Review: First Children's Dictionary

This is a fantastic first dictionary for kids.

Easy to navigate, filled with over 800 illustrations and packed with over 4,000 fantastic words, it’s been designed to appeal to a young audience and entice them to explore and interact with the pages.

It starts with an introduction to dictionaries in general, giving kids the basics on how to look up words in the book. 

Then there’s a lesson on words, which explains things like nouns, pronouns, adjectives, verbs, plurals and tense.

Next is a comprehensive guide to using First Children’s Dictionary in particular. This section breaks down exactly what the kids will find as they explore the pages and what kinds of information accompany the words in the book. 

For every word, there is an easy to understand definition and the dictionary will identify if the word is a noun, verb, adjective etc. Then, depending on what word it is, readers may find example sentences, notes about plurals, opposite words, reminders about spellings and more.

Then the dictionary begins, and it really is super easy to navigate. Each new section has a different coloured header, and down the side of each page is an alphabet guide, which highlights the letter of the alphabet explored on that particular page, making it easy to flip to different sections of the book. 

It’s also really fun to explore. Scattered throughout the book are illustrations and photos, and there are several word collections, which are half and full-page illustrations based on themes (marine life, transport and more) and packed with words for each of the pictures included.

At the back of the book there are also pages on spelling tips, punctuation, facts and figures, animal families (with heaps of awesome pictures) and a map of the world. 

Fun and colourful — and made specifically with kids in mind — First Children’s Dictionary is a great addition for the bookshelf.

Title: First Children's Dictionary
Publisher: DK, $19.99
Publication Date: 8 January 2019
Format: Paperback
ISBN: 9780143794981
For ages: 10+
Type: Non-Fiction, Junior Non-Fiction