New Releases by Ruth Thomson

This illustrated dictionary includes more than 6000 carefully selected rhyming words to inspire primary children to write their own poems. It also includes more than 50 commissioned poems, rhymes, couplets and over 70 amusing and eye-catching illustrations to offer visual inspiration.

Vincent van Gogh was a sensitive, passionate, and eccentric individual. Painting gave him the means to express who he was and what he was feeling. Although his career lasted less than ten years, he created more than 2,000 artworks, and today most people consider him one of the founders of modern art. In this irresistible narrative, readers explore van Gogh’s artistic influences, inspirations, and painting skills. In this vibrant presentation, the legacy of van Gogh’s still lifes, self-portraits, landscapes, and other works are clearly evaluated.

Portrait. Nature. Art. Documentary. A look at some of the world’s most iconic photographs invites viewers to focus on the medium’s place in art and history. Photographs can be beautiful or harrowing, honest or manipulative, dramatic or comforting. Photos Framed explores twenty-seven of the most important and vivid photos taken over the medium’s history, from a formal portrait of Louis Daguerre taken in 1844 to a candid shot of a Cuban girl and her doll in 2011. Readers are invited to use their powers of observation to zoom in on photographic elements, blow up details of the subject matter, think about the big picture, and pan out on the photographer. Photos Framed will open viewers’ eyes to the art of photography and its power to tell a story.

Through inmates' own voicesNfrom secret diary entries and artwork to excerpts from memoirs and recordings narrated after the warN"Terezin" explores the lives of Jewish people in one of the most infamous of the Nazi transit camps in Czechoslovakia. Illustrations.

"Between 1941 and 1945, the Nazi authorities turned the small town of Terezín, Czechoslovakia, into a ghetto and then into a transit camp for thousands of Jewish people, many of them artists. It was a "show" camp, where inmates were forced to use their artistic talents to fool the world, hiding the truth of gas chambers and horrific living conditions for imprisoned Jews. In this accessible, meticulously researched book, Ruth Thomson allows the inmates to speak for themselves though secret diary entries, artwork, and excerpts from memoirs and recordings made after the war. Terezín: Voices from the Holocaust is a moving portrait that demonstrates the strength of the human will to endure, to create, and to survive." -- cover, pg. 4.

These books will help you think about and look around your local area. Find out what your surroundings can tell you about how people live and work, where they shop and go to school and how they travel and spend their leisure time. Discover the clues that will tell you how people lived in the past. Think about the changes that could benefit your local area, whether it's your home, school or further afield.

Presents an introduction to the life cycle of a chicken, from its beginnings as an egg, to its life as a chick, to its full maturity as an adult.

Presents an introduction to the life cycle of a bee, from its beginnings as an egg, to its life as a grub, to its full maturity as an adult.

Presents a comprehensive look at the characteristics of a sunflower as it develops from a seed into a flower.

Interesting and unusual crafts created by many people around the world fill this brightly photographed series on design. Colorful pictures along with step-by-step instructions allow students to make their own creations. Introductory text for each craft provides a cultural background as to where the craft fits into tradition and why.

Learn how big oak trees grow from small acorns.

Pictures and simple text present the life cycle of a rose.

Describes the physical characteristics, habitat, food, and reproductive cycle of the crab.

Introduces young children to the jobs people do to help others.

A simple, attractive book introducing young children to the work of staff at a primary school. Explaining the day-to-day tasks of various people including teachers, cooks and site manager, and how they work together as a team. Illustrated with specially-commissioned, on-location photography.

This great series looks at how children can help themselves to stay safe

Describes how honeybees grow from an egg into a full-grown insect.

Describes how a bean grows from a seed to an adult plant.

Describes how chickens grow from an egg into an adult chicken and introduce their physical characteristics.

Describes the physical characteristics of an adult cat and the process by which it grows from a newborn kitten into a cat.

Describes how a salmon grows from an egg, becomes stronger by feeding on plankton, and swims back upstream to where it was born as a fully grown adult.

This series explores the lives of Victorian children, using original photographs, drawings and objects, as well as extracts from books and documents, to show you their world. Read this book to discover what sort of homes children lived in, how homes were heated, lit and furnished, what family life was like, how families kept in touch.

Uncovering the life and times of some of the most important and influential artists of the modern world, each title in this series focuses on one artist, exploring their life and work in the context of world events.

With a cross-curricular approach that links environmental issues with both science and geography, this series provides insight into the ways materials are re-used or recycled all around the world.

This lively series provides an accessible introduction to the subject of art. Examining sculpture, still life, self-portraits, and textiles, each title features examples from a variety of artists, techniques, and cultures and includes simple activities and observation questions. While inspiring their creativity, the books also encourage kids to look for art in the world around them.

Featuring well-known examples of fine art, What is Self-Portrait? discusses how artists reveal themselves through their self-portraits. Links to KS1 unit on 'Ourselves'. What is Sculpture? looks at a variety of sculpture styles, with both well-known examples, and sculptures from other cultures. Links to KS1 unit on 'Materials and their properties'.

Features words and word games to help children speak in simple and complex sentences.

'Changing Times' is a series that looks at life in the recent past through the eyes of four generations of the same family. Change and continuity are emphasised through contemporary photos and artefacts. The books aim to stimulate historical interest and awareness. Cooking is the focus of this title.

Presents a variety of works of art that depict specific people in different media, explains how they express the artist's ideas, and suggests related projects.