Kerri-Lee's Blog

I was at Foster's Homeware at 4th and Market Street the other day and as always, I found a ton of stuff that I may or may not need for my kitchen and home.  I was nearly at the end of my "gathering" when I saw the kid's section.  They had some really cute gifts, great wrapping, and then... this book.  I had recently heard about it, and when I opened it, I realized why so many people love it and are giving it to every eight year old they know.

It reminds me of my 5th grade teacher, Mr. Newman, from Cordova Bay Elementary School in Victoria, BC.  Forget that book, "I learned Everything I Need to Know In Kindergarten," for me, it was the year I turned 10.  We were all kind of scared of Mr. Newman, and especially intrigued the day we had a half-day, and he showed up at school in a turtleneck sweater and jeans... "What?  Mr. Newman had jeans?"

Anyway, we would do something called "Morning Drills," and he would ask 10 questions based on things he taught us.  Like what temperature will water boil? How many inches are in a yard?  What is the capital of Saskatchewan (it was Canada, afterall)  Mr. Newman made sure we learned basics, facts, things that myself and the rest of his hundreds of students would learn many years later--- that we were really glad he "drilled" into our heads.

This book reminds me of those days, and those drills.  So I bought one for my little man. 

He's only 3, but it will eventually teach him how to make a paper airplane, build a treehouse, learn about different bugs, understand first-aid basics, and he'll even know some basic Shakespeare.  He'll learn about the Seven Wonders of the World, the Rules of Soccer and how to play chess (mommy might skip the lesson about "How To Hunt and Cook a Rabbit")  I found myself getting excited about the first clear night so we could take the book and try to identify some of the things we see in the sky above us.  Cool book, huh?

Oh and girls?  They made one for you too :)

Enjoy being "Dangerous" and "Daring" kids.

KL