Each story is based on actual happenings from the lives of real people.

    Simple, rhyming text and colorful cartoon cats help children expand their vocabularies and gain an appreciation for the rhythm of language in this lighthearted book of rhyming verse. Adjectives like frilly, silly, polka-dotted, fizzy, and spunky are printed in color, and all the words will tickle you pink!

    Buck Summerhill, a young soldier from West Virginia, faces the horrors of the Battle of Gettysburg knowing that his two cousins, Custis and Mason, may be fighting against him in the Army of northern Virginia.

    Harassed by Iroquois, the Verchere family's fort must keep a continual guard. 14-year-old Madeleine is left alone with two younger brothers and few others when the Indians attack. We follow the brave and determined stratagems of Madeleine and her small circle. Madeleine's youthful leadership, especially of her brothers, will win the reader's admiration.

    Each page is jam packed with hands-on activities and games covering phonics, spelling, vocabulary, addition, subtraction, skip counting, time, money, maps, science, and much, much more—with friendly illustrations throughout. Aligned with Common Core State Standards and expertly vetted by award-winning teachers, this workbook is designed to appeal to kids’ natural curiosity, with interactive layouts and easy-to-follow explanations that take the intimidation out of learning. Plus, it’s written to help parents follow along and explain key concepts for homework help! With colorful stickers, a fold-out poster, award certificate, and Brain Quest Mini Decks in the back.Also available: Summer Brain Quest Workbooks (Pre-K & K through Grades 5 & 6) and Brain Quest Decks (Pre-K through Grade 7).

    These adorable stories of childhood adventures are as fresh today as when they were written more than a half century ago. And now, thanks to dynamic new covers, they're ready to charm a whole new generation of readers. Penny's name is really William, but when he was adopted as a baby, he had hair the color of a new copper penny. Adopted or not, Penny decides to prove his friend Patsy wrong when she says he doesn't truly have a family!

      Do you remember your first visit to where the wild things are? How about curling up for hours on end to discover the secret of the Sorcerer’s Stone? Combining clear, practical advice with inspiration, wisdom, tips, and curated reading lists, How to Raise a Reader shows you how to instill the joy and time-stopping pleasure of reading.   Divided into four sections, from baby through teen, and each illustrated by a different artist, this book offers something useful on every page, whether it’s how to develop rituals around reading or build a family library, or ways to engage a reluctant reader. A fifth section, “More Books to Love: By Theme and Reading Level,” is chockful of expert recommendations. Throughout, the authors debunk common myths, assuage parental fears, and deliver invaluable lessons in a positive and easy-to-act-on way.

    Includes a poster of Theodore Gray's iconic photographic periodic table of the elements! Based on seven years of research and photography by Theodore Gray and Nick Mann, The Elements presents the most complete and visually arresting representation available to the naked eye of every atom in the universe. Organized sequentially by atomic number, every element is represented by a big beautiful photograph that most closely represents it in its purest form. Several additional photographs show each element in slightly altered forms or as used in various practical ways. Also included are fascinating stories of the elements, as well as data on the properties of each, including atomic number, atomic symbol, atomic weight, density, atomic radius, as well as scales for electron filling order, state of matter, and an atomic emission spectrum. This of solid science and stunning artistic photographs is the perfect gift book for every sentient creature in the universe.

    Never before in history have children been so plugged in—and so out of touch with the natural world. In this groundbreaking new work, child advocacy expert Richard Louv directly links the lack of nature in the lives of today's wired generation—he calls it nature deficit—to some of the most disturbing childhood trends, such as rises in obesity, Attention Deficit Disorder (ADD), and depression. Some startling facts: By the 1990s the radius around the home where children were allowed to roam on their own had shrunk to a ninth of what it had been in 1970. Today, average eight-year-olds are better able to identify cartoon characters than native species, such as beetles and oak trees, in their own community. The rate at which doctors prescribe antidepressants to children has doubled in the last five years, and recent studies show that too much computer use spells trouble for the developing mind. Nature-deficit disorder is not a medical condition; it is a description of the human costs of alienation from nature. This alienation damages children and shapes adults, families, and communities. There are solutions, though, and they're right in our own backyards. Last child in the Woods is the first book to bring together cutting-edge research showing that direct exposure to nature is essential for healthy childhood development—physical, emotional, and spiritual. What's more, nature is a potent therapy for depression, obesity, and ADD. Environment-based education dramatically improves standardized test scores and grade point averages and develops skills in problem solving, critical thinking, and decision making. Even creativity is stimulated by childhood experiences in nature. Yet sending kids outside to play is increasingly difficult. Computers, television, and video games compete for their time, of course, but it's also our fears of traffic, strangers, even virus-carrying mosquitoes—fears the media exploit—that keep children indoors. Meanwhile, schools assign more and more homework, and there is less and less access to natural areas. Parents have the power to ensure that their daughter or son will not be the "last child in the woods," and this book is the first step toward that nature-child reunion.

    Many of the best novels, plays, poetry, and films in the English language produced since Shakespeare’s death in 1616—from Jane Austen to The Godfather—are heavily influenced by Shakespeare’s stories, characters, language, and themes.  In a sense, his works are a kind of Bible for the modern world, bringing us together intellectually and spiritually.  Hamlet, Juliet, Macbeth, Ophelia, and a vast array of other singular Shakespearean characters have become the archetypes of our consciousness. To know some Shakespeare provides a head start in life.  In How to Teach Your Children Shakespeare, acclaimed playwright Ken Ludwig provides the tools you need to instill an understanding, and a love, of Shakespeare’s works in your children, and to have fun together along the way.Ken Ludwig devised his methods while teaching his own children, and his approach is friendly and easy to master. Beginning with  memorizing short specific passages from Shakespeare's plays, this method then instills children with cultural references they will utilize for years to come. Ludwig’s approach includes understanding of the time period and implications of Shakespeare’s diction as well as the invaluable lessons behind his words and stories.  Colorfully incorporating the history of Shakespearean theater and society, How to Teach Your Children Shakespeare guides readers on an informed and adventurous journey through the world in which the Bard wrote.This book’s simple process allows anyone to impart to children the wisdom of plays like A Midsummer Night’s Dream, Twelfth Night, Macbeth, and Romeo and Juliet. And there’s fun to be had along the way. Shakespeare novices and experts, and readers of all ages, will each find something delightfully irresistible in How to Teach Your Children Shakespeare.

    Each page is jam packed with hands-on activities and games covering language arts, multiplication and division, geometry, graphs, time lines, and much, much more—with friendly illustrations throughout. Aligned with Common Core State Standards and expertly vetted by award-winning teachers, this workbook is designed to appeal to kids’ natural curiosity, with interactive layouts and easy-to-follow explanations that take the intimidation out of learning. Plus, it’s written to help parents follow along and explain key concepts for homework help! With colorful stickers, a fold-out poster, award certificate, and Brain Quest Mini Decks in the back.Also available: Summer Brain Quest Workbooks (Pre-K & K through Grades 5 & 6) and Brain Quest Decks (Pre-K through Grade 7).

    He was not dreaming; it was his stepfather!The man watched Kinza as a snake might watch a baby rabbit at play, waiting for the moment to strike. And for one breathless moment Hamid was sure that he would reach out and snatch her away. Hamid does not want his little blind sister, Kinza, to be sold to a beggar by their stepfather, so he decides to rescue her. Together they escape from their mountain village to a town where there may be a new home for Kinza. But this is only the start of their adventures.Will Kinza be safe' What will happen to Hamid, who dares not go back home' Set in North Africa, readers will be delighted by yet another of Patricia St. John's exciting, freshly edited novels.

     Canadian-born Emma Edmonds loved the thrill of adventure and chasing freedom, so in 1861 when the Civil War began, she enlisted in the Union Army. With cropped hair and men’s clothing, Emma transformed herself into a peddler, slave, bookkeeper and more, seamlessly gathering information and safely escaping each time. This fictionalized biography about the daring exploits of a cunning master of disguise, risking discovery and death for the sake of freedom, will inspire readers for generations to come.

    Ronnie loves living in the lighthouse, and looks forward to telling his family about it at Christmas. But will lighthouse keeper Byron Flagg return in time for Ronnie and Aunt Martha to make it home for Christmas? A Newbery Honor Book.

    When did the dinosaurs live? What other animals lived at that time? Which dinosaur was biggest? How do we know about dinosaurs? Find out the answers to these questions and more as Jack and Annie track the facts. Filled with up-to-date information, photos, illustrations, and fun tidbits from Jack and Annie, the Magic Tree House Fact Trackers are the perfect way for kids to find out more about the topics they discovered in their favorite Magic Tree House adventures.From the Trade Paperback edition.