Synergy: Pet Training

Whether training a dog to sit or teaching a cat to roll over, pet training involves teaching an animal to react to specific conditions. Most trainers use reinforcement such as a food treat to increase a behavior or punishment such a squirt of water to eliminate an undesirable behavior.

Read the recently published children's book series, then learn more at the websites:

National Geographic Kid’s TRAINING GUIDES series encourages readers to get to know their pets. FETCH! by Aubre Andrus and Gary Weitzman and POUNCE! by Tracey West and Gary Weitzman help children train their dog or cat.

YouTube pet training videos can supplement the experience. For instance, Zak George's Dog Training Revolution has nearly 3 million subscribers and Cat School has 10 million subscribers.

To learn more go to https://www.youtube.com/c/zakgeorge

For cat training, go to the CAT SCHOOL YouTube channel at https://bit.ly/30qi7W8

ARC courtesy of National Geographic Kids.

Book Review: Stay!

STAY! by Alex Latimer is a captivating picture book about a boy and his dog.

After last year’s vacation disaster, Ben’s dog Buster will be staying with grampa this year. Ben’s dad suggests that Ben create a list of things Buster likes so Buster and grampa will have a good time. During vacation, Ben continues to think of ideas, so he sends postcards to his grandfather. In the end, grampa has some ideas of his own to share with Ben.

The adorable storyline combined with engaging illustrations make this book perfect for the target audience. Children will enjoy creating their own lists related to their pets.

Librarians will find a huge audience for this alluring picture book. Create a display with other books about naughty pets.

Learn more about the author at http://www.alexlatimer.co.za/.

Published by Peachtree Publishers on September 1, 2015. Review copy courtesy of the publisher.

Website Review: Occupational Outlook Handbook

The OCCUPATIONAL OUTLOOK HANDBOOK (OOH) from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics is an online reference resource containing career information about hundreds of occupations.

The entry page contains a list of occupations organized into groups such as healthcare and legal. Users can also select occupations by median pay, entry-level education, on-the-job training, number of new jobs projected, and growth rather projection. In addition, options are provided to browse the A-Z index and explore occupations by highest paying, fastest growing, and most new jobs. Finally, users can explore FAQs, the glossary, a teacher’s guide, and career outlook.

The “Occupation Finder” provides a master list of 580 entries with tools to narrow the search by education, training, projected new jobs, projected growth, and median pay. A key word search is also available.

Each career profile contains a summary, what they do, work environment, how to become one, pay, job outlook, similar occupations, and more information.

This easy-to-use website is a great resource for informational reading activities. It’s also a excellent way to jumpstart a career exploration project. A Teachers Guide provides ideas for how the website might be used. It also links to other websites with career information.

Most libraries have a print copy of the OOH in their reference section, however the website provides an effective resource for a whole-class experience.

To learn more, go to the website at http://www.bls.gov/ooh/.

Book Review: Dr. Critchlore's School for Minions

DR. CRITCHLORE’S SCHOOL FOR MINIONS by Sheila Grau joins the plethora of magical school series that began with Harry Potter. However in this case, the stories focus on a school for training minions. The combination of mystery, mischief, and monsters is perfect for lower, middle grade readers.

In this kickoff episode, Runt Higgins is hoping to enter the Junior Henchman training program, but he gets caught up in school-wide mystery involving viral videos, explosions, and pranksters. Readers are sure to enjoy lovable, gullible Runt and his monster friends.

The comical characters and silly array of monsters will keep readers coming back for more. The action moves quickly as the main characters are introduced and readers learn about this bizarre school for hopeful, Evil Overlord sidekicks.

This humorous series will be a welcome addition to your library’s growing collection of fantasy school books.

Published March 17, 2015 by Amulet/Abrams.
Reviewed through ARC NetGalley.