Gifted Issues Discussion homepage Forums Recommended Resources Recommend Media

I would like to make a thread were we can post recommendations of books and other media, that has been either beneficial or that
your child really enjoyed (or enjoys). Sometimes I feel that my child enjoys some different books and movies than the average child his age. I believe having other parents with gifted children to give us recommendations would be helpful to us all! (esp. if you visit your library as much as we do!:))

Here are my recommendations for the moment:

Books my 3yr old (or 38mo) son has enjoyed this month:

1. What Do You Do With a Tail Like This?
-by: Steve Jenkins and Robin Page (this book was his favorite this month)
2. Red Eyed Tree Frogs -
-written and photographed by John Netherton.
3. The Magic Bed -by John Burningham
4. Moon -by Steve Tomecek

DVD's

1. The Magic School bus: "Bugs, Bugs,Bugs" -(my son really enjoyed this one, it was the first time he had seen the magic school bug series, he watched it again and again, I was amazed at all the facts he had memorized)

2. Also all the "between the Lions" DVD's we've checked out have been wonderful aids in his reading, I recommend them all!! : )

Well my kids have enjoyed the following--

Grolier's I wonder why series(set of 24 books) (when Senior was 2).Senior was a walking encyclopaedia by 3.
Story a Day
Time Life Early Learning Program(set of 15)
Time Life Value series(set of 15)

Junior uses them now while Senior has moved on to
Grolier's New Book of Knowledge (set of 20 books) and the
The Grolier Science Encyclopaedia(set of 10 books)

They provide an amazing range of facts which keeps my kids delighted.
Even the Young Discoverer Series has a good range of books on various topics.
Happy Reading ...

Twiceblessed

My DS3yrs3mo favorite movie right now is "Nausicaa of the Valley of the Wind" I recommend mostly to Twiceblessed since your son is close to my boys age. Anyhow, I'm sure any of you and your children would enjoy it. It's not really a kids show, very deep, but my son Loves it.
(Summery from Amazon.com)>>
Led by the courageous Princess Nausica�, the people of the Valley are engaged in a constant struggle with powerful insects called ohm, who guard a poisonous jungle that is spreading across the Earth. Nausica� and her brave companions, together with the people of the Valley, strive to restore the bond between humanity and the Earth. NAUSICA� OF THE VALLEY OF THE WIND is written and directed by Hayao Miyazaki.

Thanks Jenafur.Will watch that movie.

I just read an article on a website that I really liked, that was helpful to me. It's about gifted preschooler's but there are also other articles on the site about other gifted issues.
I recomend:
http://www.helendowland.fasthit.net/Helping%20gifted%20preschoolers.htm

I want to recommend the "Bob Books" to all who may have beginning readers. My son wouldn't read books before, only a sentance here and their. Signs in stores, the back of cereal boxes (it seemed anything but books, just something intimidating about them i guess). A friend Recommended the Bob Books By Bobby Lynn Maslen. I reserved the first set of "Bob Books" from our library, thinking they'd just be more books he wouldn't want to read. Anyway he loves them! He actually comes up to me at times to as if he can read to me!! their so simple and he doesn't notice how the get a little more difficult book by book. They all have the same look, so i think he feels confident that he can read the next one because he read the one before, that looked like it. Anyhow i think they're great and highly recommend.
I wish i Had known about them a year ago and I bet he'd never have had the hard time wanting to read books.
If you have a child that knows his letter sounds...Bob Books are great first books!

This isn't a recommendation but a request. My DS6 is having trouble with his spelling with his blends. He reads just fine but can't spell nearly as well. For example barn will be "bnre", girl will be "grl" or "gerl", etc. He's leaving the middle vowel sounds out or mixing them up. Anyway, I haven't really worried about this and just figured it was developmental. However, his teacher seems concerned so I told her I would work with him on it. I have been searching for some type of software or board game or something else fun to help him with this. He really likes playing computer games so I thought this would be a good way to help him. He definitely doesn't want more workbook pages to do!! I've found a few things on line but it is hard to know how good they are.

If any of you have any kind of phonics software or board games or home made games or anything else to recommend I'd appreciate it. Thanks!

I'm not sure if this will work for your son EandCmom, but this is a game my son enjoys to help him learn sight words, and I think could maybe help with spelling too. We make a memory game with index cards, one card with a word, and on the other a picture cut from a magazine that matches(you could even just draw a picture). (ex the word girl written on one card, and a picture of a girl on the other card)
When he's playing and flips over a word card, you can have him not only read it, but then have him spell it out loud, each time. so it would help him memorize the spellings of words.
Each week or two depending on how often he's been playing the game, we make a new set of cards (or whenever i feel he's mastered the words)
Anyway..that's my idea....hope it helps..
-Jenafur

Thank you Jenafur, I'll definitely have to give that a try!!!

Hey - E&Cmom, my DS7 (1st grade) was spelling just like this a year ago. Our kindergarten teacher actually said this was normal developmentally for a early writers to either omit the middle vowels (because they're least easy to sound out), or to put another one that sounds more correct in it's place. Now my son rarely studies the 3rd grade words he's given for a spelling test. It's actually a little eerie what he can spell. Anyway - no suggestions, but hang in there!

On recommended media - my son is completely in love with the Spiderwick Chronicles and Lemony Snicket books.