Book reviews - Schoolies (Priddy Books)

This colourful carry along box brings together a selection of Schoolies books and other goodies - Making Friends Storybook, My First Day at School Storybook, Sticker Activity Book, Colouring Book, Wipe Clean Fun Activity Book, The School Run board game, press-out game pieces and die, wipe-clean pen, four wax crayons. Far from just re-packing the books, this offers a whole lot more to extend the value of this excellent series. I would give this to a pre-schooler in the months leading up to starting school and work through it together, using the activities as a prompt for discussion and learning. It's a practical and fun way to develop key skills including imagination, problem solving, reading and pen control thereby giving children a head start for school.

Schools are keen to take children on outings right from Reception. The educational value is immense but sometimes, they can seem a daunting prospect for children. As with all new experiences young children face, the best thing is to talk about the situation and tell them what to expect. The Schoolies are on a trip to the nature centre, making maps as they walk along the nature trail. But Kitty is left behind in the butterfly garden! Sensibly, she stays where she is, and is soon found with the help of Larry Lightbulb and his map. Realistic and reassuring, sharing the story with a class before a visit would be an excellent idea.

Schoolies storybooks, with their friendly and familiar characters, are ideal to introduce children to some of the key events they will encounter when they start school. School fairs are always exciting - this time The Schoolies are raising money for a new slide and there is so much to organise! Spencer makes a list of everything that needs to be done, and with lots of teamwork from all the Schoolies this school fair is the best ever! Children will readily identify with the animal characters and the stories will encourage their imaginations.

It's great to see that new titles are being added to this range all the time. Each title brings something fresh to the series so parents always have something new to offer their child, but with the familiar characters and scenes they have grown to love. It all adds to the reassuring feel of this series which is absolutely perfect for those due to start school soon. packed with imaginative and creative early learning activities for preschoolers to complete. This is packed with activities are we join the Schoolies from start to finish of the school day - sticker pictures, puzzles, colouring and much more are all in this brightly coloured book - perfect to give a head start with skills such as matching, fine motor development, problem solving, imagination and hand-eye coordination. Superb!

The clear boldly outlined pictures in this book are just right for young children. There's much more than just colouring - there's counting, spot the difference, matching and lots more. The book offers plenty of opportunities for parents to discuss the pictures too, such as healthy eating and things that are needed for school. And when children have finished the colouring, there are over a hundred bright stickers to embellish the pages. As with all the Schoolies books, this is a great way to develop those key early learning skills.

The Schoolies series does an excellent job of addressing the issues that face young children at school, as well as preparing them for school by developing and encouraging their learning. Every Schoolie has something they're good at, whether it's playing the piano, singing or rollerskating so everyone has the opportunity to take part in the Angler Primary talent show. All the parents will be there but will things go smoothly? An enjoyable story about working together and helping each other.

Playtime should be but Sid and Suzy Snail always do the same thing every playtime so they are getting rather bored. One day, they decide to change, and find out how much fun it is to try something new. The illustrations are charming - full of life and vitality with lovely animal characters who will be loved by children. The story is reassuring and encouraging and perfectly pitched for children of 3 to 5. t's great for children to see friendly and familiar characters in books and then come to know and love them. There are lots more Schoolies books due for publication in 2014 - I am looking forward to them and to seeing how this innovative series moves forward.

26 double-sided activity flash cards are full of ideas to help children learn their ABC, 123, colours, shapes and more, with shapes for children to trace around - an invaluable activity for starting writing skills.The cards are wipe clean so all the activities can be wiped away and tried time and time again, and the pen slots into the box. There are so many ways these cards can be used - they are really versatile. I had a two year old picking out the number cards and putting them into order - his idea, not mine!

There's always lots to do at Angler Primary School, just like any school, so get your child prepared by enjoying the wide variety of activities in this wipe-clean book.

 

 

Telling the time - always a tricky concept to master. One of the best ways to help is by putting the times into context and this cleverly constructed books does just that. It's an entertaining story about a day, with a clock up on the corner on each page. Open out the big clock and your child can move the hands to the right position as he follows the story through the day.