Book Description

In an unusual blend of fiction and nonfiction, A Pioneer Sampler chronicles one year in the lives of the Robinson family. Illustrated historical notes enlarge on the social history and describe activities related to the stories, from churning butter to predicting the weather. Young readers are invited to try their hand at these tasks to experience a bit of pioneer life. ... Read more

Reviews (5)

Great , engaging book about pioneer life!
I loved this book. I read it before I gave it to my daughter. It is a fictional family, but all the information is true to life. Interspersed with the story of the Robertsons, you can learn how to make your own cheese, dip a candle, or learn to tell the time from the sun.
This book will add to your library, and is a nice complement to Laura Ingalls Wilders books. Homeschooling familys will enjoy it, I know we did.

this is a fanntastic book
The Pioneer Sampler

The Pioneer Sampler is a fun and fascinating book. It tells about a pioneer family. Can Nekeek and Willy catch fish by hand? You'll find out. This is a fun book.
I'd give this book a five *...

Experience pioneer life!!!
Barbara Greenwood has written a wonderful book that is as much fun for adults to read to children as it is for the children to read themselves. She doesn't just 'tell' about the Robertson's, she 'shows', drawing the reader into their lives...a pleasant place to be. I especially love Granny's story about how she came to America,on a ship, from Scotland.

The book is beautifully illustrated...all the way through...by Heather Collins. The pictures are so well done that, even as an adult, I would like to step into the scene!

There are instructions for simple, fun activities such as growing a potato plant, dyeing fabric using an onion, or making a cardboard jumping jack; pioneer games that will even entertain today's children for hours such as shadow shapes or knucklebones; and recipes that are easy for children.

Reading this book to a child is a great 'stress releaver'...it's like a little escape from the treadmill of life!!!

A wonderful book on pioneer life for children ages 6-14
I've read many books on pioneer life, and this is by far the best one for children. The book is about the Robertsons, a fictional family living in the west. While the family is fictional, the material is all drawn from real life.

The story takes you through a year in their lives, each chapter being its own story. After each chapter, the author provides explanatory material, giving detailed information about events and activities from the story. For example, there is a chapter about the children searching for a bee tree in order to find honey. In the explanatory material following the chapter, the author discusses beekeeping, division of labor among the bees, how the honey is actually made and the importance of honey to the early pioneers.

Unlike most books, we found the explanatory material every bit as captivating as the stories. In addition, the author suggests some activities children can do in order to learn more. Yesterday we conducted an experiment to see how the sap in the maple trees resists freezing because of its high sugar content. Today we made butter.

All in all, an excellent book. Thumbs up from [this family]

Excellent teaching resource book!
I love using this book in the classroom because of the way it takes each aspect of everyday pioneer living, and provides a non-fiction type short story along with more information about the job, skill, etc., along with an acitivity for the children to do. ... Read more

Book Description

Exciting color photographs capture the beauty and natural wonder ofCanada, from its border with the United States, up to the Land of the Midnight Sun. ... Read more

Book Description

This beautifully illustrated cookbook introduces children to the pioneer kitchen and features recipes from the many immigrant groups who built this land. Fascinating text describes how they prepared their meals and gives step-by-step instructions, safety rules, and useful tips on preparing recipes. ... Read more

Book Description

Only in Canada is part of the Wow Canada! series. Richly varied yet intrinsically connected, each unique book in this collection celebrates a part of Canada's story. Together, the books in the Wow Canada! library weave a tale as diverse and exciting as the country itself.

From the innovative team behind the multi-award-winning Wow Canada! (author Vivien Bowers and artist Dianne Eastman) comes Only in Canada! It's a funny, fascinating and fact-filled tour through everything interesting and unique in Canada. With your hosts, Moose and Goose, you will be shuttled through the weird, wonderful, mind-boggling, and just plain fascinating facts that define the nation.

From how Canada was physically formed, to awesome things Canadians have built, to Canada's naturally bizarre plants and wildlife, weather weirdness, a tour through Canada's history, and an introduction to Canadian heroes and famous figures, this is Canada for kids as they've never seen it before. Kids will always be able to find something new in this grab-bag of quirky (yet valuable!) information. ... Read more

Book Description

In a series of 21 paintings Shilling re-creates the faces of his Ojibway people – unforgettable for the suffering under the quietness, the courage, and dignity in the pain. He accompanies the art with a poetic text as compelling as the paintings – and writes of sleep and dreams and death, and of his use of color to fight off fear and darkness. ... Read more

Reviews (1)

The Ojibway Dream
Not a children's book but children would enjoy its bold colors, strokes and hidden images. This book is a mini galary of the works of great native Canadian artist, Arthur Shilling. If you collect art this is important. If you follow aboriginal art this book is a 'must have.' Anton Hart ... Read more

Book Description

"M" is for multiculturalism which Canadians celebrate in hundreds offestivals each year.This diverse country is showcased from Native peoples and moderncities to Quebec and the Underground Railroad. ... Read more

Book Description

This book introduces children to the miller, the sawyer, and thestorekeeper and shows how they worked together in the spirit of cooperation. ... Read more

Book Description

This is an illustrated children's biography of 19th-century explorer John Rae, a Scotsman who opened up vast tracts of land in the Canadian Arctic and may have been the true discoverer of the Northwest Passage. He discovered the fate of the failed Franklin Expedition and evidence of cannibalism on the bones he found, but was disgraced by a slanderous campaign against his name, which resulted in a century of subsequent obscurity. Rae was one of the first Europeans to show respect for Inuit customs and to take inspiration from their Arctic survival skills. John Wilson brings this fascinating man and his times to life in an exciting narrative full of survival stories, shipwrecks and scandals. The book is illustrated with sketches, maps and archival photos. ... Read more

Reviews (1)

A remarkable and recommended biography
The latest in the outstanding "Stories of Canada" series from Napoleon Publishing, Discovering The Arctic: The Story Of John Rae by John Wilson is an enthralling black-and-white history for young readers detailing the efforts of 19th century explorer John Rae. Black-and-white photographs nicely illustrate this amazing tale of one of the first Europeans to respect Inuit customs and who learned from their survival skills when he found himself dealing with harsh Arctic terrain. Rae's dramatic exploits, terrible findings, and vehement enemies are spoken of in clear terms that bring this remarkable and recommended biography to vivid life. ... Read more

Book Description

A nation built around many cultures, this book shows howmulticulturalism helps Canadians better understand their neighbors. ... Read more

Book Description

In the late 1800s, Canada’s prairies were the destination for thousands of settlers. Among them were the Caswells, who made the long journey from a comfortable home in Ontario. Before fourteen-year-old Maryanne departs from her hometown of Palmerston in 1887, she promises to write to her grandmother about her journey to Clark’s Crossing, near the present day city of Saskatoon.

In these fascinating, true letters, Maryanne writes vividly about the fun of the train ride and the near impossible trek across muddy cart tracks with the family’s laden wagon. As the oldest, Maryanne helps with many of the back-breaking and never-ending chores in the fields and at the homestead. Tales of courage, adventure, loneliness, sorrow, and delight flow from Maryanne’s pen. This is a powerful testament from an astute and sensitive young girl. ... Read more

Book Description

This illustrated children's biography paints a sensitive and affectionate portrait of the famous pianist Glenn Gould, an enigmatic figure who made some of the most acclaimed classical recordings of the last century. A former child prodigy and an unpredictable, passionate man, Gould was known as much for his eccentricities as his vast musical genius. After retiring prematurely from performing, Gould branched out into work in film and radio and helped bring classical music recording technology into a new age. He has become a national icon in his native Canada. ... Read more