June 2020 – STEM Friday

Animals in the Sky
by Sara Gillingham(Author / Illustrator)

Booktalk: With a guessing game, this board book helps younger children identify six of the most recognizable animal constellations from The Great Bear to the The Southern Fish. Each constellation is introduced as a cluster of stars with its connected-line shape; readers then guess the animal through a series of read-aloud clues. A full animal illustration gatefold reveals the answer, accompanied by extra information about the constellation and its important stars.

Snippet:

It’s STEM Friday! (STEM is Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics)

June 19, 2020June 18, 2020

Dads

Amazon | Bookshop | IndieBound

Dads
by John Coy (Author) and Wing Young Huie (Photographer)

Booktalk: Celebrate all that fathers do: building, fixing, cooking, cleaning, laughing, crying, hugging, playing and more! This book shows a wide range of fathers and children, particularly highlighting families of color and lower-income families, who often aren’t depicted in children’s books.

Snippet:
Dads share.
They teach.

It’s STEM Friday! (STEM is Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics)

June 12, 2020June 11, 2020

One Little Lot: The 1-2-3s of an Urban Garden

Amazon | Bookshop | IndieBound

One Little Lot: The 1-2-3s of an Urban Garden
by Diane C. Mullen (Author) and Oriol Vidal (Illustrator)

Booktalk: Count all the ways (one to ten) an urban community unites to clean up an abandoned lot. From building planter boxes to pulling weeds to planting seeds, everyone works together to transform the lot into a bountiful vegetable garden. As the garden grows, strangers become friends, eventually sharing in a special feast with the harvest they grew.

Snippet:
TWO helping hands push open
the rickets, rusting fence.
A visitor imagines what could be.
Passersby stop to talk.
Maybe, just maybe, they all say.

It’s STEM Friday! (STEM is Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics)

June 5, 2020June 5, 2020

Cats and Dogs

My new Focus on STEM column: Cats and Dogs is in the June Quick Tips for Schools and Libraries newsletter.

Booktalk: Help kids take an extra-close look at the family pet with these fun, informative books on feline and canine friends.

Snippet: Dog person or cat person? That is the question–and the answer depends on whom you ask! No matter what the answer is, these pets have been getting a lot of up close and personal time lately.

It’s STEM Friday! (STEM is Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics)

June 5, 2020June 4, 2020

Numbers in Motion by Laurie Wallmark

Let’s explore a new picture book biography, Numbers in Motion: Sophie Kowalevski, Queen of Mathematics by Laurie Wallmark and illustrated by Yevgenia Nayberg.

Laurie Wallmark specializes in biographies of women in STEM and for this book she has chosen a lesser-known subject for much-deserved recognition.

Sophie Kowalevski grew up observing the pages of calculus problems her father had used to paper her bedroom walls. The desire to understand the intriguing symbols propelled her to study advanced math. Later she became a prominent mathematician — the first to earn a doctorate at an European university — and professor in a time when women weren’t even allowed to enter many college campuses. By doing what she loved and had a talent for, Sophie broke down barriers for women who came after her.

Illustrator Yevgenia Nayberg uses a light touch with Sophie’s life, then makes Sophie’s math vibrant. In one scene the tops look like they are going to spin right out of the book. Her approach makes sense because those were the things Sophie cared the most about.

Numbers in Motion will inspire budding mathematicians and historians alike. Readers will likely end up wanting to learn more about this remarkable woman. Investigate a copy today.

Rest of review and activity suggestion at Wrapped in Foil blog .