Vibrantly designed, lavishly illustrated, brilliantly walking the line between cool and constructive, it’s crammed with activities that are not only fun and doable but also designed to get kids engaged with the wider world. With contributions from a diverse crowd of experts, the book provides kids with information to round out their worldview and inspire them to learn more. From how-tos on using the library or writing your representative to a graphic history of video games, the book isn’t shy about teaching. Yet the bulk of the 350-page mega-resource presents hands-on activities that further the mission in a fun way, featuring the best of the old as well as the best of the new: classic science experiments, crafts and upcycling, board game hacking, code-cracking, geocaching, skateboard repair, yarn bombing, stop-action movie-making—plus tons of sidebars and extras, including trivia, best-of lists, and Q&As with leading thinkers whose culture-changing ideas are made accessible to kids for the first time.Just as kids begin to disappear into their screens, here is a book that encourages them to use those tech skills to be creative, try new things, and change the world. And it encourages parents to participate. Unbored is exciting to read, easy to use, and appealing to young and old, girl and boy. Parents will be comforted by its anti-perfectionist spirit and humor. Kids will just think it’s awesome.Contributors include: Mark Frauenfelder of MAKE magazine; Colin Beavan, the No Impact Man; Douglas Rushkoff, renowned media theorist; Geoff Manaugh, author of BLDGBLOG; John Edgar Park, a CG supervisor at DisneyToon Studios; and Jean Railla, founder of GetCrafty.com and Etsy consultant.

    The first half of the book is full of writing tips, techniques and methods to make every story a masterpiece, with helpful activities on coming up with ideas, writing from different points of view and creating characters, settings and story lines. The second half of the book is full of story themes to write about, from murder mysteries to tales from outer space. With lots of lined space to fill, each activity comes with suggestions for characters, settings and objects to write into the story as well as questions to prompt the imagination.

    Clever rhymes and humorous illustrations bring these collective nouns to life in funny ways, making it easy to remember which terms and animals go together. A glossary in the back matter offers further explanation of words used as collective nouns, such as sleuth meaning detective.-- "Journal"

    Many today are well on their way to becoming a sad statistic in the war on obesity, high blood sugar, and the related diseases—including diabetes—that can result from a diet that’s seriously out of whack. In his previous bestselling book, Overcoming Runaway Blood Sugar, Dennis Pollock shared his personal experience with this deadly epidemic—including his success at lowering his runaway blood sugar to acceptable levels. Now Dennis offers readers the next step in the battle: 60 practical ways to manage their blood sugar without resorting to a bland unsatisfying diet of turnips and tuna fish. In this step by step, change by change plan, readers will learn how to: reduce their intake of carbs, exercise more effectively, and shed excess weight. A must-have book for readers serious about regaining their health while also lowering their weight and increasing their energy.

    The seven outlined principles redefine the parent-dominated family by teaching parents how to achieve mutual parent/child respect without being submissive, set firm limits without using demands or coercion, and empower children to open up, cooperate, and realize their own innate potential. Based on Marshall Rosenberg's Nonviolent Communication process, the framework helps parents break down the barriers to outstanding relationships with their kids by avoiding destructive language and habits that keep parents and children from understanding one another. Activities, stories, and resources help parents immediately apply the seven keys to any parenting situation.

    You'll find answers to questions about your changing body, from hair care to healthy eating, bad breath to bras, periods to pimples, and everything in between. Once you feel comfortable with what's happening, you'll be ready to move on to the The Care & Keeping of You 2!

    “The author’s ideas are hidden, and it is up to all of us to figure them out.” In this indispensable reading companion, the Goldstones–noted parent-child book club experts–encourage grownups and young readers alike to adopt an approach that will unlock the magic and power of reading.With the Goldstones help, parents can inspire kids’ lifelong love of reading by teaching them how to unlock a book’s hidden meaning. Featuring fun and incisive discussions of numerous children’s classics, this dynamic guide highlights key elements–theme, setting, character, point of view, climax, and conflict–and paves the way for meaningful conversations between parents and children. “Best of all,” the Goldstones note, “you don’t need an advanced degree in English literature or forty hours a week of free time to effectively discuss a book with your child. This isn’t Crime and Punishment, it’s Charlotte’s Web.”

    And Gyo Fujikawa’s appealing illustrations depict children of all races sweetly interacting, as well as an engagingly rendered menagerie of animals and the natural world in all its wonderment. Among the verses that children will love are Henry Wadsworth Longfellow’s “Christmas Bells,” Lewis Carroll’s “The Melancholy Pig,” and Eugene Fields’ “Wynken, Blynken, and Nod,” along with proverbs, limericks, nursery rhymes, and folk songs.

    Benjamin collects stamps and Karl collects coins, and neither one will share with their little brother. So Max decides to start a collection of his own. He’s going to collect words. He starts with small words that he cuts out of newspapers and magazines, but soon his collection has spilled out into the hall. All the while, his brothers are watching. Benjamin brags that he has one thousand stamps. Karl is just a few coins short of five hundred. But a thousand stamps is really just a bunch of stamps, and a lot of coins is only a heap of money. A pile of words, however, can make a story.  Bright, bold pictures incorporating clever wordplay accompany this highly original tale about a younger brother’s ingenuity. Max's Words is a 2007 Bank Street - Best Children's Book of the Year.

    This celebration of the wonder and variety of earth's animals is "joyous...a book to be shared" (Booklist, starred review).

    Essential coding concepts are explained using eight build-along game projects that guide young coders step-by-step, using visual samples, easy-to-follow instructions, and fun pixel art.Written for children ages 8-12 with little to no coding experience, Coding Games in Scratch teaches important strategies for solving problems, designing projects, and communicating ideas, all while creating games to play with their friends.Supporting STEM education initiatives, computer coding teaches kids how to think creatively, work collaboratively, and reason systematically, and is quickly becoming a necessary and sought-after skill. DK's computer coding books are full of fun exercises with step-by-step guidance, making them the perfect introductory tools for building vital skills in computer programming.Author Bio:Dr. Jon Woodcock has a degree in Physics from the University of Oxford and a PhD in Computational Astrophysics from the University of London. He started coding at the age of eight and has programmed all kinds of computers from single-chip microcontrollers to world-class supercomputers. His many projects include giant space simulations, research in high-tech companies, and intelligent robots made from junk. Jon has a passion for science and technology education, giving talks on space and running computer programming clubs in schools. He has worked on numerous science and technology books as a contributor and consultant, including DK's How Cool Stuff Works and Help Your Kids with Computer Coding.Reviews:"An absolutely wonderful introduction to programming games." - Kirkus Reviews"...clear instructions and plenty of images that make coding just about foolproof." - Booklist

    Frizzle's class is having a hard time putting together a giant globe of the world. A piece is missing...an island so new it hasn't been discovered yet! Before they know it, the kids are beneath the oceans's surface, exploring an underwater volcano. Join the class as they learn about volcanoes.

    It includes famous European paintings, delicate Japanese prints and traditional African masks, and each work of art is followed by a project influenced by the artist's methods or ideas.

    In Socratic Circles: Fostering Critical and Creative Thinking in Middle and High School , author Matt Copeland provides real-world examples and straightforward answers to frequent questions. He creates a coaching guide for both the teacher new to Socratic seminars and the experienced teacher seeking to optimize the benefits of this powerful strategy. Socratic Circles also shows teachers who are familiar with literature circles the many ways in which these two practices complement and extend each other.Effectively implemented, Socratic seminars enhance reading comprehension, listening and speaking skills, and build better classroom community and conflict resolution skills. By giving students ownership over the classroom discussion around texts, they become more independent and motivated learners. Ultimately, because there is a direct relationship between the level of participation and the richness of the experience, Socratic seminars teach students to take responsibility for the quality of their own learning.Filled with examples to help readers visualize the application of these concepts in practice, Socratic Circles includes transcripts of student dialogue and work samples of preparation and follow-up activities. The helpful appendices offer ready-to-copy handouts and examples, and suggested selections of text that connect to major literary works.As our classrooms and our schools grow increasingly focused on meeting high standards and differentiating instruction for a wide variety of student needs and learning styles, Socratic seminars offer an essential classroom tool for meeting these goals. Socratic Circles is a complete and practical guide to Socratic seminars for the busy classroom teacher.

    With Emmy award-winning, longtime PBS host Mark Kistler as your guide, you'll learn the secrets of sophisticated three-dimensional renderings, and have fun along the way -- in just twenty minutes a day for a month. Inside you'll find:Quick and easy step-by-step instructions for drawing everything from simple spheres to apples, trees, buildings, and the human hand and faceMore than 500 line drawings, illustrating each stepTime-tested tips, techniques, and tutorials for drawing in 3-DThe 9 Fundamental Laws of Drawing to create the illusion of depth in any drawing75 student examples to encourage you in the process