If you thought moving house was tough, imagine moving to a new land in the 1620’s. If You Were Me and Lived in… Colonial America gives a brief insight to the first settlers from The Mayflower.
Regular readers of my blog with know that I love books and reading. I also love educational toys and books that not just educate but that are fun. For the past few years I having been reading the If You You Me and Lived in… series of books by award winning author Carole P. Roman. These books give children an introduction into other cultures and countries around the world so I was delighted when If You Were Me and Lived in… Colonial America landed on my doorstep.
The If You Were Me and Lived in… series is split into 2 sections; world cultures and time periods. Colonial America looks at a period in time and contains more information than the world cultures books, so while the world cultures books are for younger children to give brief insights into different people and their cultures and customs, the time period books are for slightly older children.
If You Were Me and Lived in… Colonial America gives children an introduction into how the first colonies in America came to be, from the arrival of first settlers on The Mayflower and The Speedway in 1620. It tells us about children’s names of the time, house building, farming, food, religion, clothing, Native Indians (American Indians) and Thanksgiving. It tells a brief story of just how tough it was resettling in a new land and having to make everything from scratch.
Once you reach the end of the book it also has 2 pages of important people who influenced the early settlements and a brief history of each person. These include names you might have heard of including William Penn, Pocahontas and Captain John Smith.
If You Were Me and Lived in Colonial America is another well written, fun and educational history book that children will find easy to read (there is also a glossary to help them pronounce some of the names and unfamiliar words, broken down into easy pronunciations along with their meaning).
Beautifully illustrated by Sarah Wright, the pictures complement the text very well and bring to life what you are reading. Children, parents and teachers will love it and it doesn’t overwhelm you with boring facts and figures as these books give a basic introduction into the subject and hopefully sparking a child’s imagination and thirst for learning more.
I love this series of books and they are an excellent starting point for children to learn about history, world cultures and cultures. I have said it before in previous reviews of books from this series, these books would make an excellent addition to a child’s library and would work well in a school setting.
Expand your child’s knowledge with Colonial America and the rest of the series.
Rating: 5/5
RRP: £9.99 (paperback)
Available to buy from Amazon here.
For more information on Carole P. Roman, all her books including the Captain No Beard and If You Were Me and Lived In… series visit www.caroleproman.com.
Disclosure: I was provided with a free copy of this book for the purposes of writing an honest and impartial review.
