, arms outstretched so that they might press and touch and rub and tap the book for themselves. At least you can get a big group to blow and clap their hands for the later portions of the story. That's pretty good.
I imagine a picture book app for this book with something approaching mild horror. This is odd, particularly when you consider the debt this book owes to the mindset that accompanies that technology. Yet to make this into an app would render this book . . . ordinary. No different from any of the other downloadable games out there and, indeed, much less impressive. What sets Press Here apart from the pack is the fact that it is printed on paper. There's a magic to the book that is akin to the magic of pop-up books. In paper there is power and Press Here taps into that. It is, I hope, the start of great new things to come with one of the oldest formats on earth.
For ages 3 and up.

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38% Off Discounts: Best Buy for Pete the Cat: I Love My White Shoes Review

Pete the Cat: I Love My White Shoes

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Pete the Cat: I Love My White Shoes Review

I was extremely disappointed to read the School Library Journal's review of Pete the Cat: I Love My White Shoes. As the owner of a children's bookstore in Decatur, Georgia, I have had a very different experience.
Pete the Cat: I Love My White Shoes has been on the New York Times' Bestseller List for several weeks and has been the best selling book in our store's history. The reason the book has done so well -- incredibly well for an unknown author and illustrator -- is because Pete is a superb book.
Author Eric Litwin has a considerable history of working with children as a teacher, storyteller, and musician. As a result of years of work, Eric has developed an excellent rapport with kids and a deep understanding of how to connect with them using a variety of approaches.
A former electrical engineer, James Dean found his true calling in his second career as a painter. Pete the Cat is a character James created over ten years ago and who has come to be recognized and beloved all over the Atlanta area.
Eric had an idea for a story involving Pete, and subsequently met James by random chance on an Atlanta street. The collaboration began. Drafts were written and sketches were revised. Advice was sought and heeded. When James and Eric were satisfied with their work, the two published the book themselves, selling it on their own and through a handful of bookstores. (Little Shop of Stories was one such store.)
(This is not how a children's picture book typically comes together. In the vast majority of circumstances, an author will submit a manuscript to a publisher. Upon acceptance, an editor will be assigned the key task of selecting an illustrator whose work will not only complement the text but bring an added dimension. There are excellent exceptions where an author and illustrator will submit their work as a team. Jacky Davis and David Soman write and illustrate the Ladybug Girl books. (They're married to each other.) Jon Scieszka and Lane Smith (their wives were co-workers) did The True Story of the Three Little Pigs together and went on to do The Stinky Cheese Man and other books.)
The book sold fantastically well and was subsequently published by Harper Collins. For good reason.
For a children's picture book to be truly successful, it must work for both the child as well as the adult who is asked to read it 100 times. Or more.
From the grownup perspective, Pete is fun to read. The text has a rhythm to it. One can sing the refrain. After only a few reads one can successfully encourage the child to participate. ("Goodness no!") At the same time the parent knows that the younger child is learning colors and the older child, because of the repetition and the visual clues, can begin to learn to read. The illustrations are bright and lively, creative and surreal, and work perfectly with the text.
There is also a moral to Pete's story.
For the child, the book is just fun.
Dave Shallenberger
Little Shop of Stories
Decatur, Georgia

Pete the Cat: I Love My White Shoes Overview



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45% Off Discounts: Purchase Cheap Pete the Cat: Rocking in My School Shoes Review

Pete the Cat: Rocking in My School Shoes

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Pete the Cat: Rocking in My School Shoes Review

Pete the Cat has returned and this time he is wearing his school shoes! Litwin and Dean have created another super stellar story of Pete in school. Pete goes through his school day having experiences that all school children can relate to while singing and dancing and rockin' and groovin'. Make sure you download the music that accompanies the book and you, too, will be singing and dancing along with Pete! If you haven't read Pete the Cat: I Love My White Shoes, be sure to purchase that book too!
Becky Sheridan
Youth Services Librarian
Easttown Library & Information Center
Berwyn, PA

Pete the Cat: Rocking in My School Shoes Overview


Pete the Cat is back-and this time he's rocking in his school shoes. Pete discovers the library, the lunchroom, the playground, and lots of other cool places at school. And no matter where he goes, Pete never stops moving and grooving and singing his song . . . because it's all good.


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Purchase Cheap Team Umizoomi: Numbers, Counting & Patterns Pre-K Math Kit (Carnival) Review

Team Umizoomi: Numbers, Counting and Patterns Pre-K Math Kit (Carnival)

Are you looking to buy Team Umizoomi: Numbers, Counting & Patterns Pre-K Math Kit (Carnival)? here is the right place to find the great deals. we can offer discounts of up to 90% on Team Umizoomi: Numbers, Counting & Patterns Pre-K Math Kit (Carnival). check out the link below:

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Team Umizoomi: Numbers, Counting & Patterns Pre-K Math Kit (Carnival) Review

My 3-1/2 yr old daughter found this ad by accident while playing at nickjr.com, and i saved $30 for getting all 3 sets plus the exclusive umizoomi bag (the bag and the 2 sets at $10 each, instead of $19.99) at umizoomishop, but purchased through Amazon. As for the materials, we have started with the Carnival set. The book,DVD and 2 workbooks complement each other; my only cons is the writing part bec. the workbooks ask the kid to draw shapes and write numbers, and my li'l girl can't write all the numbers yet or draw a heart shape. I've read the mission cards and some are meant to be done with supervision for younger kids, like lining up coins to measure something and counting up to 100... My li'l girl can count up to 20, but not 100. Overall, a good set for learning/reinforcing counting, patterns, writing, and understanding instructions for preschoolers.

Team Umizoomi: Numbers, Counting & Patterns Pre-K Math Kit (Carnival) Overview



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