Category: DK Canada

Celebrate our Canadian history with discovering more about our government, how it works and our Prime Ministers.

About Our Great Prime Ministers

What is a democracy? How does Canada’s government work? What’s the difference between the Senate and the House of Commons? And just what does a Prime Minister do, anyway?

Discover the answers to these questions and more in DK Readers Our Great Prime Ministers.

This Level 4 DK Reader will build reading skills and teach vocabulary while telling the story of Canada’s government, how it is formed, how it works, and profiling 12 of Canada’s Prime Ministers throughout history, including Sir John A. Macdonald, Louis St. Laurent, Lester B. Pearson, Pierre Trudeau, Stephen Harper, and more.

Perfect for 9-11 year olds reading independently, reading becomes a fact-discovering adventure with these Level 4 readers. Supporting and encouraging a lifetime love of reading, nonfiction subjects are clearly explained, described vividly, and brought to life with true stories, fascinating statistics, and photographic images. Additional information boxes are full of extra fun facts, and topics are developed with additional maps and charts.

My Thoughts

The DK Reader Our Great Prime Minister, which is a level four, is the perfect book for summer time learning (and learning throughout the year) especially in the context of celebrating Canada’s 150th birthday. In school, we learn the basics about our government but there is only so much that teachers can teach in the amount of time they are given.

This book gives both children (and adults – I needed the lessons again!) an excellent overview of the history of democracy in Canada, the divisions of our government and how these work and how it is formed (from campaigning to election day). The book also contains a history of some of the most notable Prime Ministers in our history. It gives an overview of their time in office and some of their key milestones, whether they be positive or negative.

The book is very easy to read out loud for beginner readers and well written for more advanced readers. The font, size and page breaks with photos is well-balanced for readers who are advancing towards novels. I really enjoyed learning the history (some of it I had forgotten) and we would spend some time after each chapter quizzing each other. While a smaller book, it is jammed backed full of important information and facts for children and adults. It makes a great accompanying book for the education that children receive at school.

You can purchase a copy of this book on DK Canada here.

Rating: 5/5

Disclosure: I received a copy of this book in order to facilitate this review. All opinions expressed are my own.

Hands up: Does your child love to build, create and discover? Then Smithsonian Maker Lab is the book for you!

About Smithsonian Maker Lab

Supporting STEM education initiatives and the maker movement, the National Parenting Publication Award-winner Maker Lab includes 28 kid-safe projects and crafts that will get young inventors’ wheels turning and make science pure fun.

Each step-by-step activity is appropriate for kids ages 8-12, and ranked easy, medium, or hard, with an estimated time frame for completion. Requiring only household materials, young makers can build an exploding volcano, race balloon rocket cars, construct a solar system, make a lemon battery, and more. Photographs and facts carefully detail the “why” and “how” of each experiment using real-world examples to provide context so kids can gain a deeper understanding of the scientific principles applied.

With a foreword by Jack Andraka, a teen award-winning inventor, Maker Lab will help kids find their inner inventor and create winning projects for school projects, science fairs, and beyond. This book was even on the Late Show with James Corden!

My Thoughts

Science is an academic subject close to my heart. I loved biology, chemistry and physics through my academic career and I want my boys to experience how truly awesome science is. It is also one of those subjects that can be overwhelming for some students. But if taught right and made fun, science is truly amazing and opens doors for their future.

This book is truly incredible for young children to teens (and even adults). It covers a wide range of science topics that can be found in the home, in the outdoor environment and even in water and food! There is a total of twenty eight science projects in this one hundred fifty seven page book that also includes a glossary of terms. The book is hard covered and roughly letter page sized. Each project spans a couple of pages with large accompanying photographs that aids in the instruction of each experiment. The photographs are bright, bold and are effective at helping guide you through the instructions. The instructions for each experiment start off with a complete list of materials needed with pictures accompanied with detailed step by step instructions (each step having their own picture as well). The instructions are easy to follow both if your child wants to work alone or if you want to help them out. Each project also has a difficulty rating as well as how much time is required for each experiment if you are planning your experiments.

What I loved the most was that each experiment also had the science theory behind it included. This is so important for children – the why is what will keep them engaged and wanting to learn more about science. Science can sometimes be daunting for children and teens, participating in experiments that are interesting and fun can really help to foster the love of the sciences. This book is a great tool in fostering this love, from making invisible ink to radio speakers to fossils, this book covers it all!

You can purchase a copy of this book on the DK Canada website here.

Rating: 5/5

Awards

This book has won the following two awards:

• A National Parenting Publications Awards (NAPPA) Winner
• A Eureka! Silver Honor Book award winner

Disclosure: I received a copy of this book in order to facilitate this review. All opinions expressed are my own.

Since moving into our home four years ago, I have found a love of gardening. There is something so satisfying about growing your own vegetables! My only trouble? The limited space we have! Which I am sure so many of you can relate to. We have had to learn how to take advantage of every space and planter I can get my hands on. Grow All You Can Eat in Three Square Feet is all the help you will ever need to achieve your gardening goals!

About Grow All You Can Eat in 3 Square Feet

Want to grow your own vegetables and food, but don’t have enough space for a garden? Don’t let lack of space get in the way of growing healthy, organic foods at home. Apartment dwellers, schoolteachers, and anyone else who wants to grow a lot of food in a little space will find a great small garden resource in Grow All You Can Eat in 3 Square Feet.

Small-space gardeners, find your start in Grow All You Can Eat in 3 Square Feet, packed with information on window boxes, potted plants, patio gardening, raised beds, small square-foot gardening, container gardening, and everything else related to growing your own small garden. Whether you want to grow a full garden, grow tomatoes, grow a herb garden, or just pick up great tips for small gardens, Grow All You Can Eat in 3 Square Feet is the resource you need.

My Thoughts

This is an excellent guide for those new to gardening and want to maximize their space – either in an urban setting or those with a smaller outside space. The book covers all the basics (and most important aspects): know your plot, know what you want to grow and how to maximize your harvest.

The basics are covered in the beginning: knowing your soil, how lights affects your crop, watering and what you grow your harvest in. My favourite part of this book is how to maximize your space. I was always nervous about not having space to grow enough of my vegetables so I always stuck to tomatoes and spinach. This book showed me how to take advantage of pots (which to be honest I was always cautious to use) and how to arrange them in a visually appealing way. The bonus? What to plant in spring/summer in pots so that you can fully utilize your pots to grow harvests throughout the best months! They have taken the hard work out for you and matched the crops to grow in each period. That is one of the best parts in this book – they help you with the planning of what to grow and what plants grow well together and in what spaces. Planning your crop appropriately is just as important as how you take care of it! I still remember the first year I planted too many tomato plants and a zucchini plant right next to it – it looked like a jungle! The back of the book contains a resource of common crops, pests, diseases and weeds as well as how to deal with them.

This book is a great resource for those starting to plan out their garden and want to maximize all of the available space to them. It helps you plan, organize and continue to grow a great harvest all through the spring and summer months. A must have for gardeners!

You can purchase a copy of Grow All You Can Eat in 3 Square Feet here.

Rating: 5/5

Disclosure: I received a copy of this book in order to facilitate this review. All opinions expressed are my own.