Customer Reviews

E-Mail (True Books-Computers)

5 star:		(3)
4 star:		(0)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

An excellent book for grades 1 and 2 that offers basic information for those youngsters just starting out with technology as well as more "scientific" meat for those wishing to explore what technology has to offer. Clear, concise, and entertainingly told.

Our school system uses both of Brimner's technology books, E-Mail and The World Wide Web, in our first/second grade computer labs. Young readers (and their teachers) appreciate his clear, concise explanations, while young researchers enjoy the connections he makes between the basic and scientific--and the many safe links he offers for exploration. This balance between basic and scientific, always carefully explained, elevates the text from so many that could well fall into the category of "dumbing down" information. If you wish your young students to grow in their understanding of technology, then this is the book for them.

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thanks,HSD(illbeatnu34@yahoo.com)

Brimner's E-Mail is an age-appropriate and clear explanation of what e-mail is and how it works. That he challenges young readers with details from time to time is an asset to teachers wishing to see their students stretch. If I could give it 10 stars, I would. Brimner is one of the leading practitioners of books for young and emergent readers.

A True Book Email- Larry Dane Brimmer

Aspects of subject included What is the Web? How does it work? Explanation of terms. Using the Web.

Structure and organisation of text Short chapters on each topic 3-4 pages each. Sections on good Web sites.

Ways in which information is presented Text - Very large font- about 1cm Colourful presentation. Photographs and computer screen shots.

Helpful features Section on good Internet sites to access.

Language / Potential Difficulties. The layout and the general language of this book suggests that it is written for very young children. It is however completely unsuitable for their use. The author stumbles between the simple, the patronising and the ridiculously technical. Any book which tells you that hyper links take you "almost like magic" to another web page, should not then be discussing hypertext transfer protocol. The book is full of irrelevant and in appropriate information. Who cares that the protocol used on the Internet was invented in a particle physics laboratory in Switzerland called CERL? I doubt if many 6 year olds do. The following passage should help to show how the patronisingly simple is followed with the unnecessarily technical. "The address on the World Wide Web looks like a jumble of letters." Nice and simple so far. "This Jumble is called a URL which stands for Uniform Resource Locator ... The URL for NASA is http://spacelink.msfc.nasa.gov " This is a ridiculous juxtaposition of the simple and the scientific. The whole book is far to difficult for small children, and too patronising and incomplete for adults or teenagers. It is not worth printing.

Implications for teaching. I would not let this book step one page inside my classroom.