Awesome Adventures at the Smithsonian: The Official Kids Guide to the Smithsonian Institution

Grandkids likes it

My daughter, aged 10, jumped for joy when she saw this book, and read it from the time she got home til time for bed, with only a brief stop for dinner. She says it is really good. I asked in what ways is it so good? She said "I don't know, it is just so INTERESTING!" And she kept reading.We got this book the day it was published, because we know "Miss Emily" Korrell, and we adore her. So, I thought perhaps my daughter's interest came from her involvement with Emily, from having gotten to write sticky note comments on editorial layouts over the summer, help think up astronaut interview questions in class, etc. But, it seems that no, this is actually a great book!One comment my daughter did finally offer is that the included maps show things you would actually really want to know where they are, like the "Lost and Found", the cafeterias, and the rest rooms. Heading towards bed, she asked, "Mom what are Simulators?" Looking myself at Awesome Adventures now, I see she must have been studying the MAP KEY for the Air and Space Museum. The symbol for "Simulators" is right in there along with "Tickets" and "Water Fountain".I look forward to visiting the Smithsonian in person again. I'm imagining my daughter will be guiding ME, enriching the visit like ... "MOM, did you know this whale is a model of an actual whale named Phoenix? She is a Right Whale, and lives in um ... I think the Atlantic Ocean! Did you know whales have unique patterns of callosities? Yep, here it is on the sign (smile). MOM? Those scars and whiskers are patterned after Phoenix's real ones. ... WOW, they really did a great job, did you know it took 4 years to make? ... And LOOK, there is the replica of her belly button! That was in the book, too (smile). Mom, did you know that baleen is made of the same stuff as our fingernails? Yep. Did you know right whales are endangered? They are protected now, but there are still dangers to them, like getting tangled in nets, I think. MOM, I even know the reason they are called Right Whales! Will you guess?"

This is a must have if you are visiting the Smithsonian Museums in DC!! I ordered this book from Amazon so that my 8 year-old daughter and I could have a little knowledge before our vacation. It has many activities to work through and a lot of really neat facts about all of the Smithsonian museums. Most of the activities seem to apply more to your visit at the museums but it was nice to do some reading before we got there. They do have the guide available in the souvenir stores (or at least I saw it at the Natural History Museum) but I enjoyed having it earlier so that we were somewhat familiar with what we were going to be encountering.I feel like my daughter was really engaged with the museums because she had something to relate things to. It is often challenging to keep kids entertained at museums for an extended length of time and this was the perfect activity for her interest. She really enjoyed the guide and I loved how involved she wanted to be.I will say, that if you are wanting to use this book during your trip, you really need a full day at each museum. The activities are super fun but they do require time to get through them. The size of each museum is quite intimidating and I loved that this guide gave us some direction in approaching our visits. It is also nice because she could reflect on her day later that night at the hotel to finish up the activities and reflections pages.

This book is PERFECTION! I bought this book for many reasons- I used it mainly to teach informational reading with my students. This book has it ALL: text features, activities and the writing contains strong voice! I loved it and my students loved it! We learned so much and also used it as a "mentor text" for our own writing. This book is a welcome addition to my classroom library and I know people who have taken this book with them to the Smithsonian and walked away actually EXPERIENCING the museum in a deeper way. What more can we ask for? Nothing! This book has it all-

I bought this for my son before a trip to DC. It's got great information and he was excited to see the things he read about once we got to the museums. I wasn't aware that the book does discuss some aspects of evolution so I figured I'd add that if it's important for anyone to know. Overall,a nice guide to the museums.

Bought this for my 12-year-old grand-daughter's first trip to the Smithsonian. (We live in California, so it was a pretty big deal.) Admittedly it's a bit "young" for her, but she enjoyed finding out about the places she was going to see and getting advance insight on what to expect. She said it was like getting to know the museums before she even left home.

This book has lots of interesting information for families, however the kids thought it was too distracting to fill out while walking through the museums. Perhaps a better buy for local Washington DC families than those visiting for only a few days

Very appealing format and interesting information. The museum maps are helpful. We will be interested to see how the interactive pages are received by our three 11 yr. olds. I think the colorful illustrations and fast facts will appeal to all of the kids and prepare them for some of the exhibits. We have even seen the adults reading this book. It will make good reading for a long plane ride.

If you are planning to visit the Smithsonian with a child this is a must-buy. My 9 year old daughter has spend hours with it and has put post-its on so many pages that we are now going to add another day to our planned visit.