Reinforce important math skills with this fun new game from Goliath which has kids adding and subtracting on their mission to get the s’mores.
About Counting Campers
Counting Campers is a fun counting game for your little camper. Players move their pawn forward or backward on the board along their individual hiking trail by drawing a ‘plus’ or ‘minus’ card, thus allowing little ones to practice counting and to develop fine motor skills. Follow the path through the muddy swamp, across the fishing pond, over the old bridge, and more, to get back to the campsite. The first camper back to camp wins the game!
Each game includes:
folding board game
four coloured camper pawns
playing cards
instructions
Our Thoughts
We fell in love with this adorable, bright and fun game that all members of our family enjoyed, regardless of their age. Each player takes a turn choosing a card and they will have to move their player forward or backwards on their colour markers depending on the card drawn. To add a little bit of variety, there are also “happy” and “sad” camper cards that cause you to lose a turn or take an extra turn.
As a parent, I loved how this game encouraged simple addition and subtraction for little ones, they weren’t simply sliding down a ladder, they had to think about how many spots forwards or backwards they had to move. I actually liked the fact that there were no dice, instead just the cards to help guide the movement across the board.
While this game is perfect for ages 4 to 9, we all had fun playing this game (right up to the adults). It was competitive but fun game to play all together (although you have to watch the moves of the little ones trying to steal extra spots!). The board, card and pieces are durable, which is a bonus with younger children that can be rough on their items. Counting Campers will make a great addition to family game night for the whole family.
Embracing the latest science, The Teensy Weensy Virus pairs simple, kid-friendly explanations with colorful illustrations, while providing additional resources for adults along with an informative song to help lighten the mood as families engage with this serious topic that has affected so many of us.
About The Teensy Weensy Virus: Book and Song for Preschoolers
COVID-19 is a big deal, but with all that adults have to worry about, it can be easy to overlook the pandemic’s impact on children. This book provides a great way for parents and caregivers to introduce and reinforce the importance of safety measures to children, while also giving kids the opportunity to ask questions and share their own feelings. Embracing the latest science, The Teensy Weensy Virus pairs simple, kid-friendly explanations with bright, colorful illustrations, while offering additional resources for adults and an informative song to help lighten the mood as families engage with this serious topic
Our Thoughts
This is a simple but powerful book about an important topic – COVID-19. COVID-19 has impacted our lives in so many ways, from small acts like going to the store, to the very important family connections we have. Many of us have lost a family member or friend, our family included. As an adult, I know how overwhelmed that I feel each day watching the news, following the new rules, trying to keep up with the restrictions, bylaws and the overwhelming emotions that come along with this. I can’t even begin to imagine how our children feel and how they may not have an outlet to express these feelings or feel unheard.
Our children have carried quite a burden during this pandemic – they have been pulled out of school, all playdates have stopped, extra curricular activities have stopped and even seeing family members have stopped. The impact this has had on children is huge, and for so many of them it is hard to put into words how they are feeling. I know our boys understand why they have to do follow these new rules, but it doesn’t make it easier to emotionally handle. All they want is to give their Grandma and Grandpa a hug, they want to go visit an Aunt and bake with them. Trying to remind them about the importance of a mask and how it protects us and those around us, can be daunting for adults and caregivers.
This book helps young children understand what is going on in the world right now, how to protect themselves and those they love and also give hope that it will get better. It is an important first step in talking with our children about how they are feeling and not just assuming that they understand and that they are okay. Children are not the best at expressing how they are feeling so using books and illustrations is a great way to get them talking. It is also a great way for parents and caregivers that are unsure of how to start this conversation and how to make it age appropriate, this takes all the guess work out of it for you.
This is an excellent book and resource for parents and children, a definite must read that is perfect for all ages. It is simple for young readers to read aloud and the illustrations are bright and keep their attention.
Sherri Rose grew up in Richmond, Virginia. As a retired pediatric and family nurse practitioner, as well and a hospice and palliative care nurse, she recognizes the critical importance of helping children understand what is happening during this pandemic that is currently sweeping our globe. COVID-19 has created so much stress, anxiety, grief, and loss for adults—imagine what children must think but be unable to express!
Inspired by her concerns for the smallest among us—as well as by her own significant grief over not being able to hug her children and grandchildren during quarantine—Sherri began to write this book to help preschoolers understand what is going on and why all of us must follow new rules. As a mother of three daughters and three stepdaughters, as well as a grandmother to many, she hopes that the resources found in this book will be useful to all the readers all over the world. Sherri is having six translations created to spread the importance of basic safety guidelines with this very smart virus. She wrote the lyrics to the little song at the end of the book to have something light and happy after reading about a serious topic.
Disclosure: I received a digital copy of this book in order to facilitate this review. All opinions expressed are my own.
In Book 5, Land of The Midnight Sun, Egg, the friendly live alien spaceship, creatively uses an enchanting art gallery to reveal the young adventurers’ next destination.
Spartan and the Green Egg: Land of the Midnight Sun
In Book 5, Land of The Midnight Sun, Egg, the friendly live alien spaceship, creatively uses an enchanting art gallery to reveal the young adventurers’ next destination. Spartan, Katie, Max, Tor, and Grimm find themselves in Greenland, home to some of the biggest glaciers on earth, and known as The Land of the Midnight Sun because, in summer, the sun never sets. Greenland’s vast and daunting landscape is almost completely covered with ice and snow.
With the help of some friendly Greenland sled dogs, they arrive in the charming village of Siorapaluk and befriend a young Inuit, Malik, and his family. They soon learn that Malik’s father and his group have gone missing while on an expedition. The team goes in search of them, at their own risk. Before long, they are caught up in a treacherous avalanche and trapped on a glacier that has broken off from the mainland. Hope arrives from a powerful source as they bear witness to an astonishing and beautiful miracle from the Earth’s living creatures.
When her eldest son was a toddler, Nabila used to entertain him with made-up stories about a boy who traveled the world inside a live green egg that just so happened to be an alien from another planet. She turned the tales into a colorful children¹s graphic novel series, Spartan and the Green Egg, with the intention of introducing children to environmental and cultural themes around the world.
A portion of all proceeds from the Spartan and the Green Egg book series, toys and accessories is donated to The Children for Peace ONLUS. Based in Italy, this non-governmental organization helps young people worldwide who are living in challenging circumstances obtain their essential needs such as food, medical help and educational opportunities. Nabila currently lives in New York and has two sons.
Kim Patrick was born in England, raised in Britain and South Africa, and now lives in the United States. She loves animals, books, films, the letter X, and much of the rest of the alphabet.
Avery’s Gift is a story of love, loss, friendship, and finding true colors, inspired by two incredible children and the connection they forever share.
About Avery’s Gift
Avery wakes up in the middle of the night to find herself in unfamilar surroundings and has somehow lost her colors!
The crickets call to her and the flowers from the wall guide her out of bed and into the moonlit garden. With the help of a fox, an owl and a boy named Dalton, Avery goes on a quest to find her colors and finds many meaningful things along the way. Avery’s Gift is reminiscent of fables told long ago, but is based on a modern true story of two young children, Avery and Dalton. It highlights how their lives were connected one summer night and the gifts that they gave each other. Avery’s Gift is astory of love, loss, friendship and finding true colors.
Our Thoughts
Avery’s Gift is a beautiful story that made me smile, brought a tear to my eyes and gave us hope.
Avery’s Gift is based on true events that happened on August 6th, 2009. Then five years old, Avery, who was born with a rare heart defect, received a heart transplant from eight year old Dalton, after he was tragically hit by a car. Avery is now a vibrant (and healthy) sixteen year old and the two families have become close as they are forever bonded with the gift of a loving heart.
The story itself is just beautiful with gorgeous illustrations to accompany each page. The story is age appropriate for younger and older readers and gives parents the opportunity to expand the story. Avery has woken up in a dream like state and has lost her colours. As she searches for them, she meets Dalton and they have so much fun together. As Dalton gets ready to embark on his own new journey, he gives Avery a very special parting gift – a gift that helps to awaken her colours once again.
While the story doesn’t mention the heart transplant in those words, the gift that he gives her and the illustration are perfect and more than bring this part of the true story to life. It gives parents the opportunity to start having important conversations with their children about organ donation, compassion, kindness and the impact this has on others. It is a story of loss but also of friendship, kindness and the power of a simple gift. Avery’s Gift is a very special book and will make a great gift for readers of all ages.
You can pre-order a copy of this book here and learn more about the fundraiser here.
About the Author
Jonathan Hoefer is an author, illustrator and art director and has been involved with the printing and publishing industry for over 20 years. He is a graduate of Syracuse University’s Visual and Performing Arts program, majoring in illustration. His illustrative work has been published in national newspapers and magazines. He has been an illustrator and art director of four books including Eddie Shapes Up by ex-NYC mayor Ed Koch and Pat Thaler Koch, Lilly Lou Makes a New Friend and Lilly Lou Goes to Washington, D.C. a book series by Mike Murphy. In addition, Hoefer wrote and illustrated Pun Intended: Welcome to the Punny Farm, which are visual puns, once made famous when he acted as Art Director of the Daily Orange Newspaper at Syracuse University. He currently lives with his family in St. Petersburg, FL.
About the Illustrator
Milana Samarskaya is an illustrator that has been drawing ever since she could hold a pencil in her hand. Reading and drawing are her two passions since childhood, and have developed into a love of book illustration, collaborating with children’s writers to give theri stories life. She currently lives in Taganrog, Russia. You can see more of Milana’s work on her website: https://misamarskaya.ru
Disclosure: I received a digital copy of this book in order to facilitate this review. All opinions expressed are my own.
