Are you ready to stock up on Classical Conversations Cycle 2 books from Usborne Books & More? Below you'll find handy dandy lists of my absolute favorites, my top picks for each subjects, and VIDEOS to peek inside EVERY TITLE LISTED!! (Don't forget to PIN IT!) I can get your books DISCOUNTED or FREE! MESSAGE ME and ask how! Join our Literacy Group to follow along on our CC Homeschool Journey, keep up with all things Usborne Books, and be a part of a community of people RAISING READERS! ENCYCLOPEDIAS If you don't pick up ANY OTHER books for the year, or you want to keep it as simple and streamlined as possible, I recommend our ENCYCLOPEDIAS! Click here to peek inside this stack. These encyclopedias have fantastic photography, are well laid-out, full of great info without being overwhelming, and are internet-linked!! They are absolute must-haves for every home. The top three encyclopedias here are sold as a set in HARDBACK, or you can buy them individually in hardback or paperback. World History Encyclopedia Geography Encyclopedia Science Encyclopedia The Medieval World Encyclopedia is included IN the World History Encyclopedia! MATH All of these math books are fantastic. In our home, we use the Lift-the-Flap REGULARLY as part of our math practice. The activity books are engaging, bright, creative, and perfectly challenging! Peek inside this entire stack here. Times Tables Practice Pad Illustrated Math Dictionary (also available in two higher levels) Measuring Things Activity Book Times Tables Activity Book (Activity books also available in Fractions & Decimals, Adding & Subtracting, and Telling the Time) Lift-the-Flap Measuring Things Lift-the-Flap Times Tables ATLASES If I had to pick just one of these, it would totally be the Lift-the-Flap (an obviously favorite in our home!) It's fun to explore, full of info, and still a great map reference! Peek inside of them here. Big Picture Atlas Children's Picture Atlas Lift-the-Flap Picture Atlas BIBLE STORY BOOKS Each of these Bible Story Books are fantastic in their own right. I love the Illustrated Bible Stories because of the fantastic, bright illustrations. I love the Book of Bible Stories because it's a dual reader. Dual readers have TWO levels of text, one for beginners and one for more advanced -- an absolutely perfect pick for shared reading! Click here to peek inside! Illustrated Bible Stories Book of Bible Stories Illustrated Children's Bible Stories HISTORY & TIMELINE We are particularly excited about history this year! What a fantastic line-up of studies! From this stack, I recommend definitely grabbing the Timelines of World History book. It will be a great reference for ALL THREE Cycles! I also highly recommend the World Wars book. It is sooooo well done, perfectly written for a variety of ages, and loaded with beautiful photography! Peek inside the entire stack here! Castles Little Children's Knights & Castles Activity Book The World Wars The Medieval Messenger Timelines of World History Now and Then See Inside Exploration and Discovery SHAKESPEARE If we're talking the Renaissance, we can't skip Shakespeare! My favorite book in this stack is Complete Shakespeare! EVERY PERSON needs this book! It is an abridged version of ALL of Shakespeare's plays, written in modern English. These are great for introducing his works before moving on to complete and original versions. Peek inside here! Illustrated Stories from Shakespeare Complete Shakespeare Stories from Shakespeare World of Shakespeare Reference Book Where's Will? ENGLISH & LATIN Definitely, absolutely, without question. GRAB THE Not-Your-Everyday Illustrated Thesaurus!! Thank me later. Look inside the enter stack here! (Note: The photo here needs to be updated, but the list corresponds with the full video!) First Illustrated Thesaurus Illustrated Grammar & Punctuation First Illustrated Grammar & Punctuation (not shown) Not-Your-Everyday Illustrated Thesaurus My First Story Writing Book Write Your Own Story Book First Thousand Words in Latin FINE ARTS I am so surprised at how much use we've gotten out of this stack of books! They're great for all three cycles and all incredibly well done. The First Book about the Orchestra was a fantastic intro for my five year old this year. We also spend a lot of time with the Lift the Flap Art book. Art Treasury is my personal favorite, because it teaches about artists and then teaches the reader to create art using the same techniques! Informative and fun! Peek inside the entire stack here! (Listed are the Cycle 2 artists/musicians you can find in each book) First Book about the Orchestra Famous Composers: Dvorak, Brahms, Beethoven, Classical, and Romantic Art Treasury: Degas, Monet, Van Gogh Famous Artists: Rembrandt, Degas, Monet, Van Gogh Famous Paintings: Rembrandt, Gainsborough, Degas, Monet, Morisot, Van Gogh Lift-the-Flap Questions and Answers about Art SCIENCE Narrowing down my favorite in this stack is near impossible. They ALL get a lot of use in our home! The pocket books are probably pulled out most often. Otters, Snails and Tadpole Tails is an EXCELLENT book of poetry that I cannot recommend highly enough!! If you're only grabbing one thing from this stack, I would pick one of the science dictionaries. The Illustrated Elementary Science is thorough, beautiful, and written in a very accessible but informative manner. The Illustrated Dictionary of Biology is a staple for any home. Consider grabbing the Illustrated Dictionary of Science (not shown here), which is a combined volume including Biology book as well as the Physics and Chemistry versions! Peek inside all of them here! Pocket Book: Predators Pocket Book: Ocean Animals Otters, Snails, and Tadpole Tails LTF Look Inside Science Illustrated Elementary Science Dictionary Illustrated Dictionary of Biology Not Shown: Illustrated Dictionary of Physics Not Shown: Illustrated Dictionary of Science World of Animals Lift-the-Flap Engineering 1,000 Things in Nature 1,000 Things Under the Sea SPACE We have SO MANY great space books that they needed a category of their own for sure! Again, I could make a case for every book in this stack, but if I were forced to pick just a couple, I would say our two personal favorites are Look Inside Space and Big Book of Stars and Planets. Decide for yourself by peeking inside here! Sun, Moon, and Stars Living in Space Astronomy The Solar System LTF What are Stars? LTF Peek Inside Space LTF Look Inside Space LTF What's it Like in Space Astronaut Academy 100 Things to Know About Space On the Space Station (a Shine-A-Light) My Very First Space Book LTF Questions and Answers about Space Astronomy and Space Reference Book On the Moon Dogs in Space Big Book of Stars and Planets Big Book of Rockets and Spacecraft