Ask Me Smarter is a result of my trying to decipher a vague and abstract online curriculum guide aimed at parents, as well as my difficulty in comprehending my son’s just published 5th grade social studies textbook that was so convoluted with facts and details that the understanding of the main idea was completely lost. After reading a particularly wordy passage on the Civil War, my son had no clue from that reading which leader was on which side and who ultimately won the war!

It further stems from my frustration in locating a resource that did not read like a textbook, or one that was not specific to just one grade level or operate like a workbook. Trivia cards, workbooks, and interactive learning websites are all fun and educational but virtually all are age and /or grade specific. Children learn differently and at different rates, and learning is not always aligned with chronological age or grade. Further, many libraries and bookstores have an abundant selection of educational psychology books, how-to books, science experiment books, how to read books, and colorful trivia decks, but I was not able to locate a single resource that provides a direct, progressive, and comprehensive approach to asking specific questions to young learners across all core and non-core disciplines.

Over the last several years there is and has been a very strong push in education to prioritize higher level thinking skills and “figuring things out” at the expense of mastering all essential FACTS in each subject area. As a result, a real “knowledge gap” does exist, I believe.

To this end, I felt compelled to write elementary curriculum-aligned question books that might help fill a niche I felt was lacking, and one that expands on current resources. The Ask Me Smarter! Series is a comprehensive approach that also accommodates different learning paces. It further allows for review and reinforcement based on child-readiness and retention capacity.

Now when you ask your elementary school children, “What did you learn in school today,” you will be further empowered in that to some extent you will already know! The value is that you will helping to empower them with essential knowledge!

When I am not teaching Spanish or writing curriculum guides, I enjoy reading, writing, visiting art museums, decorating, gardening, and traveling. I have been fortunate to have studied and lived in both Spain and Mexico, and have led student groups to both Spain and Peru, South America. I live in Cedarburg, Wisconsin with my husband and two sons.