Dandelion the lion feels he should look snazzy for a party, so he opts for the latest in fashion: a curled mane, a spiffy new sport coat, and a hat with a cane. I loved Olivia's passion for photography, having a passion for art myself (although I'm more into drawing but still are both rather similiar concepts, plus I just to it for fun while Olivia might've been aspiring to be a professional photographer but who knows!) It was really inspiring as well with the theme of the diaries and photographs, being someone who also keeps a diary and loves using photos as well to express nice themes and what not! I think the style of the book with the chapters being set out of the build up of lives journey before and after this particular life-changing tragic event in her life being her mum's terminal illness and how she handles it, as well as exploring other important themes and events of her life such as dealing with her brother's autism and having to adapt all the time for him, who despite being older than her is the one who she has to help look after of course, as well as mean girls at school, liking boys etc. It manages really well to fit in all these themes very nicely together, including Liv's idea to help Isaac understand emotions by taking photos of people's facial expressions. These books are for use by Reception and Year 1 children, either progressing from Dandelion Readers Units 1 to 20 or as an additional resource in conjunction with any other phonic reading programme. Highly decodable books are almost entirely decodable but there may be a few words that the child will not be able to sound out using their phonics knowledge at that point. For example, the Comet Street Kids collection is classed as 95% decodable. Any word that is not decodable has been recorded on the inside front cover of the book, so that children can be introduced to the word prior to reading. What stood out to me most with this book is that it's a real coming of age story for Liv. I enjoyed seeing her subtly mature in accordance with the things around her. I liked seeing how she dealt with everyday issues, such as friendships at school. Most of all I found it interesting to see how her experience shaped her and had an effect on her and helped on the way to forming her identity and maturity. For her age, Liv seemed very mature for her age and that is another reason why I believe the older YA fans will like this book.

Decodable phonic books what and why? - TTS Decodable phonic books what and why? - TTS

Digital photography has revolutionised Dandelion identification, as images capturing colour and form enable plants to be named without the need for dried specimens. In this new BSBI Handbook, no. 23 in the series of Handbooks for difficult plant groups, world expert John Richards has used photographs to summarise his encyclopaedic knowledge in a new and accessible format. The images have been provided by 39 photographers, reflecting the increased interest in Dandelions. The characters in this book are amazing. Liv's voice resonates strongly through the story and she's someone a majority of us can relate to. The characters all had their own quirks and individual personalities and each of them play an important part in the story. I loved them all so much and I couldn't possibly choose a favourite.

Decodable books, also known as phonic readers, are books that contain either decodable or common exception words, meaning that children can read them using just their phonic skills and knowledge.

Dandelion Readers - Phonics Reading Books - Phonic Books

year old Liv grows up through the novel and it’s a painful thing to see. At the beginning she’s unbelievably embarrassed by her mum who won’t let her get her ears pierced but as the novel progresses and we and Liv learn the terrible truth about her mum’s terminal illness, she grows impressively but the hallmarks of her young age are still present. Her emotions are everywhere, uncontrollable even, and how could blame her? It’s impossible to read this novel without feeling terribly sad for Liv and her older brother Isaac who has Asperger’s Syndrome.

Some poems have better form and structure that makes me believe she has improved (ex. sever), the only problem is the point that is being expressed is extremely boring and uncreative. It seems as though you can never get both form and quality from her; looks as if she must sacrifice form for creativity or vice versa. What's worse about this is most of the time her poems fail in both aspects and never succeeded. This was one of those books that I enjoyed as a child even though I had no idea what a dandy was at the time. What truly makes this book fun and creative is the wordplay on dandy lion and of course the actual Dandelion (both the character's name as well as the flower that he uses for his bouquet). There just aren't really that many books and authors who explore such concepts. As reviewer Jennifer says: "Your friends will love you for who you are, not how your hair looks or what sweater you wear. This book is a perfect example of being proud of who you are and not changing to impress others." I couldn't put this book down! Rebecca Westcott has grasped the eleven year old Olivia Ellis's thoughts and actions perfectly. It is, by far, the most realistic and touching book I have read. As you read it it makes you laugh and cry. It beautifully shows the love between a family - especially a mother and daughter - and also the problems with friendship and school. She has mixed the dreadful illness that is cancer with Aspergers in one story and has created a breath taking story with them. It is a different approach to reading about these illnesses as you look at it from a young girl's point of view who has to watch as other people suffer. The ending is the perfect way to sum up how the family dealt with the loss and how they moved on but never forgot. Schools should “ensure that children practise their reading from books that match their phonics knowledge.”

Dandelion | Resources For Schools | Badger Learning

Olivia loves photography and loves the adult camera she has received for her birthday but feels guilty at the same time being excited and happy about it when she knows deep down that it is her last birthday with her mum. Each book in our Dandelion series also includes a game. This helps to practise and consolidate the learning in a fun way. Do I need the workbooks? The Units are available in two parallel sets of ten books, the two books at each level use the same sounds allowing children to read different stories which reinforces learning. Dear Dandelion, You are invited to my tea-and-taffy party on Saturday afternoon at half-past three. Come as you are. Sincerely, Jennifer Graffe

To see how children should progress through our books please look at our Phonic Progression Chart. How do I go about reading with my child? Parallel sets of books introduce the sounds of the alphabet, adjacent consonants and consonant digraphs, and vowel digraphs. The workbooks complement the reading books. They offer a variety of activities which develop reading, spelling, writing and comprehension. They are used mostly by schools. The level of your child’s reading and his/her age will determine which books are suitable for him/her. Our general guidelines are: Book Category Two key aspects – Decoding (no guessing) and Comprehension. Children should be encouraged to use their phonic skills rather than guessing when they encounter a new word. Support and model how to sound out the word and then blend the sounds together. Talking about and discussing the book is also important for developing vocabulary and those early comprehension skills too.