Ranger Rick

A Closer Look

~The March issue starts with a terrific 6-page article of "Mush, Mush! Off to Our Wild Winter Camp" which tells the story of a young boy who goes to New Hampshire for the weekend in the middle of winter for dogsledding and camping. The pictures are great of Michael, friends and Michael's dad with the dogs, the campsite, the campfire and other pictures pertaining to the weekend. The article is very easy to follow. Not every 7-year-old will be able to read every word in the article, but most will be able to read most of it. They will have a tough time with some of the names of the dogs, but they will ask how to pronounce it or what it means and you will tell him or her that it is the name of the dogs.

~Dear Ranger Rick is a place where children have submitted answers to question or as in the February issue, poetry. The question answered in March was "Where is the strangest place you ever found wildlife?" There is a snail mail and e-mail address to send in submissions.

~The March issue has a card that suggests giving it to your teacher to order a free wildlife poster and kit. This particular promotion is targeting for teachers but this isn't a magazine just for the classroom. I would have it in my house in spite of it being educational!

~Ranger Rick's Adventures addresses the coyote issue really well. It is done in cartoon form on 4 pages and ends with More Facts (There are facts throughout the cartoon as part of the cartoon narrative.) and this is where children can learn that coyotes can present a danger and problem for people and gives ways that we can keep coyotes (and other wildlife) under control.

~The pull-out game section includes fill in the blanks, a game (The Great Dogsled Race) and a crossword puzzle. The crossword puzzles have been done so children are reading this magazine- or at least doing the crossword puzzle. All games in this section teach the children something. They are fun to do but I will stress it again, educational.

Ranger Rick is certainly geared for the child interested in wildlife but I don't think it is so specific (as Opposed to Sports Illustrated for Kids which will not appeal to a child not interested in sports.) that your child has to be a budding ranger to enjoy it. I think most children like animals and I think most children will enjoy reading this magazine. It may not be the first one they reach for if given a choice, but if you subscribe to it and it is reading time in your house, I would love to have your child reading this magazine.

In the class I was in, there was a girl who didn't like to read. She had, though, read Ranger Rick already and although she can read just doesn't like to. Reading Judy Blume for example is a chore for her. This is the kind of magazine that I would recommend not just for the child interested in reading but for the child who isn't because it is engaging, fun and educational all at the same time.

I highly recommend Ranger Rick. Your child will get information, games and can get involved in contests, send in letters and read! It is [not expensive] for each issue if you do the math. Although there is no upper age limit and I enjoyed reading the magazine, I would say from experience that once your child hits 12, he or she will no longer want to read this magazine and it will be time for National Geographic or Discover!


A superb magazine, even after all these years!   December 2, 2002
fair_deal_guy (Prior Lake, MN USA)
69 out of 71 found this review helpful

I have to admit it: I was a Ranger Rick reader as a kid. And now, as a father of two, I am once again under the spell of this fun, creative magazine. Ranger Rick does many things well, but it soars as a publication for curious kids. If your son or daughter loves to investigate the world around them, they will have plenty of fun each month when RR hits the mailbox. The stories are great, the photos are exceptional, and the actitivies are unusually well written and produced. I can't think of a better gift for growing kids!


Helped Foster My Love and Respect for Animals   April 30, 2004
James Choma
37 out of 39 found this review helpful

(...)

Living in the country as I did, I saw plenty wild animals in my backyard (squirrels, raccoons, possums..), but armed with Ranger Rick, I was able to appreciate and see them up close with out being bit, scratched, mauled, or hauled off to the emergency room for rabies shots!

Besides the wonderful animal features, there were projects, games, and activities to keep me and my brother busy. The concepts put forth in each issue emphasized recycling, kindness to animals, and conservation -- values and beliefs I carry with me almost 30 years after the fact.

So whether you live on a farm, the suburbs, or the city, Ranger Rick would be a wonderful gift for your child. It will help foster a life long love and respect for animals, as well as reinforce key values (conservation, recycling, etc.). A few things have changed over the past 30 years, but Ranger Rick is still consistantly a good magazine.


Need birthday gifts for your 2nd grader's classmates??   December 6, 2002
Dani Muccio (LI, NY)
75 out of 81 found this review helpful

Every year I choose one unisex, age-appropriate gift for the multitude of birthday parties that my sons will be invited to by their classmates and stick with it. This year my 7 year old is in second grade and at-home reading is a daily assignment. Instead of showing up at 24 birthday parties toting a plastic toy that I'm not even sure the child will have an interest in or with a few books that the child may read once or twice and stash away on a shelf, we give the gift that will be new and different each month AND will help them keep up with their nightly reading! Each one of his classmates will get a subscription to Ranger Rick for their birthday this year (unless the parents say the child already receives it, of course). It saves me time, gas and my sanity because I don't have to drag my son around a toy or book store guessing what each of these children *might* like. All kids love to get mail addressed to them even if it is something educational in nature. The parents of these children are also grateful to not add to the unwanted toy closet. This is way to make everyone happy without spending a fortune.


Super mag for kids   November 13, 2002
R. C. Kopf (Seattle, WA United States)
18 out of 18 found this review helpful

I read this when I was a little boy and my six year old also loves it. This started my lifelong love and respect for all nature's creatures.