Written and illustrated by Kristin Joy Pratt-Serafini
A young girl from Sweden helps her grade school class raise funds to save a forest in Costa Rica. Years later, she returns to the rainforest with her son. Peter, Anna’s son, is fascinated by the rainforest and all of the life within it. As they spend time with their hosts and explore the forest, Peter and the readers learn about the animals that live in this habitat. » Read more
Written by Seymour Simon
What is the hottest place on Earth? What is the coldest place on Earth? How tall is the world’s highest waterfall? This book contains the answers to these questions. It also answers questions about more record breaking places on Earth!
Readers are invited to join the author on a journey around the world to explore remote regions, extreme climate and unbelievable destinations.Extreme Earth offers an informative look at our incredible, awe inspiring world. The book is full of fun, interesting facts that will engage the reader. Each page is beautifully illustrated with actual pictures of the locations mentioned. » Read more
Written by Darcy Pattison
Illustrated by Kathleen Rietz
Bath time without soap and water? what an excellent way of introducing young readers to life in the desert where water is scarce and the heat unrelenting. In a simply told story Darcy Pattison takes her readers to the desert. The lyrical text showcases the beauty of the land, and the scruples of the animals who live there. » Read more
Written by Kelly Kyzer Whitt
Illustrated by Laurie Allen Klein
Get ready for an interplanetary adventure in learning as the green alien leads us through the weathers of the planets and moons of our solar system. What a fascinating way of presenting facts that have to be studied in class, often through not very interesting text books. This forecast aligns itself to the Common Core, so teachers and parents know that what is presented here is what their students have to learn. » Read more
Written by Penelope Arlon and Tory Gordon-Harris
This is the kind of non-fiction book that boys (and girls) love. Lots of pictures, lots of facts in small bites, and all about a kid’s favorite subject: dinosaurs. Incorporating the latest scientific discoveries, this book attempts to organize the hundreds of known dinosaurs and what scientists have concluded about them. There is attention paid to recreating the time period in which the different species lived. Not only are there illustrations showing the plants and animals from the same time period, there are some prey/predator scenarios presented as well. » Read more
Written by Grace Norwich
Illustrated by Ute Simon
Books serve many purposes. They encapsulate the learning of many generations. They carry forth the history and culture of a people. Big, heavy tomes can even act as door stops! Books entertain and educate.
Scholastic has brought out a new series that falls squarely in the ‘books that educate’ category. The series, entitled “I Am…”, presents the biographies of famous men and women in an easily comprehensible fashion.
Young Albert Einstein, who grew up to solve many a mystery of the universe, was an mystery to his parents. He did not go through the babbling, simple-word-speaking stage. At two years of age he barely spoke. When his sister was to be brought home from the hospital his parents told him that they were bringing home a “new toy”. Albert took one look at the newborn and, finally, spoke, “Where are the wheels?” » Read more
Written by Penelope Arlon and Tory Gordon-Harris
Vivid and detailed close ups of bugs are part of the fascination for this creative look at the life of bugs. This is a great way to observe without having to gather the actual bugs and a good way to desensitize the squeamish. Many of the photos are at least one hundred times as large as the real creature, so the reader comes face to face – literally – with bug after bug. Several collections of many, many bugs within a group highlight the contrasts within the group. The authors first explore classification of invertebrates, the relative populations of those classifications, and the physical attributes of invertebrates. » Read more
By Jennifer Keats Curtis
The animal pictures in this book will win hearts, but the message is the important thing here. Most people try to help animals when they are hurt, but many cause more harm than good. If you find yourself in the company of an animal in need, call in the experts. Wildlife rehabilitators know how to best help hurt or abandoned animals and they can teach others the right way to do it, too. This photo-essay shows animal rehabilitators doing a variety of jobs: feeding orphan babies, helping animals that are trapped or tangled, even performing surgery. They train others to have the skills and knowledge to do the right things to help animals in need. The emphasis is on returning animals to the wild whenever possible, but animals living in zoos or education centers are mentioned. » Read more
Written by Martha S. Campbell
Illustrated by Chad Wallace
When I was in high school, a friend gave me a sticker that said, “Neat people never make the exciting kinds of discoveries I do.”She knew me well. In the book, Hidden in the Midden, author Martha S. Campbell helps readers get to know the real live pack rats of the animal world, too. » Read more
Written by Carolyn Ford
Illustrated by Marnie Webster
Tides, by Carolyn Ford, is a simple, straightforward book about tides—what they are, what causes them, and what happens when all
that water rises and falls each day around the world. With seven pages of main text, the actual information provided is spare. However, Tides would be a good way to introduce readers in the fourth grade or younger to some of the basic concepts having to do with this powerful, important natural phenomenon. Using it as a read-aloud book would allow for discussion of questions about some of the concepts presented. » Read more
