Understanding every aspect of your child's educational development can be difficult. When it comes to books and reading, it's often hard to know where to start. That's where the dk.comBook Adviser can help! Our on-hand educational expert is here to answer questions about your child's reading and all aspects of DK's publishing and learning materials.

Below are some earlier questions ourBook Adviser has applied her expertise to!

Q. I am caring for disabled children aged 5-13. They have very limited speech, also learning difficulties. Can you advise on what books to get them to help with their stimulation.

A. Children with speech, learning and physical difficulties often benefit from multi-sensory stimulation - lighting, textures, sounds and so on. Because of the wide range of ages and abilities that you have given us, I hesitate to make any specific recommendations. Younger children in your group may enjoy our series of My First Play Books and For a day (children can pretend to be a doctor, firefighter, farmer and builder).

The Touch and Feel books might also be beneficial and we also provide an excellent range of craft and cookery books which can help to develop physical coordination as well as speech, language and thinking skills. Ranges by Jane Bull and Nellie Shepherd may help you to provide stimulating and achievable activities for the children.

Q. My daughter is 10 and I belive it is time to discuss the facts of life to her. I don't just want to discuss the mechanics of it all, but also the emotional aspect too. As this is a critical subject I would appreciate any suggestions.

A. Robert Winston's What Makes Me Me? would give you a useful background in discussing this crucial issue. The book looks at us as people who, although sharing the same physiology, have very different emotional responses to what happens to us. It uses questionnaires to help you look at what sort of person you are. By using a text like this to prepare the ground with your daughter, you may be able to help her to develop confidence about being an individual and an understanding that we all respond to things in different ways. There is a small section on puberty that might of use, but the emotional aspects of sex are not included.

You can find out more about What Makes Me Me here

I hope you find this information helpful and please do get in touch should you need any further information.

A. D-Day Landings is a level 4 DK Reader. This means that it is suitable for 'proficient' readers, however, because the books are written for pupils aged approximately 7-8 and above, they are likely to be achievable for some of the boys in Year 2; paired reading will enable less-able readers to participate in the story, too. The books are very well constructed: the main text tells the story of the Allied Invasion, while marginal text and photographs explain the special equipment and tactics that made the invasion possible. I think your Year 2 boys will be very interested in it.
We also have Eyewitness Guides to both World War I and World War II, as well as one on Arms and Armour. The reading level of these is for children aged 8+, however, the strong visual presentation of Eyewitness Guides makes them very appealing to younger/less-able children.

Q. I am stuck for a present for my nephew who lives in the UK, he is nearly 4 years old and loves Spiderman, and general boy stuff. We live in South Africa so African stories or animal stories would also be great.

A. We have two Spiderman books: Spiderman 2 Funfax and the Ultimate Guide. Their target age range is higher than your nephew's age but he is likely to enjoy the pictures and having all the info read to him.
Other areas of the list that he may enjoy are:

• Watch me grow. This series tells the stories of baby animals as they grow into adults. Titles include frog, bear, duckling, butterfly
• Our Machines at Work series provides detailed information and clear photographs of all the favourite big machines: digger, tractor, aeroplane, fire engine.
• If your nephew enjoys sticker books, then Ultimate Scooby Doo sticker books and Glow in the dark Scooby Doo sticker book may just be for him.

Q. I am looking for a book on Pandas for my daughter, who is 10. She already knows loads about them and could cope with an "adult" book. Is there anything in the DK range that would be suitable?

A. Our range of nature titles tends to encompass a range of animals within one title. Organised by continent and habitat, Mammal, has over 550 stunning photographs that examine the enormous range of mammals living today.

Q. Can you recommend materials that would help my child aged 11? He has a block with Maths and is below his grade level by several years. I find a lot of the material is too 'babyish' for an 11 year old i.e. that which would be at his level. I am a home educater and would really appreciate your support and guidance.

A. Babyish material is a real problem for children whose learning is not at the same level as their chronological age. DK's Carol Vordermann series of Maths, English and Science books have a clean, clear presentation that should suit an older child.

DK also has a range of CD roms for the PC that are available from www.gsp.cc. If you are a Mac user then you may experience some difficulty in finding educational CD roms (I know I do!).

Another route for CD/DVD is to search the software section of amazon.co.uk. Check the manufacturer's description as this often gives extra details about curriculum links and may mention an educational book publisher who has supplied the content. You may recognise some of these from books that help you already. Below the manufacturer's description are some other links to enable you to search by age. It could be worth looking at material that is closer to your child's 'learning' age and to check how babyish this is; many children find learning more rewarding using CD roms so the presentation of material may be designed to have a wider appeal.

Education otherwise is a charity that supports home educators in the UK. Their website may offer valuable advice or contacts - you are not the only parent who is looking for these sorts of resources.

Q. I am looking for a book on the history of pottery for children. Could you suggest an appropriate title please?

A. Unfortunately we don't have any titles that are dedicated to the history of the decorative or visual arts. Our e-encyclopedia has many interesting links to managed and vetted websites to aid research, but the focus is more on art and design than pottery.

Q. My son has recently completed the "Maths made easy" series by Carol Vorderman and found the format / content met his needs, helping him progress with the subject. Does the series continue into key stage 3, or can you recommend an alternative choice in this subject?

A. At present, the Carol Vorderman series finishes at the end of Key Stage 3. Most of the large book-selling chains, for example, WH Smith, Waterstones, Ottakar's, as well as local independent book retailers, carry excellent ranges of home-support publications for school-age children.

Q. I am looking for some CD roms, which are compatible with the Mac operating system, particularly in Maths and English. Can you recommend any?

A. As a mac-user myself, I sympathise with your search for software! Unfortunately, DK CD roms (available from www.gsp.cc) are PC-only.

While unable to recommend any CD roms directly, I would suggest a search in the software section of amazon.co.uk. This will show up any CD roms that are mac-compatible (see sub-heading 'Platform'). Check the manufacturer's description as this often gives extra details about curriculum links and may mention an educational book publisher who has supplied the content. For example, Eureka! is published by Harcourt, but uses material from Heinemann, a name you may recognise from the books your child brings home. Below the manufacturer's description are some other links to enable you to search by your child's age. This should help you to refine your search.

Q. I am looking for a suitable book for my Niece who is 10 (nearly 11) and is a vegetarian. I would like to get her a book that illustrates how being a vegetarian impacts on your body and what supplements and so on she should take. Something informative and interesting would be ideal.

A. Several of our publications may be of interest to your niece, although none deals exclusively or specifically with vegetarianism.

What Makes Me Me is Robert Winston's first book for children. The body's biology is explained, while real-life scenarios give a context for our emotional and social selves. (Publishes July 2004)
DK Guide to the Human Body was awarded the Junior Aventis Prize for Science Books in 2002. It describes a highly photographic journey through the workings of the human body. (New edition June 2004)

Encyclopedia of the Human Body is arranged thematically, enabling you to access information by subject and to explore related topics. It includes over 2000 key words and covers all bodily functions, systems, cells and bones. (Publishes May 2004)

Finally, e.encyclopedia (available now) and e.encyclopedia science (publishes July 2004) will enable your niece to find out more about vegetarianism both by reading the book and then following the actively managed and vetted Internet links to explore the subject further.

Q. I am looking for a children’s guide to Amsterdam for my 9-year-old granddaughter. She is an excellent and mature reader, by the way.

I do hope you can help.

A. Your granddaughter may find our travel guides on the adult list helpful. They are highly photographic with small chunks of text and clear illustrations and maps (they are part of our Eyewitness family of reference books and share the clarity and accessibility of the child-orientated publishing). There are two guides to Amsterdam: Eyewitness Top 10 Travel Guide Amsterdam gives lists of things to see and do while the larger Eyewitness Travel Guide Amsterdam is more comprehensive in its coverage.

Q. I once saw a timeline of world history that you could hang on the wall. It was beautifully illustrated and had a tremendous amount of information that could be readily seen. I saw this at the British Museum about a year ago. I thought it was made by DK but I cannot seem to find it. Can you help me? Do you know of a wall mural like this?

Reading your comments, I think the wall chart is one that was produced as a special promotion with Tesco to celebrate the Millennium and so is no longer available. The closest thing on the list is 'History of the World' which gives year-by-year accounts of landmark events from the first humans to the present day. It has a similar layout to a timeline: the information is organised in rows across a double-page spread, one row each for Africa, Asia, Europe, Americas and Oceania. A new edition publishes in July and is fully updated to included 9/11 and the situations in Afghanistan and Iraq.

*Please note there is no guarantee we will be able to answer every question sent in, though we will endeavour to do so.

Please advise suitable books for remedial students. Their age group is 13 - 16 and they are looking for material of interest to this age group but with a reading age of 8 - 12 years. Cars are of particular interest to the boys

While not specifically designed for children who are struggling with their reading, DK Readers provide motivating content which is presented in a way that appeals to a wide range of age groups and abilities. Photographic illustration and non-fiction presentation overcome many of the drawbacks of books that feel babyish to young people whose reading confidence is already suffering, while exciting topics insprie struggling readers to feel that reading is worthwhile. I would advise that you sample a book from each of levels 2 (beginning to read alone) and 3 (reading alone) to see where your students are comfortable.

I am looking for a book or guide to help my daughter who has just started at secondary school, she is getting various projects from Roman History (History ) to Map Reading (Geography).

DK specialise in home-reference material for children of school age and you can help your child by building a home-reference library to help meet her needs. Our Eyewitness Guides provide excellent information across the curriculum "...draws the readers in with gorgeous pictures, then painlessly drip feeds information" (New Scientist). If you have access to the Internet, e.encyclopedia provides the perfect, safe launchpad for web-based research. Your child uses the encyclopedia to learn the basics on a huge range of topics, and then go online to over 1000 specially selected and vetted websites to discover more.

We relocated to Japan (from Thailand) 5 months ago and my son (half Japanese half English) left a UK curriculum based International School and joined a local Japanese school where the curriculum/system runs a year behind the UK (in fact, a year and a half in our case because of their April to April year and my son"s May birth date).

Thus my son went back to kindergarten in Japan and joins year one on April 9th whereas he would have been starting final term of year 2 in the UK.

I need advice on what books to buy and use to keep him up to speed primarily in English and Maths. He is a little behind in English (and Japanese) anyway because of his bilingual upbringing.

Also is it possible to get hold of/buy the National curriculum tests (or mocks) for seven year olds or do you have books which include practice tests?

Carol Vorderman's 'Made Easy' series provides extra practise to reinforce English and maths skills and supports the national curriculum from the foundation stage (age 3+) to the end of key stage 2 (age 11). We don't have any SATs-related testing material on the list at the moment, however, an search through an online bookseller may be your best bet for finding such material and shipping it to Japan.

Hi! I was wondering if there exists a list of your books labelled according to Reading Recovery levels. I have a zillion of your books, but I'm supposed to have my classroom library levelled according to RR. Thanks and I just have to say: your books are fantastic!

Thanks for the compliment! To the best of my knowledge, DK books are not yet sorted into Reading Recovery book bands and, as many of our publications are for children aged 8 and above, they are less likely to fall into the bands that have been published to date. Combining Cliff Moon's book, Individualised Reading, with Reading Recovery book bands is a good solution to grouping your guided reading resources. Individualised Reading identifies texts of similar complexity up to level 4 of the national curriculum, taking your resources through to the top end of key stage 2. It is available through the website of the National Centre for Language and Literacy, University of Reading.

My son will be 5 in June and is learning to read at school. His school use the Oxford Reading Tree system and he is currently at Stage 1+. His teacher suggested that he gets a little bored with the Oxford Reading Tree stories and that he is far more interested in non-fiction books about things like cars, dinosaurs, dogs etc. Can you help me identify some suitable books with short simple sentences?

DK readers are ideal for children who are learning to read but who find non-fiction material more stimulating. Level 1 DK Readers combine stunning photography with simple texts and are suitable for children who are starting to learn to read. Current titles include: A Trip to the Zoo, Big Machines, Dinosaur's Day and Truck Trouble, as well as books about learning to swim and the weather.

Your son may need a little extra support from you when reading non-fiction because specialist words are used to give the information, for example, dinosaur names, different types of animals, parts of the body, and these words are not as frequently repeated as those used in a school-based reading scheme. Children are motivated to learn these specialist words because they are interested in the subject and want to find out more.

Combining non-fiction readers with a school-based reading scheme gives your child the best of both worlds structured texts to teach important reading vocabulary and interesting information to encourage him that reading is a valuable skill.

I am currently researching the literature available to teachers who are wishing to explore the area of religious intolerance, prejudice or sectarianism with their class do you currently publish any materials (fiction or non fiction) that would address this area either directly or indirectly?

DK Readers has an excellent title on the life of Anne Frank. Published in association with UNICEF, A life like mine, Children just like me and Celebration help children to develop understanding, empathy and respect for other faiths and cultures. These titles link to PSHE and Citizenship in the National Curriculum. If you are looking for a reference work that explains the beliefs and practices of religions around the world, our Encyclopedia of Religion discusses Hinduism, Sikhism, Buddhism, Judaism, Christianity and Islam in their historical contexts to provide an understanding of each religion's influence on the culture of its followers.

I work at a primary school and we have recently taken on two foreign children - one Italian and one Russian. Could you please tell us about any of your books that might be suitable our Class 1 Teacher has asked me to find out if you have My First Word books for these languages but maybe there are others as well that you could suggest?

Unfortunately, we don't have any foreign language publishing on the list at the moment. We do, however, have a series of ELT graded readers inspiring and beautifully illustrated non-fiction titles to help those who are learning English to develop proficiency in reading. You may also find our Dictionary and Encyclopedia helpful as their rich photography bring words to life.

I have two boys aged 7 and 11. We live in Luxembourg and the children go to the local school. English is the first mother tongue followed by Italian; at school they are taught in German and French. Outside the home their communication is Luxembourgish. They both speak English well, albeit with some mistakes common to children exposed to other languages. The younger is a proficient reader in all the languages he speaks; the older boy has some difficulties reading in English and he also has some difficulties regarding spelling in French and German.

I would like to teach them some written English, mainly to boost confidence in themselves and to strengthen their identity (or at least one of them!) I wonder if you can steer me in the right direction and help me choose the right material.

It sounds like your sons are doing amazingly well in their mastery of a range of languages an enviable skill to have!

Our English Made Easy series of workbooks will help your children to develop their written English skills, including spelling and grammar. DK Readers will support your children's reading through entertaining and fascinating non-fiction material. The Level 3 Readers are suitable for children who are reading alone, while the Level 4 Readers are suitable for proficient readers. Subjects covered include: Space, Science and Nature, History and Classic stories (Heidi, Black Beauty, Aladdin).

Can you advise us on books that would be particularly suitable for starting up a 'Storysacks' project at our pre-school (age 2-5 years)? We have just received a £1000 grant!

We are particularly interested in board books (or ones that will last a long time!), books with a multicultural or religious theme, books that boys may be interested in, books for 2-3 year olds.

Would DK be able to offer a discount if we put in a large order?

Aren't Storysacks fantastically motivating for all who share them?! I would suggest combining titles from DK's wide range of non-fiction titles with song and story materials that you already have. The following titles will be helpful:

• My First board books: animal, body, dinosaur, farm, truck, Hannukah, Shabbat, time. The bright bold photographs, which are accompanied by simple captions, help children to expand and explore their favourite topics.
• My first touch and feel board books: Christmas, farm, kitten, puppy. The charming photos and irresistible textures are ideal for younger nursery-age children.
• For a day: Doctor, Farmer, Builder, Firefighter. Encourage role play with these pop-up books that have flaps to open, pieces to pull and wheels to turn.
• Lift the flap: Weather, All about me, Baby Animals, Farm animals. This series of pictureword books is endorsed by the Preschool Learning Alliance
• Little Windows: at home, at the zoo, in the countryside, in the garden, in the jungle, in the park, in the sea, on the building site, on the farm, on the pond. The acetate peephole in the centre of these board books invites children to look through to the next page and discover exciting new worlds.
• Watch me grow: bear, butterfly, duckling, frog. The sumptuous photography and first-person narratives in these books help older pre-schoolers (4+) understand the habitats and lives of wild animals, large and small.

With regard to discounts... the Puffin Book Club Teacher offers discount on any book published by the Penguin Group. Freephone 0500 807981 (UK) for more details about how to join.

Does your Encyclopedia of Religion book explain what the Jewish Rites of Passage are and give actual examples of them?

Does it also explain what the different areas of a Christian church are, i.e. nave, font, alter?

Lastly, do you have any books for parents who to go about helping with Key Stages 2 and 3 English written comprehension?

The encyclopedia does cover Jewish rites of passage - from birth to death, including bar/bat mitzvah and marriage. Two spreads are dedicated to it - "Through a Jewish lifetime" pp168-171.

The different areas of a Christian church, such as alters, pulpits and pews are discussed on pages 228-229. Here it also points out the differences between set-up in Catholic and protestant churches, and also covers things like altarpieces, the use of holy water and the water stoup, design of churches and artistic matters such as stained glass windows and sculpture on the outside of churches.

In answer to the second part of your question, we don't have any titles that deal specifically with English written comprehension for those age groups.

Children practise written comprehension so that they learn to understand what they read. Teachers are looking for three ways of understanding:

• What is happening in the text? Can the reader find, understand and retell the details that are given in the text. For example, does the story say what the weather is like?
• Can the reader work out what is happening from other details? How do we know it is raining? Does the character have an umbrella? Are the leaves dripping or the cars splashing?
• What is the reader's opinion about how well the text works as a piece of information, a story, a report, etc?

Encourage your child to read the text carefully, looking beyond the information that is clearly given to find other information that is not so direct. For example, if your child has a piece of text followed by some questions, s/he could read the text and then read the questions. S/he could then read the text again, looking for answers to the first question only, making notes as s/he goes. Once s/he is confident that the question is answered fully, it's time to move on to the next question.

Your child will need peace, quiet and time to develop his/her written comprehension skills. Your support in finding a calm place to work and helping your child to set time aside for homework are very valuable.

You used to do a learning French package for children ages 5 to 7, which included a word book, simple work sheets and some nursery songs - is this still available?

DK no longer have any foreign language learning materials that are designed for children. Our adult list has an audio language course for French, German and Spanish but these do not share the simpler, more interactive approach that you require.

My 13 year old daughter is very artistic and creative but struggles to keep up in her school science classes. What books can you recommend to increase her interest?

DK's Eyewitness Hardback and Paperback titles are visually stunning and are also packed with fascinating and useful information for project, reference and finding out. Your daughter may also enjoy the detailed drawings and cross-sections in The Way Things Work and Stephen Biesty's Incredibly Body. DK Guides to Oceans, the Human Body, Space and Weather take the reader on a photographic journey and are packed with information, illustration and digital images. They have been awarded the Junior Aventis Prize for Science Books for four consecutive years, from 2000 to 2003

My four year old is obsessed with tractors, cars, planes - any machine that moves! Do you know any books that will appeal to him while helping him learn to read?

Capitalise on his enthusiasm with DK readers Big Machines, Rockets and Spaceships and Truck Trouble. These Level 1 readers are ideal for children who are just beginning to learn to read.

My 10 year old loves the internet far more than he enjoys reading books. Do you know of any websites or e-learning tools that will appeal to him but will also be educational?

Your son is not alone, a Department of Education survey has shown that 89% of children find computers make school work more enjoyable.
Developed in association with Google TM, DK's E.encyclopedia and e.encylopedia science provide a safe way to explore that is curriculum linked. Look up the required topic in the encyclopedia then follow the actively managed links to over 1000 vetted sites to pursue your research further.

I am a father who is struggling to understand the National Curriculum key stages. Could you briefly outline what the stages are and their purpose?

The Key Stages are ways of describing the different phases within compulsory schooling. They are linked to children's ages. Key Stage 1 = age 5-7; Key Stage 2 = age 7-11; Key Stage 3 = age 11-14; Key stage 4 = age 14-16.

I have an 18 month old daughter who loves books, but it's difficult to get her to concentrate on anything for more than a couple of seconds. She's more interested in turning the pages than looking at the pictures. Which book could I use to try to help to improve her concentration and have you any other tips?

Your daughter sounds like she enjoys sharing books and her preference for turning pages is not unusual at her age, in fact, turning the page is part of a child's development in the early years and enhances her understanding of how a book works. She seems to enjoy the active side of reading books, so try using books with flaps or acetate pages that she can join in with before turning the page. This will help her understand that there's lots to find out if you take more time to look.

*Please note there is no guarantee we will be able to answer every question sent in, though we will endeavour to do so.