Web Review

My last job was working for PBS Kids Interactive doing Web content for teachers and students. One project I worked on was the Reading Rainbow Web site. Reading Rainbow was a popular program in the 80’s and 90’s. Every episode showcased a different children’s book. Then school-age kids would appear on camera to recommend other related books. The site still exists with an amazing book list http://pbskids.org/readingrainbow/books/index.html. The only problem is that it is not a searchable database. The books are chosen because their diverse subject matters and ability to attract readers. In the Cleveland Park Library they have a section with Reading Rainbow books by the librarian’s desk. These all have Reading Rainbow stickers on the cover. If you are a new teacher or parent, this is a good place to find high-quality books.

When I was looking at the Reading Rainbow site, which is quite dated, I discovered another PBS resource:
http://www.pbs.org/parents/bookfinder/. Wow, what a find. You can search books by age and theme. Some of the many themes are special needs, African American, multiculturalism, and friends. Each book has a description, jpeg of the cover, age recommendation and list of awards the book may have won.

Another site with a searchable database is http://www.commonsensemedia.org. I thought this was a good site for parents and teachers. It reviews children’s books, movies, video games, music, TV, and Web sites. Books and other media are rated for age appropriateness and are reviewed by parents, kids and the site producer: CSM. Books are searchable by age range, title/author and subject matter. Some reviews are very detailed and helpful. However, it seems unclear to me how books are selected for the database. There is a mix of new releases and classics. On the main page for books there is a list of top picks from parents, kids and the CSM organization. The site also has articles for parents such as “How Can Parents Manage Media in Their Home,” “Kids and Scary Movies” and “Politics and Your Tween.” This is an article to help parents explain political ads and the electoral process to their kids. I thought this was a great subject to tackle in the classroom. Overall, I felt the site described a wide array of books diverse in subject matter and authorship.

One site I enjoyed visiting was http://www.bookwink.com. There is a book review / podcast on the main page with links to find books by title, subject, and grade. In the podcast, Lost Treasure of the Inca by Peter Lourie was reviewed by a woman visiting the Andes mountains. There are around 500 book reviews for grade levels (3-8). Books were very diverse in subject matter and genre. Some are classics but others are new releases. When I did a subject search, the site provided 16 subject areas with many more specific subtitles. Some of the subjects were: Problems in Society, Funny, Countries and Cultures, Families (all kinds), Friendship, etc.

The mission of http://www.bookwink.com is to “inspire kids to read.” The creators of the site are a middle school librarian and high school English teacher. They update the site with their “newest favorite books” and do podcasts of their book reviews. I liked the scale of the site; it wasn’t an overwhelming amount of information. It had just enough to help parents and teachers choose books for their children. I would recommend this site to others.