Talk with your kids - a book review

Talk with your kids by Michael Parker

Stuck on a lifeboat

You are stuck on a lifeboat with a group of people after the cruise liner you were on sank. You ran out of food two days ago, and people are starting to talk about eating each other to keep at least some of the survivors alive long enough to be rescued. But who should you eat?

"One of the passengers is a serial killer - you should keep him alive so he can kill those ones you're going to eat!"

"Euww, I don't think I could eat anyone."

"What, even if you were starving to death?"

"Eat the annoying people first."

"Maybe the kids would be softer and easier to eat."

This was one of the craziest discussions we had with our kids using the topics from this book.  Some are topics and subjects that really stretch the imagination and some hit a little closer to home; but all manage to get everyone thinking and discussing a lot of differing points of view and suggestions.

Getting kids talking

What parent hasn't been frustrated by kids giving one word answers.

"So what did you do at school today Johnny?

"Nothing."

We're always looking for ways to get our kids talking and discussing things, so when I found this book I just had to get it.

It's a brilliant book that we've found is great to use over dinner with our kids and have had some fun and interesting discussions from it.

This book has 109 conversations about Ethics, topics like bullying, fate, moral responsibilities, cheating, friendship ..the list goes on.

Not only does the book provide topics of conversation, but it also sets up situations, questions and suggestions to lead you through the topic in stages, gradually bringing the discussion from the simple to the more in-depth and complex issues. There are plenty of 'what would you do?' situations, and with no right or wrong answers, it's a great way to get conversations going - especially when you have someone willing to play devil's advocate and suggest outrageous and downright bad things to get a reaction from your kids!

The introduction to the book does provide guidelines and help for parents to use the book, how to encourage your kids without putting words into their mouths.

The topics also mean that kids are not only speaking and practising their skills of conversation, debating and arguing points, but they are also learning about ethics, new situations and developing their own moral values.

Even more discussion topics

Michael Parker has also written another book of conversations to have with your kids with over 100 more ideas to use. This second book is called 

Talk with your kids - Big Ideas

 We're looking forward to using that book too when we've finished the first one.

Have you seen or used this book?

What other methods do you use to get your kids talking?

The opinions in this post are entirely my own, However, the links to the books are for the Book Depository where I have an affiliate link and do earn a commission for any sales via this website.

Catching Fire - what age is it suitable for?

The second book in the Hunger Games Trilogy - Catching Fire.  Our eldest daughter (age 11) read all three books recently, and then our youngest who is 9, picked up the first one from the school library and read that.  She really enjoyed it and launched into the second book straight afterwards.  Unfortunately she didn't get very far with the second book, saying it was boring.  Often when she says something is boring, it means it's too tricky, or she doesn't understand and she consequently gives up!
So - to encourage her to try again, we hired the first movie and all watched that together.  She enjoyed it and wants to see the second one but is still reluctant to read the second book. What I've done now is to start reading it with her. We take turns reading a chapter each day. We're only just at the beginning of the book, and it is quite slow to get going into the story.  There are also quite a few words that she's asking about the meaning of.  I think this is definitely the way to read this book. I enjoy reading with her, and it's good for her to practice her reading aloud as well.  With the incentive of the second movie to watch at the end of the book, that will keep her going until the book gets into it's 'groove' so to speak.
I tried to look up what age The Hunger Games series is recommended for, and most sites seem to say around 10 or 11 as the youngest age. At 9, I think our daughter is ready for this book and it is challenging for her.  However, I also think that reading it together with me is the best way for her to read it as she has plenty of questions to ask for each chapter, so I can help her understand the story more fully. I think having read the first book of the series, the content of the story isn't a problem for her. It's just the vocabulary and the tone of the book is just a little older than she is. It's always good to have an achievable challenge!
Have you or your kids read The Hunger Games?  

Disclaimer: the link for this book takes you to The Book Depository which is an affiliate link. This means that if you purchase a book from them through that link, I get a commission.  All opinions are my own.

Michael Morpurgo - An Elephant in the Garden

Earlier this year, my parents visited from the UK and brought over some books for our girls to read. Included in these books were a couple by Michael Morpurgo.  

Michael Morpurgo wrote War Horse - a children's book about a horse bought to serve in World War 1 and the story of the horse's boy owner trying to find him and bring him home. This story has been made into a movie and a stage play.

But back to the above book, that both our girls and I have now read - An Elephant in the Garden.

Reading age and setting for the book

The recommended reading age for this book is 11+, but both our girls, aged 8 and 10 coped well and enjoyed the book.

One thing I spent a little time on explaining was the setting - Europe in World War 2.

For me, growing up in the UK, when I was their age, I was aware of World War 2 through school and particularly an educational programme we used to watch - "The way we used to live". Now we live in Australia, and what our girls have heard about World War 2 is very different.  Each year we have ANZAC day when soldiers are remembered particularly from the first World War, but also from other wars since.  

World War did not physically touch Australia in the same way as the UK, and so I think what kids learn about it is different too.

Not knowing anything about the setting I think initially put the girls off reading the book. Both read the 'blurb' on the back and then put the book back on the shelf.  

So - before the girls started the book, I tried to explain to them a little of the setting - Germany at war - with cities being bombed.

I also read the book myself (it just took an evening) so I knew what topics it covered and whether it was suitable for them to read. This also allowed me to talk to them about what was happening in the book as they read. This helps me check that they are understanding what they are reading, and they also enjoy being able to share the story with someone else.

The Storyline

The story follows a mother and her two children in Germany. The Father has gone to fight in the war, and the mother has taken a job in the local zoo.  The Elephant is brought to safety from the zoo to the family's garden, and then ultimately flees the city with them during extensive bombing. The book then follows the family on their journey to safety and the friendships that form along the way.

Both girls really enjoyed the book. I think the addition of an animal into a story for kids is always a draw-card. I found a great article here about why children love animal stories so much.

More by Michael Morpurgo

We have another 3 books by Michael Morpurgo - 

This Morning I Met a Whale 

Born to Run

Alone on a Wide Wide Sea

The girls have already made a start on them, and I'm looking forward to reading them myself too!

Have you read any Michael Morpurgo books? Have your kids?

Have you read or seen the War Horse movie?  I'd love to watch it with our girls, but am wondering if the war scenes might be a bit much for them at their age.  I think the book needs to be read first to prepare them for what to expect.

Disclosure: I have not been compensated for this post at all and the opinions expressed are entirely my own. However the links go to the Book Depository where I buy my own books. I do have an affiliate account with the Book Depository and receive commission for any sales made through my site.

Bridge to Terabithia - a book and movie review

 I'd never heard of this book until recently when the movie was shown on TV here in Australia.  We saw the trailer and liked the look of it, so we recorded the movie for our girls to watch sometime.  I also looked the book up and found it in our local library. I think it's always nice to read a book before seeing a movie. Books have more detail in them and it lets you create the pictures for the story in your own imagination. We were also looking for a new book to read together as a family, and this seemed to fit the bill well.
The book is a best-seller, won the Newberry Medal in 1978, and is studied in English study classes around the world.

Here's the trailer we saw for the movie:
After watching this, I expected an adventure story set in a magical world. However, when we started to read the book, we found this wasn't exactly what the book was about. The book tells of a friendship that develops between a boy and girl, around 10 or 11 years old. It explores school life, bullying, family relationships, imagination as a form of escape, and also death.
Although the book was totally different to what we had expected, we all really enjoyed it. We took turns reading chapters. At one stage I had to hand the book to my elder daughter to finish the chapter as I was crying at the story and couldn't speak!

After finishing the book, we then watched the movie.  As always there was the discussion about the parts that had been left out, and the extra little bits that were added, but overall we enjoyed it.
Our eldest daughter said afterwards she preferred reading the book as you get to know what the characters are thinking as well as saying. I agree with this!
I would definitely recommend this book as a great read for kids (ours are 8 and 10 years old and it was perfect for them). And read the book before seeing the movie too!
Have you read this book or seen the movie? What did you think?

Choose your own adventure books

Did you ever read the 'Choose your own adventure' books as a kid? I used to love them. They were one of the best selling kids book series of the 80s and 90s!

  In these books, you are the hero or heroine , and at the end of most pages you get to choose what happens next. There is a choice  of different options, or paths you can take, by turning to different pages to continue the story.  I read and re-read these books, loving that it was different every time I read it!

I was thrilled to find one recently in a second-hand bookshop, and bought it for our daughters.  Initally it was a bit tricky for the eldest to read and understand on her own.  (They were originally written aimed at 10-14 year olds, and our eldest is just 7).  So I read it to both girls, and they took turns deciding how the adventure would go on - what decisions they would make and ultimately the ending!  They enjoyed this, and our eldest has gone on to read it again and again on her own. 

I am now on the lookout for more of these books for our girls to read.  So I was really happy to find the other day in the library, a' Choose your own fairy adventure book'! This is one of the very popular Rainbow Magic Fairy book series, which our girls adore! 

Needless to say, the combination of familiar and well loved fairies, together with an adventure of their own choosing - has made it a very popular book!

Another great rediscovery from my own childhood.

How about you? Have you or your kids ever 'chosen your own adventure' in these books?

Jill