Step back in time 2,000 years to visit the powerful Roman Empire. This beautifully illustrated book will transport you back in time to a world of emperors and centurions. Meet the Roman people and discover the treasures of their glorious empire. See gladiator battles and chariot races. Discover mythical tales of magic and monsters. Visit an ancient fast-food stall or banquet in style. Marvel at intricate mosaics, splendid treasures and ingenious inventions. Every page reveals a fabulous treasure and its unique story

Travel back more than a thousand years to visit the world of the Vikings Board a longship for a voyage of exploration and see the fearsome weapons and armour used by a mighty warrior. Marvel at mysterious picture stones, ingenious inventions and mythical tales of magic, monsters, gods and goddesses. Every page reveals a fabulous treasure and its unique story. From a prized sword and a warrior’s helmet to a glittering brooch, a leather boot and a child’s toy horse, this book showcases some of the Vikings’ most precious treasures through stunning illustrations.

When Wren was born, Grandpa put a wren box just outside the window of her tiny room. When she was a baby, the wrens sang her to sleep. Each spring, Wren and Grandpa watched the birds bringing sticks and grasses to the box and listened when the babies squealed for their dinner. When Wren's family moves to the city, she misses birdwatching in the meadow. Their new home has an extra bedroom, but the only birds she can see are pigeons. Lots of pigeons. But when Wren and her grandpa discover a phoebe nest in the rafters above their porch, they get a front-row seat to the miracle of new life--both in nature and in their own home. With ecological backmatter about what to do if you find a bird's nest and other birdwatching resources, this gorgeously illustrated picture book explores the sweet relationship between grandfather and granddaughter, as well as the anticipation of a new arrival.

Collins Big Cat supports every primary child on their reading journey from phonics to fluency. Top authors and illustrators have created fiction and non-fiction books that children love to read. Book banded for guided and independent reading, there are reading notes in the back, comprehensive teaching and assessment support and ebooks available. It’s Lucas’s birthday party and the whole family are looking forward to the lunchtime piñata. But when the piñata is opened, it’s found to be empty! Who had the opportunity to steal the sweets and who has an alibi? There are plenty of clues and some red herrings too. Follow Lucas as he embarks on an investigation into who stole the sweets and why. Can he get to the bottom of the mystery or will his birthday be ruined? This exciting and humorous mystery story is written by Ciaran Murtagh. Lime Plus/Band 11+ books provide challenging plots and vocabulary as well as opportunities to practise inference, prediction and reading stamina. Pages 46 and 47 allow children to re-visit the content of the book, supporting comprehension skills, vocabulary development and recall. Ideas for reading in the back of the book provide practical support and stimulating activities.

Collins Big Cat Phonics for Letters and Sounds features exciting fiction and non-fiction decodable readers to enthuse and inspire children. They are fully aligned to Letters and Sounds Phases 1–6 and contain notes in the back. The Handbooks provide support in demonstration and modelling, monitoring comprehension and expanding vocabulary. How did chinstrap penguins get their name? This contemporary fable tells the tale of Little Red and how she lost her colourful cap. Blue/Band 4 offers longer, repeated patterns with sequential events and integrated literary and natural language. This book focuses on adjacent consonants with long vowel phonemes. Pages 14 and 15 allow children to re-visit the content of the book, supporting comprehension skills, vocabulary development and recall. Reading notes within the book provide practical support for reading Big Cat Phonics for Letters and Sounds with children, including a list of all the sounds and words that the book will cover.

Big Cat for Little Wandle Fluency has been developed in collaboration with Wandle Learning Trust and Little Sutton Primary School. It consists of a range of chapter books with increasing word counts across 10 fluency levels aimed at children in Year 2 and 3. Each book builds reading confidence, stamina and speed and nurtures a love for reading. Fluency 10 books have a word count of 5760 words with an expected reading rate of 120 words per minute. Astrid, a young Viking girl, dreams of joining her father on his next sea voyage. When he refuses to take her, she decides to secretly follow him in her own sailboat to prove her skills and show him that she's ready. But is she really ready and how will she face the dangers of the open sea?

Marvel at the intricate mosaics, splendid treasures, and ingenious inventions of Ancient Rome and learn the stories they tell about one of the greatest civilizations the world has ever known. Step back in time 2,000 years to visit the powerful Roman Empire. Every page reveals a fabulous treasure and its unique story--from gladiator battles with lions; chariot races for vast cheering crowds; and mock naval ship battles in flooded auditoriums, to mythical tales of magic and monsters; gods and goddesses for every occasion; and wondrous feasts in fantastical gardens. Learn about Ancient Rome's fast-food joints, the original multi-tool pocketknife, and how some escaped Pompeii's legendary volcanic eruption. DOZENS OF ARTIFACTS: Learn about 36 iconic objects, from a gladiator's sword to the original multi-tool pocketknife. BEAUTIFULLY ILLUSTRATED: Vibrant, detailed images of the art, objects, people, and icons of Ancient Rome. FASCINATING FACTS: Includes hundreds of amazing facts about Ancient Roman treasures in an easy-to-read format that will enthrall amateur historians of all ages. CLASSROOM TO COFFEE TABLE: This beautiful volume is equally at home on a school bookshelf to support student learning as in a living room to be enjoyed by the whole family. COLLECT THE SERIES: More fascinating compendiums for all ages include The Magnificent Book of Treasures: Ancient Rome, The Magnificent Book of Horses, The Magnificent Book of Extinct Animals, The Magnificent Book of Birds, and more!

The game is on at the International TWIST competition! Finalists from around the world have gathered to match wits at the competition's remote lake camp in Ontario, Canada. One night the lead player, Reza Amari, tells a spooky campfire story about a monster and a man who disappears, leaving behind only a set of shrinking footprints in the mud. All the campers love the creepy story and are still talking about it the next morning - until they find out that Reza has vanished! Now it's up to Lola Evans and Mateo Rivera to investigate. What happened to Reza? And what was making that scary howling sound in the middle of the night? Follow along as Lola and Mateo work together to face their fears, track down the clues and find out the truth behind The Incredible Shrinking Horror!

When 12-year-old Adam and his Mum buy an old wardrobe at a local furniture shop, an old woman begins to yell at them. She claims that the wardrobe belongs to her, and that they have no right to have it. The shop owner shoos away the old woman and apologizes, explaining that "The Witch" has been causing problems and shouting curses at people in the neighbourhood for years. Everything seems fine until later that day. When the movers are delivering the wardrobe to Adam's apartment, its door suddenly swings open and The Witch falls out of it - dead! How did the old woman mysteriously end up inside the wardrobe? And more importantly, how did she die? Will Adam be able to follow the clues and solve the mysterious case of The Winter, the Witch and the Wardrobe?