I never thought I'd resent a book ...

[roisin]

For Christmas ds1 got a set of these books and is ridiculously obsessed with the "fun and easy projects" they include.

Does anyone else have these books? Has anyone else got a dd/ds who insists on making everything?!

Message withdrawn

Finished Silverfin
I enjoyed it. I don't think it's as well written as the Alex Rider books, whose plots seem slightly more believable, in a "it couldnt' possibly happen" kind of a way!

Interestingly in a yr7 class yesterday the only person who had read the Alex Rider books and the Charlie Higson books was a girl.

I haven't finished the jelly babies yet though! I'm being restrained!

Roisin, is Silverfin suitable for a nearly 9 year old? Ds1 read three of the Alex Rider books and I don't think they are quite 'age appropriate' for him - ie., he enjoyed them, I raised my eyebrows at the odd oblique sexual reference!

SorenLorensen - there is less teenage romance in Silverfin than in the Alex Rider books, but considerably more blood, guts and dead bodies. (A 9 yo dd on here - sorry can't remember which - read the first one and didn't like it.)

DS1 is 9 in July. He's read all the Alex Rider books, Silverfin, and will read Blood Fever as soon as I've finished with it.

But tbh I'm quite relaxed with ds1 now, so my idea of 'suitable' may not match yours. The 'banned' list for him is pretty short now. He is quickly turned off by anything with much teenage angst/romance. Books I would like him to read in future, but wouldn't allow him now are: Noughts & Crosses, Lirael, His Dark Materials, Shadowmancer (plus sequels in all cases of course). That's all I can think of atm.

It was yoyo's dd.

Oh ds1 would like blood, guts and dead bodies

roisin if you are there - where did you get the details of the Ultimate Teen good book guide and its sister publication you recommended before Christmas? I'm having trouble finding it. My dh bought a pingu pop out and create your own environment when dd was 3; I couldn't even do it!

Ultimate teen boko guide here - due out next week.

Children's version (8-12s) is here

boko?!

roisin, my DS1 has the robots book, DH bought it for him at the School Book Fair to the tune of me in the background saying "you'll make the bloomin' things with him then", they have made one model together and DS1 has lost interest for the moment, although no doubt it will come back to haunt us.

Roisin

Ds got this set of books for christmas too! He is only 4 so he hasnt quite worked out that the bit about the "fun and easy projects" yet

We have got stacks of these sort of books for Xmas and I have piles and piles of old boxes and junk in the garage that the kids build stuff from. At the moment it is aliens. I have a big plastic cloth for the table and off they go. although they make a big mess it does give me time to do stuff round the house in between sellotaping heads on etc. Truth is i dont really care about the mess I just clear it all up at the end of the day and start again the next morning

Add to that the School projects that always seem to require a shoebox, what on earth do they think us parents do, buy shoes every week? or Keep a handy cupboard full of shoe boxes, just in case? Drives me mad!

i have to confess I hardly ever throw away a box! I chuck them in the garage and have a bit of a clear out into the recycling when the pile gets too big

What other unlikely craft materials do you hoard, we have a box of flipchart pens that i used to let the kids have until DS1 persuaded DS2 to colour himself in one night. i didnt find out til I woke him up in the morning

He was mostly green

In my defence however we recycle all our paper/cardboard and anything half decent boxwise goes with DS2 to nursery for some other child to take home to their parents as DS2 hasn't discovered the joy of modelling with boxes. The worst thing was when DS1 had to make a model bedroom for homework, he was to use material to make curtains/bedspread etc. I had just had a massive clearout of all their old clothes etc and had nothing boyish I could give him to make the curtains etc out of. I didn't think too much about it and gave him an old pink stripy t-shirt of mine and we made a really nice room out of it, he didn't seem to bother at all, but all the other boys in the class had dressed their rooms in combat colours and dinosaurs.

LOL elastamum!

But did the other boys make their homework or did all the mums do it!!

I think more than the books I resent the home work projects that are obviously there for the mums. Last year we made, a dinosaur, a christmas tree costume, a model of the solar system, a 1960's outfit, a shepherd, a 6ft guy and a victorian costume. Perhaps there should be a mum prize at speech day!

I know I certainly more of less did DS1's, in the year previous they had to design a toy that actually worked and it was hillarious, all the Dads (including my DH) had very obviously done the whole job. One boy had the most amazing RAF jet, it was absolutely perfect and no way the son (aged 5 at the time) had done any more than watched.

Yes to a Mum prize and no to any more ridiculous homework.

LOL at this thread and the "boxes of stuff" in your house.

I've certainly created a rod for my own back. As a child I was frustrated that we never even had card in the house, and felt tips that worked were a luxury, and as for sticky-backed-plastic ...!

So we have crates and crates of materials and resources in our breakfast-cum-craft room, paint of all different types and colours of the rainbow, every possible fastening device known to man, paper, card, boxes, tubes, material, wool, stencils, etc! As well as a general agreement that we will purchase required items when asked.

DS2 is very independently-minded and generally gets on and completes projects on his own.

His chosen task for this week is to make a bird table out of a plastic ice cream carton (we've already got a gorgeous wooden bird table that my dad made fgs) and to make "seed cake treat" ... this will involve buying lard, and melting it ... yuck! If we have to go shopping to buy lard, why can't we just buy the usual bird fat treats and hang them up ...?! [Miserable mummy emoticon]