Customer Reviews

Scholastic Children's Dictionary (Revised and Updated Edition)

5 star:		(9)
4 star:		(1)
3 star:		(2)
2 star:		(3)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

I rate this a 5 star for the purpose I purchased it. It introduced my grandson, as a 3rd grader with homework, to the use of a dictionary. I was astounded to realize that he had been reading his social studies with only partial understanding because of skipping over words that had no meaning for him ... words we take for granted with which a child has had little or no experience. I taught him the blessing of a dictionary and we started going over his work. His eyes lit up as his brain lit up with understanding. His grades went up .. a matter of great pride to him. Just learning to work the filing system of a dictionary quickly is another accomplishment for a 3rd or 4th grader. They can graduate to a more adult dictionary later on with confidence and grace. This one is a wonderful beginning.

This dictionary WAS good up until my child was in 1st grade. Ever since then, we are unable to find words in this dictionary!! It is a very frustrating experience for a child to actually use the book and then find this book does not have the words they need!! Only use this book for the early reader.

If your child is old enough to use this dictionary, then buy him or her a real (non-children's) dictionary. I just bought this for my 7 year old and was horrified when I looked at all of the incorrect pronunciation guides. I don't mind the non-standard approach to pronunciation, but I do mind that many of them are wrong. Even simple words like "into" (in-too or in-tuh) are wrong. I don't want my son telling me that the dictionary says it is OK to say "in-tuh" instead of in-too. Many of the pronunciations are wrong or will be pronounced incorrectly by your child unless you have them study the Pronunciation Guide in the beginning of the book. "Marriage" has (ma-rij). Most kids would look at that and pronounce it wrong, but you have to see in the book's pronunciation guide that the 'a' is like the 'a' in "mad". However, in my Standard College Dictionary, the pronunciation is (mar' ij) with an 'r' in the first syllable! "Distant" is given as(diss-tuhnt) in the book with the "uh" pronounced like the 'u' in "bun"! I will now go and buy my son a real dictionary and introduce him to a proper phonetic alphebet that is correct and accurate and can be used for the rest of his life.

I purchased this dictionary for my second grade daughter and I have to say I am very disappointed. She is very interested in words and looks up several words daily. At least a third of the time (if not more)she has tried to look up a word, we find this dictionary does not have entry for it. It has come to the point where she is guessing that the word will not be in the dictionary and therefore doesn't even try to look it up. Quite often I tell her that the word is most likely there and she should try, thinking the word would be an obvious one to include in a children's dictionary. But most of the time she just proves me wrong. It may be an OK choice for learning how to use a dictionary. However, I would seriously hesitate on purchasing this one if you have a child who plans on using the dictionary frequently. You will just find them frustrated.

My son is in 3rd grade. Every week he has to read a new story & learn a list of words from that story. Yesterday, I received the dictionary. Paging through it, it's very easy follow. Every word that was on his list was in the dictionary & the definations were perfect for him to understand. My son also said that they use the same dictionary in his classroom.

My daughters are in the third grade and, we have found this dictionary to be very helpful. It is bright and colorful but, it contains quite a bit of information as well. It helps them not only when they are writing something (to look up the spelling of a word) but also to understand the meaning of words. It gives parts of speech, different tenses, and pronunciation of the word as well. I highly recommend it for anyone looking to buy a dictionary for children. I had bought the Scholastic First Dictionary also but, honestly, we did not use that one much at all. The Children's Dictionary is my pick, for sure.

GREAT reference item for a kiddo in 3rd to 5th grade!! Very informative; great illustrations and explanations. Even includes brief info about the states, presidents, a world atlas and flags info! I HIGHLY recommend this book!

I purchased this Dictionary for my daughters thinking it was a thorough complete dictionary that would meet all of their needs when searching for a word. I have recently come to learn that this book definetly falls short of a complete dictionary,..as it simply does not contain many words you would find in any other complete dictionary. Several times my children were searching for a word and gave up not being able to find it in the book, so I had to get MY dictionary so they could find the definition! Very disappointing!

I bought this for my 10 year old daughter, and I am sure she will use it for several more years. I even find myself referring to it! It is very user friendly, unlike many of the other intimidating options out there. I often find her leisurely thumbing through it in her spare time.

The Children's Dictionary arrived quickly (kwik-ly) Adverb,-- fast; and, as described (di-skribed, verb -- To create a picture of something in words.

I am grateful for the excellent service.