Building Thinking Skills Primary vs Lollipop Logic for Grade 1

[thefragile7393]

Does anyone have any opinions on either one...what is different or similar (if you have seen both?)

[LittleIzumi]

Lollipop Logic is a bit easy for a typical 1st grader.

[pokegirl]

I use them both. Building Thinking Skills is very pricey so I put the pages in pocket protectors and have them write on it with wet erase markers. Both are very good logic building books.

[Greenmama2]

Lollipop Logic is a bit easy for a typical 1st grader.

 

:iagree:

[librarymama]

I am using Lollipop Logic with my 5 year old, who is entering K now, and it looks like it is just right for him.

[Dinsfamily]

Lollipop Logic is a bit easy for a typical 1st grader.

 

Is this all three books or just the 1st one? I was planning on buying this for my rising 1st grader.

Edited May 23, 2012 by Dinsfamily
Punctuation issues

[Farrar]

I've only glanced at the second Lollipop book and used the first, but yes, everything from Prufrock Press (we've also used Analogies for Beginners and Logic Safari and I've seen Logic Liftoff) seems to tend to the easy side of the recommended ages. On the flip side, Lollipop Logic isn't terribly expensive and any child who hasn't done anything for logic at all won't find it boring and some of the activities will introduce skills they can build on. Plus, if you have a child who can't read, then it's nice that it doesn't require reading really.

[LittleIzumi]

Is this all three books or just the 1st one? I was planning on buying this for my rising 1st grader.

 

All three are essentially the same, just with different images. Dd worked through 1 in Pre-K and finished 2/is into 3 now in K.

[thefragile7393]

DS has not done any critical thinking or logic studies. I am not sure where he is on his critical thinking level...maybe starting out easy with Lollipop and moving up might be a way to go...or I don't know. Maybe I underestimate him and I could handle something bigger like Logic Safari or the Primary Critical Minds book.

[Dinsfamily]

I agree with Lollipop logic being too easy for 1st grade, although if the child has never done anything, he will probably find it fun and a good introduction. My dd did Building Thinking Skills in K, through the parts with the pattern blocks, but when she got to the other categorization skills that required writing I had her stop because she hated to write. So keep that in mind. Shouldn't be as bad for 1st grade. We are using Logic Safari now and are liking it, and I think it's great for 1st grade. Some of the analogies are more complex and it gives her a bit of a challenge. If I was starting out for 1st grade with nothing I'd probably start with Logic Safari, if finances were tight. If they weren't so bad I'd start with Lollipop Logic and move onto Safari. You could make up lot of the pattern block logic puzzles yourself by making patterns ever more complex for the child to complete like the ones in Building Thinking Skills, but it's helpful to have them already laid out for you.

 

Thanks for this. I might get them for him for the summer and then move on. Now I'm also rethinking Logic Countdown for ds8. He's been doing Critical Thinking K-3 so he'd had plenty of exposure. Now, he would probably think they're fun so I may get them for him to work on during our 28 hr vacation drive. Off to look at samples again...

[Dinsfamily]

DS has not done any critical thinking or logic studies. I am not sure where he is on his critical thinking level...maybe starting out easy with Lollipop and moving up might be a way to go...or I don't know. Maybe I underestimate him and I could handle something bigger like Logic Safari or the Primary Critical Minds book.

 

Looks like we're in the same place with our rising 1st graders... It's always hard to know which way to go. I think my guy will do better with the easier material. He's been doing DEL this year and loves it so I was hoping to find something similar for next year. He handles challenging material well but there comes a point where he will shut down. He's always been that way. Potty training was not fun.

[Incognito]

I did Lollipop Logic with my Ker this year (the second book) and it was really easy for her, but she loved it.

[thefragile7393]

Looks like we're in the same place with our rising 1st graders... It's always hard to know which way to go. I think my guy will do better with the easier material. He's been doing DEL this year and loves it so I was hoping to find something similar for next year. He handles challenging material well but there comes a point where he will shut down. He's always been that way. Potty training was not fun.

That is how my son is...if he gets to a point where it is too much he will shut down and say he can't do it.I want it to get progressively harder of course...but wasn't sure if LL will do that in all 3 books or if it would be much better to do the investment in the Critical thinking ones

[Dinsfamily]

That is how my son is...if he gets to a point where it is too much he will shut down and say he can't do it.I want it to get progressively harder of course...but wasn't sure if LL will do that in all 3 books or if it would be much better to do the investment in the Critical thinking ones

 

I just bought the Lollipop Logic books after he looked at the samples. He said they looked fun. I figure that he's bound to learn something from them and I'll let him work through them at his own pace. He finished DEL very quickly so I can imagine he'll do the same with these. After he finishes, I may decide to challenge him with BTS or go on to Logic Countdown.

[Rbsmrter]

We've used the Critical Thinking series Beginner and Primary and all of the Lollipop Logic. My DD (4.5) definitely preferred Lollipop Logic, although as others have mentioned they are easy to breeze through. I've purchased other logic books through Prufrock and she's really been enjoying them and because they are a bit above her age level, they've slowed her down so she isn't finishing them in a matter of days :001_smile:

 

My DD really enjoyed the Beginner book when she was 2.5-3yo and my son is getting a lot of use out of it too. Since it is fairly expensive, I cut off the binding and had the book bound. I sit with them to do the activities and they just use their finger rather than a pencil. The Primary book is much more writing intensive. The first part of the book deals with attribute blocks but after awhile I could tell DD was really bored. It started getting really repetitive for her. Early on I realized she had outgrown the book before we had even started. She is not one for repetition so we quit about halfway through. The rest of the book seems much more focused on writing rather than logic. A page will introduce a theme such as vehicles. There are the 10-15 pages dedicated to vehicles. First they are just identifying them, then writing them, then they do things like writing them and writing the differences between two (sea vs land, most passengers vs least passengers). After the attribute block section there weren't any visual spatial activities (unlike Lollipop which is almost all VS activities) and it was very heavy on analytical thinking. After the beginner book I think I just had a different idea in my mind of what it was going to be, and I was a little disappointed. I felt like the last half of the book is better taught verbally (discussing differences and similarities among foods, occupations, vehicles, etc) rather than focusing so much on writing and at DD's young age she would much rather do the visual logic activities that you find in Can You Find Me?, Lollipop Logic, Thinker Doodles, and Visual Perceptual Skill Building.

[thefragile7393]

We've used the Critical Thinking series Beginner and Primary and all of the Lollipop Logic. My DD (4.5) definitely preferred Lollipop Logic, although as others have mentioned they are easy to breeze through. I've purchased other logic books through Prufrock and she's really been enjoying them and because they are a bit above her age level, they've slowed her down so she isn't finishing them in a matter of days :001_smile:

 

My DD really enjoyed the Beginner book when she was 2.5-3yo and my son is getting a lot of use out of it too. Since it is fairly expensive, I cut off the binding and had the book bound. I sit with them to do the activities and they just use their finger rather than a pencil. The Primary book is much more writing intensive. The first part of the book deals with attribute blocks but after awhile I could tell DD was really bored. It started getting really repetitive for her. Early on I realized she had outgrown the book before we had even started. She is not one for repetition so we quit about halfway through. The rest of the book seems much more focused on writing rather than logic. A page will introduce a theme such as vehicles. There are the 10-15 pages dedicated to vehicles. First they are just identifying them, then writing them, then they do things like writing them and writing the differences between two (sea vs land, most passengers vs least passengers). After the attribute block section there weren't any visual spatial activities (unlike Lollipop which is almost all VS activities) and it was very heavy on analytical thinking. After the beginner book I think I just had a different idea in my mind of what it was going to be, and I was a little disappointed. I felt like the last half of the book is better taught verbally (discussing differences and similarities among foods, occupations, vehicles, etc) rather than focusing so much on writing and at DD's young age she would much rather do the visual logic activities that you find in Can You Find Me?, Lollipop Logic, Thinker Doodles, and Visual Perceptual Skill Building.

Thank you for this. I think we'll start with LL and move on to the Thinkerdoodles and VPSB. He gets frustrated with too much writing as he is not doing very well with that area yet.