Tag Archives: English

Punctuation Retreat: Adventures in Language by G. L. Sinclair (Book Review)

Brimming with wit & whimsy, this sweet picture book is a creative & stress-free introduction to basic punctuation. In this delightful children’s book, each punctuation mark comes to life with its own personality, helping readers understand their important roles in writing. Join the overworked punctuation marks as they embark on a whimiscal retreat to four Caribbean Islands! Hitchhiking on a tourist book to board the airplane, these lively characters take young readers on a colorful adventure. With vibrant illustrations and playful rhymes, discover how commas help you take a breath, periods end a sentence, question marks make you wonder, exclamation points show excitement and much more. This enchanting journey makes learning punctuation fun and memorable.

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(review request submitted by the author for an honest critique) 

 

Learning how to punctuate a sentence properly can be tiresome. Most kids would rather be doing anything else than editing a sentence or paragraph. Teachers and (homeschooling) parents continually search for new ways to excite their students or children about learning. Well, look no further… Punctuation Retreat makes learning fun! 

In chapter one, the writer uses alliteration (words that start with the same letter) when presenting most of the punctuation marks: Penelope Period, Cedric Comma, Eloise Exclamation, Quincy Question, Lenny and Ricky (left and right quotation marks), Clara Colon, Sammy Semicolon, Amelia Apostrophe, Harry Hyphen, Peter and Pippa (open and close parenthesis), and Spencer Space. Swirly McWhirlpool (@ used in emails and to tag), Señor Wiggleworth (~ aka the tilde), Dottie Ellipsis (…) didn’t follow the alliteration route, but their names were catchy and cute, nonetheless. During the first few pages, readers will notice that each character’s name is assigned a specific color with their corresponding mark in the same hue. For example, Quincy Question was in dark green, and so was their punctuation mark. A creative touch that extensively feeds into visual stimuli, which is how most of the information is transmitted to the brain.  

Feeling overworked and underappreciated, the punctuation pals set off to a Punctuation Island Retreat for much-needed rest, relaxation, and fun. The first stop is Havana, where kids learn about Cuba’s capital and gain insight into the unique way the Spanish language uses question marks and exclamation points. Readers will also get the inside scoop on the “squiggly line over the N”: its name in English and Spanish and its function. 

Next, the punctuation marks jet off to the Cayman Islands, my dream vacation spot. There is much to do there, and the weather and sights are beautiful! In this chapter (#3), readers discover fun activities the island holds while understanding which grammar mark goes where. Readers will learn interesting facts, too. For instance, I had no idea of Blackbeard’s real name. Do you? If you answered no, I encourage you to pick up this wonderful book and discover the answer. Attend the Pirate Week Festival, too!  

After the friend group hopped out of the tourist book and into a magazine, they flew to Martinique, a French-speaking island many readers might have yet to hear of. During this section, I noticed the most missed opportunities to shade and bold punctuation marks used by their namesakes, like Amelia and her apostrophes. On the plus side, this chapter (#4) taught me a thing or two. I discovered how important ONE grammar mark was to the French people (to all of us, really) and what the French used in place of quotation marks. The most significant language difference came when the punctuation marks team visited Jamaica. (Read the sign written in Jamaican Patois and ask your class to note the differences and similarities between it and American English.)

Punctuation Retreat takes readers on an amazing adventure from Cuba to the Grand Cayman, onward to Martinique, and then to Jamaica before returning home. Kids learn to punctuate sentences correctly, are introduced to foreign languages, and gather wonderful information about each tourist spot. Young or old, we will all discover something new during our journey. Though I applaud the writer’s innovative way of teaching kids how, where, and why each punctuation mark is used, the writer missed moments when punctuation was not highlighted when their character spoke. But again, I must commend the long hours spent crafting this book; it had to be no easy feat! 

Punctuation Retreat presents information in a whimsical and fun way that’ll entertain kids instead of their typical reaction to grammar lessons — yawns. This book hits the mark from text to images, and I recommend including it in your grammar lessons. BTW: my favorite was the tilde. I loved the artist’s play on the grammar mark, using it as a mustache for Señor Wiggleworth.

 

Amazon’s recommended age group is 5-11 years.

 

Heart Rating System:
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Meet the Author

I am an accountant by profession and have retired after many years of service. I always wanted to write a book. I developed a series of 6 books on punctuation/grammar for kids. This is a completely new experience for me, and I hope you like what I have written.


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Magical Noun Quest: Adventures in Language by G. L. Sinclair (Book Review)

Join four adventurous kids on an unforgettable treasure hunt in “The Magical Noun Quest”! When Emma, Jack, Liam and Sophie stumble upon a dilapidated cottage deep in the woods. Their curiosity gets the better of them, ignoring the warnings of their parents, they venture inside and discover a hidden library filled with dusty, ancient books.

Among the forgotten tomes, one book stands out—glowing and shimmering with a magical light. Drawn to its enchanting aura, the kids open the book and are instantly transported to a series of mystical worlds. Each new place they visit is filled with exciting challenges and wondrous discoveries, all centered around the fascinating world of nouns.

As they journey through an enchanted forest, bustling city, and mysterious islands, Emma, Jack, Liam and Sophie learn the true power of language. They uncover the importance of all types of nouns—people, places, things, and ideas—and how these words shape the world around them.

“The Magical Noun Quest” is a captivating adventure that teaches young readers the value of language and the magic hidden within words. Perfect for children who love a good story and are eager to explore the wonders of grammar, this book is sure to inspire and delight.

 

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I received a complimentary copy of this book from Reedsy Discovery. I voluntarily chose to read and post an honest review.

 

English can be tricky, and learning what each word represents in any given sentence can be mind-numbingly dull. Oh, how I wish Magical Noun Quest had been around when I was a child. Thank goodness it is here now! Magical Noun Quest helps elementary students discover the magic of nouns and how the world would crumble without them. 

Best friends Emma, Jack, Liam, and Sophie love going on adventures together, and so, on one hot summer afternoon, they pack and head to an abandoned cottage in the Maplewood Forest. Why this place, you may ask? There’s a rumor that inside the run-down building is a library filled with ancient and magical books. Guess what? The rumor was correct! Sophie, aged seven and the youngest member of the friend group, discovered a large dark brown book with gold patterns embossed on the cover titled The Enchanted Guide to Nouns. This book magically opened with a mist pouring out and engulfing the kids. It also spoke to them, saying it was a guide that would show them the magic of nouns. All the kids must do is say yes to the adventure, which they did.

As the library vanished, their quest (and yours at home) began: to find and categorize all the names in the magical realm before the Verb Goblin turns the nouns into other parts of speech. Noun hunters met many interesting characters in the book within a book, such as the talking eyeglass-wearing owl, chimera (discussed later), and Bella the talking butterfly. 

As we turn the pages, we first read the difference between singular and plural nouns. That’s not the exciting part, but what happened next was —each noun they read would magically appear in front of them. The forest came alive, but things began looking slightly off. The culprit? The Verb Goblin, as warned by the voice in The Enchanted Guide to Nouns. The children in the book have to identify plural and singular nouns. Extend the teaching by asking your class to name single and plural nouns they’d discover in a forest or classroom. Let your students become the heroes of their enchanted forest

On day two, the kids were transported to the City of Names and had to identify proper and common nouns to restore the city. Children did not learn the difference between the two right away; however, they got some assistance as the book characters arrived at the park and then pressed on to the museum and library. This adventure, like the forest one, offers educators a chance to get children involved in the story. Ask them to name proper or common nouns in their city/town. 

My favorite journey was in chapter four, where the magical journey took us to the Mysterious Island of Togetherness, home to the chimeras. (For those unfamiliar with mythical creatures, the illustrator added a cute drawing of this unique-looking animal.) In this section, Blazeclaw (the lead chimera) introduces readers to collective nouns representing groups of people, animals, and things. The author brilliantly reinforces the literary term by using familiar objects and groupings, such as a swarm of bees and a flock of sheep. 

As chapters 5-7 play out, readers transport to beautiful caverns (concrete and abstract nouns), a floating market (countable and uncountable nouns), and a meadow lacking descriptive words (noun phrases). In these final stops, the author once again used simple words to explain a possibly confusing subject matter. For instance, abstract might puzzle your reader at first, but after they read the writer’s definition and examples (i.e., happiness), their confusion will vanish as quickly as the Verb Goblin’s mischievous deeds! It is the same for countable (apples) and uncountable nouns (sand). And when I thought we’d never meet the Verb Goblin, they make a dramatic entrance, and chaos erupts. Join the brave noun hunters for the biggest challenge yet and share the wonders of language with your family and friends…one noun at a time. 

Amazon’s recommended reading age is 5-11 years old. With the excellent explanations and examples, I agree with this age range.

 

Heart Rating System:
1 (lowest) and 5 (highest) 
Score: 

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Meet the Author

I am an accountant by profession and have retired after many years of service. I always wanted to write a book. I developed a series of 6 books on punctuation/grammar for kids. This is a completely new experience for me, and I hope you like what I have written.


Reedsy Author Link

 

 

 

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The Eight Parts of Speech: Grammar 1 – Interactive Workbook by Lori Harvill Moore (Book Review)

This downloadable interactive workbook allows students in fourth grade and higher to learn about the eight parts of speech, which is an integral segment of a language arts curriculum. Students in traditional and home school settings will learn in three ways: watch a video, read chapter text, and complete exercises to reinforce rules and concepts of English grammar.

The student clicks on text at the beginning of a chapter to open a video. Then, if the device does not allow for completing the exercises by filling in the blanks in the workbook, the student can click on a link within the description of each exercise and provide answers online.

Requirements

The device, which can be a tablet or a desktop Kindle application, must have Internet access to take advantage of the interactive features.

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I received a complimentary copy of this book from Reedsy Discovery. 
I voluntarily chose to read and post an honest review.

 

The first chapter, “Nouns,” like the other six chapters, defines the term, gives examples of various types, and allows the reader to complete multiple exercises in the book or online through an external link. There are plenty of opportunities for the student to practice writing sentences in the covered area. Lori Harvill Moore has also provided an answer key at the back of the book. So, when in doubt, look at her guide! 

Each chapter title represents a term children will become familiar with in elementary school: nouns, pronouns, verbs, adjectives, adverbs, prepositions, and conjunctions and interjections (the last set combined into one chapter). While the chapter titles are vague, each section’s contents are very detailed. Tables and examples help take the guesswork out of (what might call) a difficult language. My only issue with the tables was their readability. In the digital format (EPUB), some text was hard to read: for example, the chart under “Prepositions About Locations.” 

The Eight Parts of Speech by Lori Harvill Moore is a perfect book to teach the fundamentals of parts of speech and also to use as a reference guide throughout your academic years. If you’re a visual person, again, I want to remind you this book has several links that will redirect you to tutorials. These links would benefit a single learner or be utilized in a classroom. 

The Eight Parts of Speech by Lori Harvill Moore is a perfect interactive workbook for fourth graders and up who are learning new concepts or need a refreshing course on parts of speech. All the exercises would be great practice questions to reinforce a lesson or to use in test prep. 

Whether you attend public school or homeschool, I recommend you share The Eight Parts of Speech by Lori Harvill with your student(s).

Review submitted to Reedsy on 10/31/22.

Heart Rating System:
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Score: ❤❤

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Meet the Author


Lori: I have been writing for three decades, both as a freelancer and as a function of my job duties. I am an avid proponent of literacy for children and adults and am working on six grammar and composition eBooks. Among my writing credits are two eBooks for Bookboon.com and two eBooks for children.

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