Meet George Washington

Step-Up Books

by Joan Heilbroner

George Washington grew up in the English colony of Virginia. He was tall and strong, fair in judgment, and respected by his friends as a
good leader. As he grew older, George saw how England took advantage of the American colonies—and he didn't like it. When the colonies declared their independence, George was chosen to lead their army as its general. And when the colonies won their freedom, George was elected to lead the new nation as its first president.

Genres: History, Biography, American History, Childrens, Nonfiction, School, Chapter Books

80 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1964

About the author

Joan Heilbroner is best known for Robert the Rose Horse, published in 1961 and acquired by Dr. Seuss. Inspired by her grandchildren and their pet snake, she wrote A Pet Named Sneaker. A Columbia graduate, she worked as a school librarian until retirement.

Reviews

[Gary Sites · Rating 5 out of 5]

I recently came across a first-edition collection of “Step-up” books from the 1960s, much to my joy. I’d been looking for these books for years because they were the first real books I read in that long-ago. I must have been in second or third grade when I’d sit on the floor of that little one-room library, and devour the big words and pictures in these wonderful books. Now, after 50 years, I have a set of them in my hands again. Looking at the fantastic illustrations is like traveling back in time. I remember many of those images as if I just saw them yesterday. That says something about the artists. I didn’t know what to expect of the writing, but I was thrilled with what I found in this one about George Washington. It was a fun read, and there’s a surprising chunk of information here for a young reader.

[Luisa Knight · Rating 3 out of 5]

About the Step-Up Books
Published in the 1960s and 1970s, they serve as a follow up series for students who have surpassed the reading level of the I Can Read books. They are simply narrated and have short sentences. They are broken into chapters that consist of about three pages usually. Pictures are throughout.

For the reading level that this is geared for, they are written well. I enjoyed the stories and the facts I learned from them. A good source for additional reading material for your beginning reader and good books to use to graduate your child from picture books to something more substantial.

Ages: 5+
Reading Level: 2nd - 3rd grades
Pages: approx. 50-90
How many titles: 38
Illustrations: full of illustrations and photographs
Price Range: $2 – $40 depending on the title and its rarity.

Cleanliness: mentions wine.

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[Michael Fitzgerald · Rating 5 out of 5]

Plenty of detail.

[Tanya · Rating 3 out of 5]

I was and always have been a book nerd. I remember laying out all my Step Up books on the floor in my childhood bedroom, and deciding which one I would read next. I think Meet George Washington was one of my earliest choices from the history selections, just because he is one of the fist historical characters every child learns about, and he was familiar to me. Just looking at the cover photos from these old books brings back such happy memories for me!

[Pallavi · Rating 5 out of 5]

I enjoyed this book very much. My mom learned a lot about Washington too.

[Amy · Rating 3 out of 5]

Very fast read to give you an overall idea of George Washington. Terms are rather generalized and catered to a younger audience. Statements like Washington was not afraid he was brave (we, of course, don't know whether he was afraid or not), and "the Indians" not specifying which tribes were involved in the French and Indian War.

[Carole · Rating 4 out of 5]

Went through 2 boxes of books that my brother had put in 109 Attic. This was a children's book. A VERY east short read but was very interesting. Had some VERY nice illustrations. I have one box ready to take to the Corbit Calloway Library for a donation.

[Charlotte · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was a good introduction to George Washington and the Revolutionary War. We read it at the same time we are reading the Felicity books and it gave a good background and had things we recognized in it, so it was great.

[=☆Silver-Lining☆= · Rating 4 out of 5]

This cover has a very amazing illastrations (Though there is only few...) and I really liked how he said after the war: "Now I will rest under my vine and fig tree." And when he died they buried him under his vine and fig tree!

[Cathy aka The Attached Mama · Rating 4 out of 5]

An easy to read biography on the life on George Washington.

[Laynie Richards · Rating 3 out of 5]

It was an engaging short read for kids. Info on the Boston Tea Party/English taxes were not accurate but overall it was a good summary.

[Tara Williams · Rating 3 out of 5]

Good biography for k-3.

[Kat · Rating 5 out of 5]

George Washington was a very brave man and caring man.

[Ron · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a beginning chapter book that gives a biography of George Washington.

[Garret Bell · Rating 4 out of 5]

The book was kind of sad but I liked the start of it!

[Elizabeth · Rating 4 out of 5]

AR 3.4

[Dottie · Rating 4 out of 5]

A very simplified version of George Washington’s history. Not bad. But not a lot of meat to it.

[Hunt Academy · Rating 5 out of 5]

Kids say: It was really good and we are excited to read other books in this series!

[Samantha Zurbrick · Rating 3 out of 5]

Read this for Crosby’s BookShark curriculum. It was a nice historical read. Crosby enjoyed it!

[Alice · Rating 5 out of 5]

This biography about George Washington is very informative and simple to read. The author provides a broad overview of George's life from a young boy raised in Virginia, to becoming the first President of the United States of America. There are quite a few detailed sketches throughout the book that help illustrate what is happening in the story. I found this book very interesting and learned a lot more about the great life of George Washington and what he did for our country.

[Abraham Ray · Rating 5 out of 5]

great children's book of American history & our first president!

[Bonnie Chen · Rating 5 out of 5]

I really enjoyed reading this book because I learned a lot about our very first president, George Washington. Many people believe that he is a great general and one of the best Americans. I totally agree. He triumphed politically throughout most of his life. He led all the soldiers from all the colonies and succeeded as a general. He wanted to fight the English, as he thought the English government was unfair, but the road to victory was not a straight path. They suffered lost of men, losses, injuries, etc. There were constant battles between the two armies. His work definitely paid off though. America was now free and independent. Many voted for Washington to be the president and he was the president for two terms. He was given an opportunity to do it again, but he was exhausted. He did he best and has to rest. Due to his great efforts, many buildings, streets, etc are named after him. Washington, like Walt Disney, taught me to never give up and hard work will definitely pay off. It is worth the work because you would be enjoying the fruits of your labor elatedly.

[Kenny Li · Rating 4 out of 5]

Meet George Washington is the perfect book for anyone that has to get quick information on George Washington for an essay. A quick read that goes straight to the point, this book only has 2 purposes: quick information on George Washington or for a kid reading the book.

I read this book for neither of those purposes. I read it for pure knowledge and it was a great because I know some quick information about him. For example, I know he didn't want to be president of the United States but the people of the country voted him to become the leader of our now-established country.

[Sharon]

Great book, although slow at the start, once we got to the part where the Batavia becomes shipwrecked, the story really takes off. Peter Fitzsimons is one of the nations best storytellers, be it of events in Australian history, or Australian historical characters, and this book is proof of the reason why.

[Keyli Sawatzky · Rating 2 out of 5]

I think this book would be a good book for someone who likes History. This book was bout George Washington and what he did growing up. He wan in the Army for a very long time. This book was not a good book for me because I have a hard time unserstanding what all he had gone through. This book was a biogerphy.

[Aisley Faust · Rating 4 out of 5]

Get introduced to George Washington in this factual book all about him! There are so many new things you will learn in this book. It tells of Georges hardships and of how he came to be the first president of The United States of America. George was always truthful, uplifting, inspiring, and above all, noble. He represented our country well during the time he served as our president.

[Brian · Rating 5 out of 5]

LOL, one of my favorite books as a 6-year old. It's still pretty cute in a father-of-our-country sort of way. Highly recommended if you want to instill the ideal of a leader in a child, which I don't think is a bad thing.

[Kasey · Rating 5 out of 5]

Anja read this book at school, but when she was sick for a week, I was able to read this to help her with her homework. It is a great book for children to learn what a great man George Washington was. It even explains about the cherry tree story.

[Bek · Rating 2 out of 5]

This was a fast 15 min. read. It told about George Washington's life from beginning to end and had all of his marvelous adventures, like the boston tea party and how he became the first president of the untied states of america!

[Barbara Ab · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is a book for English speaking children who move up from picture books. I think it would be a good reading for pre-intermediate and intermediate English’s learners who want to have a light “brush of American History”.