Alphabet & Words Archives

Bright Sparks Flash Cards
by Button Books & Dominika Lipniewska

We’re over half way through Ivy’s first term in Reception and the homework has started to arrive thick and fast! After a busy day at school she’s not always a fan of sitting down and getting it done so I have been trying to make it as fun as possible for her.

Earlier this year we were gifted two boxes of flash cards by Button Books – one set is for the alphabet and the other is for three-letter words. Each box contains 50+ sturdy, laminated cards, each illustrated with super cute designs by Polish illustrator and designer Dominika Lipniewska.

There are two types of card in the Alphabet box. There are 26 which each feature just a letter, with upper case on one side and lower case on the other. The remaining cards have upper case, lower case and a familar word on one side and a picture of the word on the other side.

Fri
16 ^th

Big Words For Little Geniuses
by Susan and James Patterson & Hsinping Pan

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If you are in need of a little pick-me-up then i’d highly recommend grabbing yourself a copy of this wonderful word book. There is officially nothing cuter (or more hilarious) than listening to Ivy attempting to say words like catawampus, dulcifluous, onomatopoeia and rapscallion!

The colourful pages take us on a journey from A-Z as we learn some exciting new words which have lots of syllables. Each word comes with a short explanation and a phonetic breakdown so that grown ups can be sure that they’re passing on the correct information when they read. Some of the words were new to me and really quite tough so I definitely appreciated this. I take my hat off to you if arachibutyrophobia rolls easily off your tongue or if you can tell me what idioglossia means without googling it!

Sun
04 ^th

I’ll Believe You When…
by Susan Schubert & Raquel Bonita

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I love language so this fantastic book of idioms makes me very happy indeed!

“Do you see a dragon?” asks a child at the start of this story. “A dragon? What dragon? I’ll believe you when pigs fly!” says his friend.

‘When Pigs Fly’ is a wonderful expression which we use in English when we think something will never happen – but what do they say in other countries to express the same sentiment? This book takes us on a little journey around the world to find out.

I won’t spoil the idioms for you as they are great fun but the countries included are the Netherlands, Spain, Nigeria, Turkey, India, the Philippines, Poland, Germany, Russia and Latvia. From whistling lobsters and upside down crows through to ice-dancing cows and tree-climbing fish, this eclectic and slightly bonkers collection of phrases is guaranteed to have your child laughing out loud.

Fri
11 ^th

Oi Aardvark!
by Kes Gray & Jim Field

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If you’ve been following us a while you’ll know we are huge fans of the Oi Frog & Friends series from genius duo Kes Gray and Jim Field. We have all the books in the series and Ivy literally jumped for joy when the latest was delivered to our door.

A quick recap in case you’ve been living under a rock for the last few years and haven’t encountered these joyful stories before… Frog, Cat and Dog are 3 friends with a penchant for rhyme and a slightly unhealthy preoccupation with seating arrangements. Cat started the trend in book 1 (Oi Frog!) when she insisted that frogs can only sit on logs then Frog took up the baton in book 2 (Oi Dog!) and has been a tiny bit obsessed ever since.

Mon
07 ^th

Wise Before Five
by Libby Walden & Ekaterina Trukhan

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Today is the big day! Ivy had her very first day at school. She went through the gate full of smiles ready for her big adventure so I have all my fingers and toes crossed that the transition is a smooth one.

One of the books we’ve been reading over the weekend to prepare her is this gorgeous hardback called ‘Wise Before Five’ which I spotted over on Instagram and simply had to buy. It has helped reassure her that she actually knows lots of things and is more than ready for school.

Featuring a diverse cast of children (including a child in a wheelchair and a child with a hearing aid), this essential guide to being almost five covers a wide range of topics whilst quietly celebrating the joy of being unique.

Sun
05 ^th

Monsieur Roscoe On Holiday
by Jim Field

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I studied French at university so I am really keen for Ivy to learn some basic words and phrases whilst she is small. This brand new book from Jim Field – his first as both author and illustrator – is absolutely perfect for that!

Monsieur Roscoe is a friendly little dog with a pet goldfish called Fry. The pair are about to set off on the holiday of a lifetime to visit some friends, but first they have to pack. As they throw all of the things they need in to a suitcase we see that each one is labelled on the page in both French and English. This continues throughout the book, giving your child the opportunity to learn lots of new French words.

Once packed they say goodbye to their friends and set off on their adventure. They get stuck in traffic on the way to the train station, which gives us the opportunity to learn the words for different kinds of vehicles and the names of the many shops they pass.

Fri
17 ^th

ABC of Kindness by Patricia Hegarty & Summer Macon

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If you’re looking for a gift for a new baby, or a sweet bedtime read for a toddler then i’d like to draw your attention to the ABC of Kindness because it is utterly adorable!

The gentle rhyme takes us on a soothing trip through the alphabet, highlighting all the ways we can be kind to each other. Whether it’s F for Forgiveness, P for Patience or U for Understanding, this sturdy little board book is the perfect way to introduce the concept of kindness from a very early age.

The book features a host of loveable animal characters and the illustrations exude warmth and comfort. Ivy’s favourite is the little elephant who pops up on multiple pages with a joyful smile on his face.

Sat
04 ^th

Quick Quack Quentin By Kes Gray & Jim Field

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Quick Quack Quentin by Kes Gray and Jim Field always gives us the giggles!

Quentin is a duck with a very unusual problem. His quack has lost an A so he can only say quck. He goes to the doctor for help but the he can only offer him a D, O, C, T, O or R and those letters don’t help him at all.

Bemused, Quentin heads to a nearby farm to see he can borrow their A – but they’re not interested in becoming a frm and the farmer doesn’t want to be a frmer. He speaks to a dog, a hen, a pig and a bull who let him try out their vowels but a quock, a queck, a quick and a quuck just don’t sound right. What is poor Quentin going to do?

Sun
08 ^th

Wild Animals By Xavier Deneux

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Ivy is fascinated by this multi-sensory board book which shows wild animals and their habitats.

Each page features a different animal and they’re all beautifully drawn with really cute faces. The combination of raised and concave sections (which fit together so that the pages aren’t bulky in any way) give your child lots to explore. They can trace their fingers across the bumps and shapes whilst trying to identify the different creatures. Our favourite is the zebra page – Ivy loves the baby zebra hidden amongst the stripy trees!

The book also provides some inspiration for older toddlers by showing a small word cluster for each animal. The combination of nouns, adjectives and verbs will teach them new words and also give parents some great discussion points around the pictures.

Sun
06 ^th

Touch! My Big Touch-And-Feel Word Book

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We have lots of word books but this big chunky board version is definitely Ivy’s favourite. It features 150 words across a wide variety of topics, including clothes, food, vehicles, animals, mealtime and bedtime.

Each durable page features at least one textured image for your child to play with – a cosy blanket, a rough sponge, a corduroy jacket, some denim jeans – which make the book a great interactive experience as well as a learning tool.

The animal section is definitely the highlight, with really cute illustrations and lots of fur to stroke and scales to explore.

My only criticism (as someone in the UK) is that there is a handful of Americanisms in here (zucchini, eggplant etc) but it’s such a small percentage that I don’t feel it affects the book as a whole.

Buy it now: https://amzn.to/2jyVuZK

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Alphabet & Words