Pearson's Book Panel - Ages 1-7 - Review thread

[AnnMumsnet]

You may know Mumsnet have been working with Pearson to provide some special learning-related content for you. Linked to the site is a Pearson shop where you can buy educational books for children. We invited MNers with a child aged between 1 and 7 to review the books available and this thread is for the reviews. Panellists will be sent up to 5 packs of books and reviews will continue to be added each month until the end of the year. Pearson will link to this thread from the shop.

As a thank you for taking part there will be a monthly prize draw for reviewers for all those who have submitted a review in that month. The prize each month will be £50 of John Lewis vouchers - the first draw will take place on 31 August and will be for one prize of £100 of John Lewis vouchers.

Below are the questions Pearson would like you to answer - when posting your review please add in the age of your child and please include the question as well as your response.

Q1 Which pack or books did you and your child review? Was the pack of books for "learning to read" or "reading together"?
Q2 If a "learning to read" pack, how do the books compare with the reading practice books your child brings home from school? Which reading scheme does your child use at school?
Q3 Would you say your child enjoy reading or looking at the books? Why/why not?
Q4 What's your overall review of the book pack?
Q5 And what is your child's review of the book pack?
Q6 Would you recommend these books to another parent? Why/why not?
Q7 Do you think your child would recommend these books to their friends (if they are old enough!)? Why/why not?
Q8 What star rating would you give this pack of books overall? Please use a rating system out of 5 where 1 star is poor and 5 stars are excellent

Many thanks
MNHQ

Here's the feedback from LizzyLiz who emailed it in due to other commitments:

Q1 Which pack or books did you and your child review? Was the pack of books for "learning to read" or "reading together"?
Foundation Stage ( Look Up, Look Down, Harry and the Dinosaurs Like..., Look at Lego City, Dig and Tip). 'learning to read' pack I think, but since he can't read we read them together!

Q2 If a "learning to read" pack, how do the books compare with the reading practice books your child brings home from school? Which reading scheme does your child use at school?
My son starts school in September so hasn't had any school books yet.
Thinking back to my other children though, the books are similar in that there is a lot of repetition so the children can predict the words on each page, same length.

Q3 Would you say your child enjoy reading or looking at the books? Why/why not?
Yes, he really enjoyed them. He liked looking for things on each page, counting how often things appeared (activites suggested at the back). He also picked up the repetition and enjoyed thinking he can read! He laughed at Look Up, Look Down, liked the Lego one and generally enjoyed the pictures.

Q4 What's your overall review of the book pack?
I liked it. It's modern and appropriate. The Bug Notes at the front were useful and the activities at the back were engaging. I was a bit concerned about the 'branding' of the Lego book and my son did ask to buy some of the lego which appeared in it.

Q5 And what is your child's review of the book pack?
He liked it a lot.

Q6 Would you recommend these books to another parent? Why/why not?
Yes. Although at this level of reading I tend to just rely on school books as you need a lot of different ones and the children seem to outgrow them quickly.

Q7 Do you think your child would recommend these books to their friends (if they are old enough!)? Why/why not?
Yes. We read them with a friend who enjoyed them too

Q8 What star rating would you give this pack of books overall? Please use a rating system out of 5 where 1 star is poor and 5 stars are excellent
4

Q1 Which pack or books did you and your child review? Was the pack of books for "learning to read" or "reading together"?
We got the year two/p3 books. They were the learning to read ones, I think. Flips and Spins, Adventure Kids Chase In New York, Casper's Scare School Meany Screamy Dancing, and Fun Festivals.

Q2 If a "learning to read" pack, how do the books compare with the reading practice books your child brings home from school? Which reading scheme does your child use at school?
I have no idea what the name of the scheme they use at school is but he's been reading the Bangers and Mash ones. My son is Welsh first language so has two sets of books at school- Welsh ones and English ones.
This pack compared very well with the ones he gets at school- They were far more engaging, and he was more interested in the subject. I think that the school ones tend to match him as far as reading ability goes, but not with the subject- He thinks they're babyish. The Pearson ones really interested him.

Q3 Would you say your child enjoy reading or looking at the books? Why/why not?
Yes, he loved them and we read them many times- Except for Flips and Spins, which he said was boring- He found it a lot less "cool" than the others, and quickly got bored. The others, however, went down an absolute storm, and all three will become firm favourites, I'm sure. I think he liked the Casper one because he seems to like books where there is mischief and wrongdoing! The Adventure one really appealed was really cleverly set out- I don't think he even realized he was reading. (He's very into comics, and this was set out in the same way). We had a real laugh with the festivals one, though he wasn't keen on the look of it to begin with- He thought it was very funny indeed, and he plans to visit the tomato festival as soon as he can book his own flights. :o

Q4 What's your overall review of the book pack?
They're brilliant, thank you ever so much. We've always read books from school with him, as he gets so many sent home, but this has really made me realize that there are interesting and funny books available for him too. The only negatives is that Flips and Spins seems out of place in this pack- More obviously educational and not very eye-catching for a young 'un- And that the cover for Fun Festivals lets down what is a really good book that loads of children would enjoy.

Q5 And what is your child's review of the book pack?
"Great and cool. Can we look on amazon for more?" :o

Q6 Would you recommend these books to another parent? Why/why not?
Absolutely. I think they'd be spot on for most children, even for reluctant readers.

Q7 Do you think your child would recommend these books to their friends (if they are old enough!)? Why/why not?
Yes he would... Which, considering how aware he is of liking "cool" things in front of his mates, is one hell of a testimonial!

Q8 What star rating would you give this pack of books overall? Please use a rating system out of 5 where 1 star is poor and 5 stars are excellent

4.5, just because of the gym book. If that wasn' there, I'd have given it 6. :)

Q1 Which pack or books did you and your child review? Was the pack of books for "learning to read" or "reading together"? Foundation Stage ( Look Up, Look Down, Harry and the Dinosaurs Like..., Look at Lego City, Dig and Tip). 'learning to read' pack I think, but since he can't read we read them together
Q2 If a "learning to read" pack, how do the books compare with the reading practice books your child brings home from school? Which reading scheme does your child use at school? my son does not bring books home yet
Q3 Would you say your child enjoy reading or looking at the books? Why/why not?as he cant read we read together and he laughs as i do silly voices
Q4 What's your overall review of the book pack?very good
Q5 And what is your child's review of the book pack?child non verbal
Q6 Would you recommend these books to another parent? Why/why not?yes w0uld recomend
Q7 Do you think your child would recommend these books to their friends (if they are old enough!)? Why/why not?non verbal child
Q8 What star rating would you give this pack of books overall? Please use a rating system out of 5 where 1 star is poor and 5 stars are excellent 5*

Q1 Which pack or books did you and your child review? Was the pack of books for "learning to read" or "reading together"?
Year two/p3 books. "Cars, Cars, Cars", "Rainforest Adventure", "Yun and the Ice Spirit", "Can you do this". These were learning to read books I think.

Q2 If a "learning to read" pack, how do the books compare with the reading practice books your child brings home from school? Which reading scheme does your child use at school?
At school, the Oxford Reading Tree books are used which are great and entertaining. These Pearson books were good as they provided different characters and styles of books. The books were interesting and enjoyable.

Q3 Would you say your child enjoy reading or looking at the books? Why/why not?
All the family enjoyed reading the books. My daughter was able to read a lot of the book by herself, although a few words were too difficult but that's to be expected as she's just completed P1 and the books are P3 level. My nursery aged son really enjoyed the car book too.

Q4 What's your overall review of the book pack?
We really enjoyed the books thank you. It was full of good quality books that entertained and were educational at the same time.

Q5 And what is your child's review of the book pack?
My kids were both very keen to read the books, they kept asking when they could read again. The Can you do this book caused lots of giggles as we tried to perform the tasks (although this book was maybe a bit too short, some more tasks would be fun). "Yun and the Ice Spirit" was good and they wanted to know what happened in further adventures. They also wanted to read more about Lin and Ed.

Q6 Would you recommend these books to another parent? Why/why not?
Yes, I found them enjoyable and entertaining and so did my daughter.

Q7 Do you think your child would recommend these books to their friends (if they are old enough!)? Why/why not?
She would probably show her friends the books if they were over playing as she enjoyed them. Particularly the one with tasks.

Q8 What star rating would you give this pack of books overall? Please use a rating system out of 5 where 1 star is poor and 5 stars are excellent

4 out of 5.
The task book was a bit too short. The others were great! Thanks again

Q1 Which pack or books did you and your child review? Was the pack of books for "learning to read" or "reading together"?

Learning to read I think. It was the Phonics Bug pack of 4 books.

Q2 If a "learning to read" pack, how do the books compare with the reading practice books your child brings home from school? Which reading scheme does your child use at school?

DS doesn't start school until Sept 2012 so I don't know what reading scheme he'll be on yet. However, my sister teaches Reception and she says they use the Pearson books (she likes them, by the way!)
Q3 Would you say your child enjoy reading or looking at the books? Why/why not?

He has so far but I suspect a lot of that is due to the novelty of them being new books and also that it's the first time he's been able to have a crack at reading a book. I suspect he may lose interest once the novelty wears off...we'll see.

Q4 What's your overall review of the book pack?

I like the fact they are very basic so that DS can have a go at reading the whole thing. They are nicely illustrated and contain humour that appeals to small children (squashed nits, waking up Dad by banging etc)

Q5 And what is your child's review of the book pack?

I'll have to ask him and report back!

Q6 Would you recommend these books to another parent? Why/why not?

Yes, but perhaps for a slightly older child, ie. one about to start school or if a child is asking to be taught to read.

Q7 Do you think your child would recommend these books to their friends (if they are old enough!)? Why/why not?

I'll ask him!

Q8 What star rating would you give this pack of books overall? Please use a rating system out of 5 where 1 star is poor and 5 stars are excellent

4

We will do a review soon - we haven't received the books yet. Pearson sent us the wrong pack of books, however they were a lovely pack of books and DC will read them when he is older.
Can I just say how helpful Sarah and Chantal were at sorting it out so quickly and also that they generously are allowing us to keep the books we received in error.
I can do a review on the books that we received if you like?

Q1 Which pack or books did you and your child review? Was the pack of books for "learning to read" or "reading together"?

We got the Blue Bugs Pack for reading at home- for DD1, who is just learning to read and is only 4 (5 in August), and going in to yr1.

Q2 If a "learning to read" pack, how do the books compare with the reading practice books your child brings home from school? Which reading scheme does your child use at school?

DD uses ORT at school, and they are simple and concise in their approach. They are all a bit similar, so I liked the idea of using known characters in a simple story. (we got a Basil Brush book, and Jay and Sniffer).

Q3 Would you say your child enjoy reading or looking at the books? Why/why not?

DD couldn't read the books herself fully, but they were clear and she enjoyed the stories. She could pick out a lotof it, using phonics, so it worked well alongside things she has learnt at school. She especially liked the Lego ciity book, as her brother has A LOT of Lego city and it was an excuse to get to play with it!

Q4 What's your overall review of the book pack?

Nice, well presented books. I really like the activities, which gave DD lots to talk about. The Lego book may seem a bit commercial, but it is very well put together, and offered a lot of ideas for discussion- such as 'Can girls be aeroplane pilots' etc.

Q5 And what is your child's review of the book pack?

DD loved it, was very pleased to receive something for 'her' and now wants more Basil books (a def favourite in this house!). They made her more willing to read, as they didn't look so much like 'school books' she said!

Q6 Would you recommend these books to another parent? Why/why not?

I would recommend these as a good alternative to the usual reading schems as they seem less 'school-like', which can help to encourage dcs to read.

Q7 Do you think your child would recommend these books to their friends (if they are old enough!)? Why/why not?

DD has already taken them into school, and enjoyed talking about them with her friends and teacher.

Q8 What star rating would you give this pack of books overall? Please use a rating system out of 5 where 1 star is poor and 5 stars are excellent

4.5 (only because there were only 3 books, and we've read them now!).

Hope this is helpful!

Hi.
We got some phonics books and some read together books.
I tried to sit down with ds1 yesterday with the phonics books and he was not impressed.
I will try again in a few days and tackle the review questions then.

(I like them)

1st impression is that the Year one bug club pack is about right for 5 yr old DS, he moves into year 1 in sept, is reading Red band ORT at school. The bug club Red band books we were sent are challenging him but are the right level, the rest are currently beyond him, BUT its whole year pack , so that's as it should be.
I'll be sharing teh pack about a bit in the next week, so will do proper review after that.

lego book was DSs favourite, a BIG hit, even if it is basicly an extended advert for the toy. TV tie ins will be interesting as DS is not familiar with the characters, we are TV less. Have to hope they work as stand alone stories.

Bookmarking, will be back.

DS is 2 next Monday. We're in the Pre-School group so a couple of your questions aren't relevant for us but I'll try to answer the rest

Q1 We've been reading pre-school board books - DK Colours and Opposites

Q2 n/a

Q3 Definitely enjoys reading them. Generally when he's got any new toy/book/thing he's mad keen on it for a while, so this could just be the novelty, but these particular books have got him noticing colours and opposites slightly more, I think. I didn't even think he could say the word 'opposite' but he came out with it randomly last night, in context too.

Q4 Great. Obviously good quality books. The board pages are a little rigid and stuck together but some mucky thumbs will sort that out soon enough. I thought some of the choices of examples in the pictures to illustrate the colours were slightly strange, like using a pair of shoes for 'red' - DH said that's not very easy, those aren't inherently red things, just a raincoat that happens to be yellow. But by talking about it we realised the colours are being used as adjectives which is really good.

Q5 I'm pretty sure he likes them. They have displaced the "lift-the-flap planes" book from the 'climb on mummy or daddy and demand story' kit.

Q6 I would. I might find it difficult to say "they're very good for introducing adjectives" with a straight face though. And they are going to be interesting to a toddler for longer than a parent's patience will last, so in time they could become quite frustrating, but I don't have a way of gauging how long the phase will be till he moves on to other books.

Q7 I will update this question after Sunday when there are a load of toddlers here for his birthday party - see whether he picks out particular books to share. The more telling test might be if he wants to keep these for himself though!

Q8 Ooooh, I'm hedging at 4 stars, just in case there's something more amazing around the corner

oops, I didn't read the instructions - here are my answers again with the questions

DS is 2 next Monday. We're in the Pre-School group so a couple of your questions aren't relevant for us but I'll try to answer the rest

Q1 Which pack or books did you and your child review? Was the pack of books for "learning to read" or "reading together"?

Q1 We've been reading pre-school board books - DK Colours and Opposites

Q2 If a "learning to read" pack, how do the books compare with the reading practice books your child brings home from school? Which reading scheme does your child use at school?

Q2 n/a

Q3 Would you say your child enjoy reading or looking at the books? Why/why not?

Q3 Definitely enjoys reading them. Generally when he's got any new toy/book/thing he's mad keen on it for a while, so this could just be the novelty, but these particular books have got him noticing colours and opposites slightly more, I think. I didn't even think he could say the word 'opposite' but he came out with it randomly last night, in context too.

Q4 What's your overall review of the book pack?

Q4 Great. Obviously good quality books. The board pages are a little rigid and stuck together but some mucky thumbs will sort that out soon enough. I thought some of the choices of examples in the pictures to illustrate the colours were slightly strange, like using a pair of shoes for 'red' - DH said that's not very easy, those aren't inherently red things, just a raincoat that happens to be yellow. But by talking about it we realised the colours are being used as adjectives which is really good.

Q5 And what is your child's review of the book pack?

Q5 I'm pretty sure he likes them. They have displaced the "lift-the-flap planes" book from the 'climb on mummy or daddy and demand story' kit.

Q6 Would you recommend these books to another parent? Why/why not?

Q6 I would. I might find it difficult to say "they're very good for introducing adjectives" with a straight face though. And they are going to be interesting to a toddler for longer than a parent's patience will last, so in time they could become quite frustrating, but I don't have a way of gauging how long the phase will be till he moves on to other books.

Q7 Do you think your child would recommend these books to their friends (if they are old enough!)? Why/why not?

Q7 I will update this question after Sunday when there are a load of toddlers here for his birthday party - see whether he picks out particular books to share. The more telling test might be if he wants to keep these for himself though!

Q8 What star rating would you give this pack of books overall? Please use a rating system out of 5 where 1 star is poor and 5 stars are excellent

Q8 Ooooh, I'm hedging at 4 stars, just in case there's something more amazing around the corner

Q1 Which pack or books did you and your child review? Was the pack of books for "learning to read" or "reading together"?
DD is 5 in September and starting reception then, so we're on the Foundation/P1 panel. We received the Learning to Read at Home with Bug Club pack (Phonics Bug Packs 1, 2 & 3, plus Bug Club Pink and Red).

Q2 If a "learning to read" pack, how do the books compare with the reading practice books your child brings home from school? Which reading scheme does your child use at school?
DD doesn't have reading books from school but we do have some we've used at home as she was keen to read. The Phonics Bug packs were more modern, with more humour than other learn to read books we've seen before. The Bug Club books (including Harry and the Dinosaurs, Angelina Ballerina and Lego etc) were even more popular with DD, particularly Angelina and Harry and the Dinosaurs as we have some books with these characters already and DD was very pleased to be able to read these herself.

Q3 Would you say your child enjoy reading or looking at the books? Why/why not?
DD definitely enjoyed the books. They were simple enough that she could read them pretty much on her own (she was happy reading stories to her little sister) but still interesting enough to capture her imagination.

Q4 What's your overall review of the book pack?
This is a great set for building confidence and I imagine would be a good complement for school reading schemes. The humour is always welcomed by parents who have to listen too...

Q5 And what is your child's review of the book pack?
DD loved them and wants to read them all again.

Q6 Would you recommend these books to another parent? Why/why not?
Definitely.

Q7 Do you think your child would recommend these books to their friends (if they are old enough!)? Why/why not?
Yes - and she already has showed them to one of her friends.

Q8 What star rating would you give this pack of books overall? Please use a rating system out of 5 where 1 star is poor and 5 stars are excellent
5 * from us

Thanks for the opportunity to look at them.

Will review shortly. We got a very big pack of books (thank you!) aimed at Year 2 and intended to be read alone. DS goes into Year 2 in September and loves reading, so was delighted to receive this out of the blue

We have been going through them in order, and DS is providing me with thorough feedback.

First impressions though: DS thinks the books are waaaay too easy. Lots of fun, and he's mostly enjoying them, but......he's speeding through them, a pack at a time (I think there are 4 books in each pack), with each pack lasting him about 20-30 mins in total. They mostly look a lot like the sort of books he brings home from the weekly 'library' visit, as opposed to his reading books which are normally more challenging.

Having said that, I should repeat that he is really enjoying the range of books and especially the non-fiction subjects in the packs.

My feeling is that Year 2 books should probably be a bit more challenging.

He's got about 2 packs to go, then I will come back and answer the questions properly.

Q1 Which pack or books did you and your child review? Was the pack of books
for "learning to read" or "reading together"?

foundation / p1 panel (puffin pk 3-5 charlia & lola etc). I assume they are for reading together

Q2 If a "learning to read" pack, how do the books compare with the reading

practice books your child brings home from school? Which reading scheme

does your child use at school?

She will be following the Oxford Reading Tree scheme at school. The books

in the pack are far more enjoyable to read that the ones her elder brother gets from the school.

Q3 Would you say your child enjoy reading or looking at the books? Why/why

not?
she did enjoy having the books read to her. It made it special that they

arrived in the post for her! She was very keen on the stickers. Her

favourite book from the pack was Bridget Fidget. (That was my favourite too -

good illustrations and the story kept their attention all the way through)

Q4 What's your overall review of the book pack?
Better than I was expecting - I was glad they were not Biff and Chip style

school books but ones we could all enjoy.
I prefer books without stickers. I think if a book is good enough to be

published it shouldn't need stickers to carry it. I also don't like the 'as

seen on tv' lure and wouldn't normally buy a book with that on it. The pack

had a good selection in it.

Q5 And what is your child's review of the book pack? She liked it. She liked two of the stories - ?I'm really ever so not well? and ?Bridget Fidget?. She liked the little cuckoo clock. She didn't really like ?Babysitter bear. It was a bit too long so she didn't remember the beginning bit so wasn't really

anticipating the ending so the whole point of the journey and therefore the

book was a bit lost on her. It didn't help that she didn't know what a

babysitter is! (More our fault than hers). She called him city bear.

Q6 Would you recommend these books to another parent? Why/why not?
I would recommend Bridget Fidget but not the others. I thought the

illustrations were really fresh and eye-catching and each page was

interesting to look at. The pace of the story was just right too. I wouldn't

recommend Babysitter bear - I didn't like the way it jumped from the story

to the rhyming poem which was a bit clumsy anyway and not enjoyable to read.

I also don't like 'goodnight books' which Iam not expecting to be goodnight

books. I wouldn't recommend ?I'm really ever so not well? either. I don't like

tv spin-offs and the stickers were a distraction - when she showed the pack

to her friends they just talked about the stickers.

Q7 Do you think your child would recommend these books to their friends (if

they are old enough!)? Why/why not?
She would recommend Bridget Fidget because she like it and because she liked the

little toy in it (the cuckoo clock)

Q8 What star rating would you give this pack of books overall? Please use a

rating system out of 5 where 1 star is poor and 5 stars are excellent
I would give it a 3 - it was a lot better than I was hoping but not so good

that I would rush to recommend them to anyone. I am very judgemental about

children books as we have a good collection of new and vintage books so every new book we read is compared to 100 years worth of old favorite writers,

stories/illustrators such as Maurice Sendack, Curious George, Little Grey

Rabbit, Beatrix Potter, Judith Kerr, Shirley Hughes, Katie Morag, Quentin

Blake, Edward ardizzone

Thank you for the pack though - I usually buy books I am familiar with so it is interesting to have them chosen for us.

Q1 Which pack or books did you and your child review? Was the pack of books for "learning to read" or "reading together"?
IT deosnt tell me, but i would guess reading together as I have been given preschool

Q2 If a "learning to read" pack, how do the books compare with the reading practice books your child brings home from school? Which reading scheme does your child use at school? NA

Q3 Would you say your child enjoy reading or looking at the books? Why/why not? She liked looking at the books but got bored quickly as I think it went on a little too long.

Q4 What's your overall review of the book pack? Nice looking and clearly going to last a while. Good quality and a great idea.

Q5 And what is your child's review of the book pack? "They are nice"

Q6 Would you recommend these books to another parent? Why/why not? I wouldnt, but only because I think you have tried to cram in too much on each book. If its a counting book thats great but then it goes on to adding and taking away, and I think its a little too advanced for a preschooler.

Q7 Do you think your child would recommend these books to their friends (if they are old enough!)? Why/why not?
Couldnt say, shes only 3

Q8 What star rating would you give this pack of books overall? Please use a rating system out of 5 where 1 star is poor and 5 stars are excellent, 3, they are good quality books and very colourful and great to look at but think they were too long and tried to cover too much eg adding ect

We are reviewing the pre-school pack and ds is 2 (3 in September)

Q1 Which pack or books did you and your child review? Was the pack of books for "learning to read" or "reading together"?
We had the pre school colours and opposite books and they were reading together.

Q2 If a "learning to read" pack, how do the books compare with the reading practice books your child brings home from school? Which reading scheme does your child use at school?
n/a

Q3 Would you say your child enjoy reading or looking at the books? Why/why not?
He loved looking at the books, although the colour one didn't hold his attention as much. Probably because he knows his colours already. He enjoyed identifying the objects on the page and shouting them out.

Q4 What's your overall review of the book pack?
I thought the books were great and for the majority of the time they conveyed to both parent and child what the books were about and trying to achieve. I particularly liked the fact that the pictures were photographs of actual day to day objects rather than illustrations, there was no ambiguity about what the pictures were. The quality was great and the fact they are board books is a bonus as they are more robust.
There were a few random pictures though. For example on the colour blue page there was a mermaid and a soap shaped like a dolphin. The mermaid was dressed in blue, so ok I guess that's ok but it still seemed very random. However if you want a child to identify soap, the soap needs to look like a bar of soap, not a dolphin.

Q5 And what is your child's review of the book pack?
He said he liked them, but that's about as much as you'll get from a two year old!

Q6 Would you recommend these books to another parent? Why/why not?
Yes I would recommend the books to others. I think the pictures used set them apart from most other colour and opposite books.

Q7 Do you think your child would recommend these books to their friends (if they are old enough!)? Why/why not?
N/a

Q8 What star rating would you give this pack of books overall? Please use a rating system out of 5 where 1 star is poor and 5 stars are excellent
5 stars.

Q1 Which pack or books did you and your child review? Was the pack of books for "learning to read" or "reading together"?

They were for DS to read himself, we got Robodog, Fat Lawrence and Cosmo and the Pirates.

Q2 If a "learning to read" pack, how do the books compare with the reading practice books your child brings home from school? Which reading scheme does your child use at school?

They use ORT and a large selection of other books not from a reading scheme.
These are longer than any of those that we have had come home so far but are about the same as what DS is reading at home.

Q3 Would you say your child enjoy reading or looking at the books? Why/why not?

He said he liked the look of Robodog but not the others; that was his first impression. He was reluctant to read them at first.

Q4 What's your overall review of the book pack?

I think they are excellent books, ideally pitched for a child aged 6 and with covers that look appealing as well.

Q5 And what is your child's review of the book pack?

He says that they are all books that he would like to have read to him but he wouldn't want to read them himself at the moment. In Robodog he was put off by the character being called Chip because he doesn't like the ORT books and so he didn't want to read it at first. He says he is going to read Robodog but not the other two because he doesn't like pirates or cats.

Q6 Would you recommend these books to another parent? Why/why not?

Yes, they are just the right level for this age.

Q7 Do you think your child would recommend these books to their friends (if they are old enough!)? Why/why not?

He thinks that his three best friends would all like them because they all like reading a lot.

Q8 What star rating would you give this pack of books overall? Please use a rating system out of 5 where 1 star is poor and 5 stars are excellent

I'd say 4.

Q1 Which pack or books did you and your child review? Was the pack of books for "learning to read" or "reading together"?

DS is only just 3 and it was a pre-school pack so I'm guessing 'reading together'? We got Dear Zoo, Meg and Mog and Each Peach Pear Plum.

Q2 If a "learning to read" pack, how do the books compare with the reading practice books your child brings home from school? Which reading scheme does your child use at school?

n/a

Q3 Would you say your child enjoy reading or looking at the books? Why/why not?

Meg and Mog was the only one of the three that we haven't already got and he's definitely enjoyed reading them so far. There's quite a lot to talk to him about through the story - how many eggs, what happened when Meg stood on Mog's tail etc etc.

Q4 What's your overall review of the book pack?

I was a teeny bit disappointed because we already have two of the books, but I guess that's just luck of the draw. My first impression was that these books are a bit young for the 3-5 market that Pearson pitch them at. Most mums I asked got Dear Zoo and Each Peach Pear Plum at an earlier age (around 12-18 months). Dear Zoo is a great first flap book and Each Peach... was a lovely first rhyming type book to read when DS was younger. However, we hadn't read either book for a while and it was a very different experience. I found Meg and Mog a bit dull to read, which if I'm honest would make me more likely to hide it on the bookshelf . I don't think all three would be the best bedtime stories which is probably when I'm most likely to read with DS - at bedtime we tend to read some longer stories (Julia Donaldson, Oliver Jeffries etc). Obviously DS can't read, but he's word perfect in some of these because he asks for them night after night.

That said, I can see that these short books are probably good for pre-schoolers that are just starting to learn to read and I guess that's why Pearson have them in the 3-5 category.

Q5 And what is your child's review of the book pack?

He really liked all three books, particularly Dear Zoo! Despite not us not reading it for ages he was able to recite it back to me after just a couple of reads.

Q6 Would you recommend these books to another parent? Why/why not?

I'd recommend other parents should revisit Dear Zoo and Each Peach if they already have them but haven't looked at them for a while, but more for a bit of daytime interactive reading rather than a bedtime story. With Meg and Mog I was a bit 'meh'. The colours were bright but it didn't really flow well for me. And having a witch get up in the middle of the night isn't the best when you're trying to persuade your 3 year old to stop getting up in the middle of the night

Q7 Do you think your child would recommend these books to their friends (if they are old enough!)? Why/why not?

I think he probably would. He loves finding things in Each Peach, doing animal noises in Dear Zoo and shouting out some of the loud noises from Meg.

Q8 What star rating would you give this pack of books overall? Please use a rating system out of 5 where 1 star is poor and 5 stars are excellent

I'd say a 3.

Q1 - The Foundation pack for 4-5 years (Reception age)
Q2 - We much preferred the Learn to Read packs (Ready to Read - Pink and Beginning to Read - Red) since there were diggers, lego and pirates! We will be using Oxford Reading Tree and we already started with the same set of books (encouraged by the preschool) and they are very compatible, offering more variety since it is free choice at bedtime reading.
Q3 - We loved the books since it is great to get more books and my son gets excited at books with interesting topics (see Q2)
Q4 - The pack was good and aimed appropriately for reception children starting to read. The use of phonics, short words (3/4 letter words) and the repetition was useful since it makes it easy for children to remember and pronounce. The use of plurals in the books were good to encourage them to start to learn to read themselves. The little exercises were great and my son looked forward to doing them
Q5 - My son thought they were good but said they "too easy". This is only because we started to read at the beginning of the year and have progressed quickly.

Q6 - Yes, would recommend. These books are exactly the type of books that we started with and a worthwhile investment. Having variety is good since it encourages the child to want to read and the learn to read pack does capture their attention. We will be using this for our second son in a couple of years.
Q7 - He would recommend the Learn to Read packs since of the topics covered but he thinks they are too easy and does not really understand that his friends have different reading levels. Not sure about Sid's nits, he did not know what they were and it was hard to explain!
Q8 - I would say 4 stars because we found the pack too easy but they may be my fault since I should have asked for a KS1 pack
Many thanks for the books

Q1 Which pack or books did you and your child review? Was the pack of books for "learning to read" or "reading together"?
Foundation/P1 (I think am confused as we got the wrong set initially although the new ones are spot on ) they are Charlie and Lola, Babysitter Bear and Bridget Fidget "reading together"

Q2 If a "learning to read" pack, how do the books compare with the reading practice books your child brings home from school? Which reading scheme does your child use at school?

Not relevant yet.

Q3 Would you say your child enjoy reading or looking at the books? Why/why not?
So far my dd has loved 2 of the 3 books we were reading together (Bridget Fidget and Charlie and Lola), she really related to Charlie and Lola and having a cold, we finished reading it and she went off to show her brother and father the "germs"

Q4 What's your overall review of the book pack?
I think these books are spot on as to where we are with reading together, they are long enough to remain interesting for her whilst not being too long to get bored, I enjoyed reading them to her and she enjoyed listening. We are looking forward to Babysitter Bear tomorrow (we recieved them today so done quite well!)

Q5 And what is your child's review of the book pack?

She loved Charlie and Lola could relate to the cold and the characters, being read twice in one night is usually a good sign. However a little like Mummy's new haircut she is non committal verbally unless bribed , however the highest praise of all is for a 3 yo to chat about them happily and take them to bed with her so she can "read" them in the morning to her bears.

Q6 Would you recommend these books to another parent? Why/why not?
Very much so, so far, they are clear and with interesting pictures with lots of scope for many years to come - we are enjoying reading it together now but I think that she will also enjoy reading them herself when she is better at reading!

Q7 Do you think your child would recommend these books to their friends (if they are old enough!)? Why/why not?

Currently I think she would take them round to houses if we are going to stay there however I think I would recommend them to my friends more than her directly recommending them.

Q8 What star rating would you give this pack of books overall? Please use a rating system out of 5 where 1 star is poor and 5 stars are excellent
4-5* so far , she already knows that she is doing a "test" and is looking forward to the next lot of books . All I would say is that these are the types of books that I look out for when I go and buy her books, so I am delighted with the choice that has been made!

Q1 Which pack or books did you and your child review? Was the pack of books for "learning to read" or "reading together"?

Learning to read, I think. It was the Phonics Bug pack of 4 books that included The Bop, Sid and Duck, Big Fat Rat and Tut Tut Duck.

Q2 If a "learning to read" pack, how do the books compare with the reading practice books your child brings home from school? Which reading scheme does your child use at school?

DD1 doesn't start school until Sept (she'll be 5 in Oct) so I don't know what reading scheme she'll be on yet. At pre-school there was no scheme, just lots of books!

Q3 Would you say your child enjoy reading or looking at the books? Why/why not?

She did, because they are new books (and she loves books). But she did find it hard work as she is not fully reading yet.

Q4 What's your overall review of the book pack?

I like the fact that they are quite basic so DD can have a decent stab at reading the whole thing. They are nicely illustrated and contain humour that appeals to small children (squashed nits, waking up Dad by banging etc), though some of the speech bubble text is not phonic and so doesn't fit with the rest of the book.

Q5 And what is your child's review of the book pack?

She quite liked them but has not chosen them at bedtime, which is a telling sign.

Q6 Would you recommend these books to another parent? Why/why not?

Yes, but maybe not over other books that the child may find more interesting and though they are not designed as a reading scheme or as phonics, they would find good starter books (like Wibbly Pig).

Q7 Do you think your child would recommend these books to their friends (if they are old enough!)? Why/why not?

Probably not, for the reasons given above.

Q8 What star rating would you give this pack of books overall? Please use a rating system out of 5 where 1 star is poor and 5 stars are excellent

1. They are quite nice, but haven't wowed me or DD1. Sorry.

Pre-school books. Dear Zoo, Each Peach Pear Plum and Meg & Mog.

Yes, DD def enjoyed looking at the books and listening to the stories. She escpecially liked the 'flaps' in dear zoo and soon got the hang of opening them.

Lovely set of books, Dear Zoo was the favourite but think as she gets a bit older the other two will become favourites.

Carrying about Dear Zoo and opening the flaps to let the (poor) dog see the animals is a good sign!

Yes, would recommend all the books.

Overall would give 3 stars at this stage but feel in a years time when she appreciates the actual story a bit more the rating would be higher.

OK, I asked DS for his opinon

Q5 And what is your child's review of the book pack?

I like them. I like them because I know the words. I know "Dad" and "mad" and "tap". It's funny when Tim taps.

Q7 Do you think your child would recommend these books to their friends (if they are old enough!)? Why/why not?

I asked DS if his friends would like to read his books. He said no and I asked why and he said "because they are my books!" Obviously we need to work on sharing...
Anyway, when pushed, he conceded that his friends would probably like these books too (provided they had their own copies...)

Q1 Which pack or books did you and your child review? Was the pack of books for "learning to read" or "reading together"?
We received 3 "read together" books, My Sister is an Alien, Bear Hunt and Beware of Boys.
We also received Phonics Phase 2 Sets 1-2 and Phase 2 Set 3.

Q2 If a "learning to read" pack, how do the books compare with the reading practice books your child brings home from school? Which reading scheme does your child use at school?
Ds1 has just finished nursery and will move into Reception class in September. He has been bringing home a reading book 3 times a week, these being read together books.

Q3 Would you say your child enjoy reading or looking at the books? Why/why not?
He enjoyed the read together books, he asked lots of questions and was able to trell the story back to me from the pictures.
He does not like the phonics books. I have tried a few times to sit down with him to look at them and he says he doesn't like them and doesn't want to read and he will then choose a read together book.

Q4 What's your overall review of the book pack?
I like the simplicity of the phonics books, but am not keen on the pictures. I followed the instructions in the covers which was very useful as I am/was unaware of exactly how to tackle encouraging him to start reading himself.
I liked the selection of read together books.

Q5 And what is your child's review of the book pack?
He loves the read together books, and I have found him 'reading' them on his own when I am cleaning.
He is not impressed by the phonics books but I shall continue encouraging him and submit another review if anything changes.

Q6 Would you recommend these books to another parent? Why/why not?
I would recommend the phonics books because of the3 instruction in the cover and the activities at the end.

Q7 Do you think your child would recommend these books to their friends (if they are old enough!)? Why/why not?
He's going to be 4 next week so he is a bit young for recommending books, but don't think the phonics books would be those he's pick out to show friends, no.

Q8 What star rating would you give this pack of books overall? Please use a rating system out of 5 where 1 star is poor and 5 stars are excellent
I'd rate this pack a 3.