Merriam-Webster’s Elementary Dictionary

This is an essential item all kids should have. This has taught my daughter to do research (by taking initiative to actually look something up, rather than just Google it). Some words even have pictures that help illustrate the meaning of the word better. My daughter is 10 years old and has been using it for the last couple months since I bought it for her. I love that the pages have listed on the top corner the beginning and end words/letters for that specific page. Ive noticed other dictionaries dont have that. Shes now made it a custom of hers to automatically grab her dictionary when she doesnt understand something, rather than asking. Very good product quality - hard cover, not too heavy. We keep it in our bookcase at home.

Our usual dictionary intimidated my son and the long alternate definitions for some words left him overwhelmed, so we ordered this and thought it would be a great entry level dictionary. It is easy to use and the definitions are short (so that is a plus for usability), but it is missing a lot of words that I think are reasonable to have assumed would be in even an entry level dictionary (for example, words common in current events or science). It is turning out to not be that useful to us, because many words that my 8 year old needs help with are not in this dictionary. It might be more appropriate for my 6 year old learning to read.

Although there were several reviews posted regarding errors in the book, once I received this dictionary, I carefully looked through and it does not contain the errors mentioned. They seem to have corrected not only the cover where individuals stated that compass was spelled wrong, but also errors inside the book. I bought this for my 11-year old son who wished to have a dictionary for Christmas. It is a good starter dictionary that can be used along the years. I highly recommend.

Upper Elementary age children will love this dictionary! The photos draw you in & the easy to read definitions bring excitement to learning.

Esta es una excelente opción para niños de entre 7 y 12 años. Este diccionario ofrece imágenes que van acorde con los conceptos descritos en cada página. Es de muy buen material y por lo que veo durabilidad.

This dictionary is pretty thick and heavy. It has lots of words listed in it, but does not tell any stories. The words are all listed in alphabetical order separated by syllables using dots. The words are followed by the phonetic pronunciation, then the definition. I wish there were more stories in this book. I dont understand why someone would look up words they dont know how to spell by spelling them and looking them up. It is so confusing. (Insert snarky grin here) In all seriousness, its a dictionary. That should be self explanatory. My kiddos use it for school. I think the spacing could be a little better, but if it were the book would be enormous.

My grandson loves reading and he reads above his age so he needed some word help. The book is terrific with plenty of interesting side lights to help a reader expand their vocabulary. Pages are handleable by a 7 year old, no ripping or tearing.

Not as great for 5th grade as it would be for younger grades... a lot of my students tried using it for our vocabulary units but most of the words aren’t in it. Other than that, it’s very sturdy, well organized, and easy to read! It was a great resource to teach my students how to use a dictionary! I still keep it in my classroom.

This dictionary is just what I was looking for as a handy reference for my 7-, 9-, and 12-year-olds. Its visually appealing - so much so that we just enjoy flipping through and reading. The definitions are clear, and the kids are able to familiarize themselves with using a dictionary properly. A great purchase!

Great gift for an elementary student. Learning from home is a challenge and does it work equally for all kids. My friends nine year old was struggling with her vocabulary. Did a little research and thought this might do the trick. It’s working well for her daughter and she enjoys using it to learn new words.