Having been a Senior Editor at Penguin Books, she now works on the children’s list at Affirm Press in Melbourne. For the readers who haven't heard the term before, cubbies is Australian slang for cubby house, which is the same thing as a play house. Australian author/illustrator team Davina Bell and Allison Colpoys, who previously collaborated on Captain Starfish (originally published as The Underwater Fancy-Dress Parade) and Under the Love Umbrella, join forces again in this lovely picture-book exploration of intelligence. Fortunately now, there are many wonderful picture books for children that center around the idea of multiple intelligences, and today I’d like to introduce you to my new favorite— All the Ways to Be Smart by Davina Bell, illustrated by Allison Colpoys.

The lovely rhyming text and vibrant illustrations with splashes of neon make this a truly unique book. With beautiful heartwarming rhyming text all about knowing and owning what makes YOU special, this book is a wonderful introduction to conversations about self esteem. The first is a pre-reading resource, and the following three each correspond to one of the books in the series. For neuro-atypical or otherwise differently-abled kids like JJ, a book like this can make them, and their caregivers, feel seen.I’m thrilled to discover a book that reassures (kids) that there are a lot of ways to excel and that we each have our own unique gifts’. I think this unique book with colourful illustrations by Allison Colpoys can help children feel proud of what makes them special.

Having greatly enjoyed Captain Starfish, I was eager to pick up All the Ways to Be Smart, which has a bright, colorful cover that drew me right in. This is a wonderful book to introduce this multiple intelligence notion to students, and serves as a reminder of the diversity we have with our peers, as well as inside ourselves.

A gorgeous book that celebrates the unique qualities of every child, showing that the things that make them smart aren’t ‘just ticks and crosses’ and ‘knowing all the answers ever’, but can also be things like creativity, kindness, caring, asking questions, day-dreaming, and just being yourself. This book is perfect for a KS1 class but would also be interesting to read with year 6 to get a deeper conversation about what "smart" means to each of them and how it has been taught throughout their schooling so far.

The message is great but there is no real story to this book and it’s mostly positive affirmations which are great for adults but not for kids. Education is forced into adopting a standardised testing framework, and to prioritise a narrow band of skills and behaviours - compliance, reading, writing, maths - or risks losing its funding. Everything that a child does can be a form of smartness when it is approached in the right way and this is a really important lesson to remind children of all age groups.A necessary and joyful celebration of all the different things that we can do, from "reading, writing, spelling" to "caring, sharing, scaring" to my personal favourite "drawing very pointy stars".

P Maar wel een erg motiverend boek voor kinderen (en volwassenen), slim is niet alleen maar academisch maar ook in andere kleinere dingen, zoals dapper durven te zijn, beslissingen maken, te kunnen springen en kopjeduiken, aardig kunnen zijn. Children will want to pore over each page, while the seamless read-out-loud rhyming pattern will ensure this is a favourite for years to come.So students feel pressure to do well in these tests, when in reality there is more to them than just their scores in those areas - they might be good at sports, or art, or music, or a friend to all etc. With sing-song rhymes and bright colors, All the Ways to Be Smart echoes classic children's literature with a modern take. Good scores in a test are great but the importance of celebrating the creative, collaborative and just plain quirky things that make us emotionally intelligent and well-rounded could not have been better portrayed.