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January 8, 2021January 8, 2021

The Nest That Wren Built

At Growing With Science blog today we are featuring The Nest That Wren Built by Randi Sonenshine and illustrated Anne Hunter. It has appeared on more than one “Best of 2020” list.

This gently rhyming book about Carolina wrens building a nest follows the style of “The House That Jack Built.”

This is the bark, snippets of twine,
spidery rootlets, and needles of pine
that shape the nest that Wren built.

The text goes into detail about how the wrens gather materials to make the nest. Some of the ingredients are expected, like soft moss for a lining the inside. Others are very surprising, like draping a snakeskin on the outside (to ward off predators). After the nest is built, the story follows the eggs and baby birds through development.

Anne Hunter’s illustrations are a fascinating combination of whimsical and realistic. Young readers will have fun looking for little things hidden in each page.

The back matter includes a glossary and additional interesting facts about wrens.

The Nest That Wren Built will enchant nature lovers, especially budding ornithologists. Surprise yourself with a copy today.

Cindy and Lynn reviewed The Nest That Wren Built earlier at Nonfiction Monday.

Visit Growing with Science for more information and related STEM activity suggestions.

December 4, 2020January 8, 2021

Whooo Knew? The Truth About Owls

We’re going to the birds today at STEM Friday.

Over at Growing with Science blog we have the super picture book, Whooo Knew? The Truth About Owls by by Annette Whipple.

What do you notice when you see the owl on the cover? Maybe the huge eyes? What do you think of? The sound they make? Have you ever seen an owl in real life?

The book starts out with these observations and a stirring question:

“You recognize an owl when you hear or see one, but do you really know these birds?”

From there, each double-page spread features gorgeous color photographs with text in a question and answer format. You will find out what owl’s eat, how they hunt, whether they sleep during the day, where they live, and what’s up with owl pellets. My favorite questions was whether owls can spin their heads around. Do you know the answer?

The formatting is engaging, with eye-catching design elements and fun dialogue bubbles with cool facts. Great for visual learners.

The back matter will thrill educators. There’s a section about how to help owls, an explanation of owl anatomy, an owl pellet dissection discussion, and a glossary.

Whooo Knew? The Truth About Owls is nonfiction at its best. It will obviously appeal to young birdwatchers and nature lovers, but also to anyone interested in the world around them. Reading it will make you wiser <wink>.

For related activity suggestions, visit Growing with Science.

October 30, 2020

Living Fossils: Survivors from Earth’s Distant Past

Today at Growing with Science blog we delve into a new middle grade book, Living Fossils: Survivors from Earth’s Distant Past by Rebecca E. Hirsch.

In Living Fossils, Rebecca Hirsch has scoured the earth for animals that not only look like their fossil ancestors, but also are the last few species of their kind. She has put together a fascinating collection of six amazing animals.

I knew that Living Fossils would be one of my new favorite books when I flipped the pages to the introduction and spotted a velvet worm. Every entomologist knows about velvet worms (Phylum Onychophora) because they have characteristics of both arthropods (the phylum containing insects) and annelids (earthworms, etc.). However, you don’t often see these unusual critters mentioned in children’s books.

Other animals covered include the horseshoe crab, which up to recently has been the only source of a chemical with important value to the medical field, and the chambered nautilus (also shown on the cover). Have you ever seen one of these cool mollusks at an aquarium?

Chapter 6 discusses another of my most-liked creatures, the platypus. It took forever for scientists to figure out where to categorize these animals that look like a bird/mammal mash up. Hirsch writes about how the decision was made.

I’m not going to reveal the last animal she picked, but it was one I — a biologist — had never heard of before. What a survivor it is, one that has managed to stay hidden from humans for decades.

All in all, this book is a tribute to the incredible diversity of animals on our planet, as well as a clear call that we need to conserve them.

Living Fossils will entrance budding biologists. Educators will appreciate the deep, careful research and extensive back matter. Investigate a copy today!

September 25, 2020September 24, 2020

Marjory Saves the Everglades

New this week is the picture book biography, Marjory Saves the Everglades: The Story of Marjory Stoneman Douglas by Sandra Neil Wallace and illustrated by Rebecca Gibbon.

Marjory Stoneman Douglas grew up in Taunton, Massachusetts with her mother, but she fell in love with Florida. Later when she saw how all the unique plants like ghost orchids and Florida Scrub Ziziphus plus animals like roseate spoonbills, storks and even manatees were disappearing as the Everglades was being destroyed, she knew she had to act. Would she be able to make a difference?

Sandra Neil Wallace has distilled 108 year’s of Marjory’s life into 56 pages of essential reading. The back matter is so full of more facts, resources and a timeline that it has spilled into the end papers.

Rebecca Gibbon’s illustrations capture the lush green vegetation of Florida as well as Marjory’s lively disposition. Young readers will delight in finding all the hidden animals and plants in her illustrations of the Everglades.

Marjory Saves the Everglades will delight both young historians and conservationists alike. Wade into a copy today!

For the full review and ways to relate it to STEM, see Growing with Science blog.

September 11, 2020September 10, 2020

Beatrix Potter, Scientist

Did you know that before author and illustrator Beatrix Potter began her career writing the famous children’s classics, she was a scientist? Find out all about it in Beatrix Potter, Scientist by Lindsay H. Metcalf and illustrated by Junyi Wu.

Like the illustration of young Beatrix Potter on the cover, this book focuses a lens on the children’s author’s lesser-known years as a mycologist (one who studies fungi). Although Potter had no formal schooling in science, she was introduced to mushrooms by a talented amateur named Charles McIntosh. He became her mentor and sent her samples to study. Beatrix made beautiful detailed drawings of each specimen. She also figured out a way to prove that new mushrooms grow from spores, something that wasn’t well known at the time. However, like other women scientists in the 1800s and early 1900s, Beatrix Potter encountered resistance when she tried to share her findings.

After finishing the book, educators and parents will likely want to discuss with young readers the pros and cons of how Beatrix ultimately dealt with the rejection.

Overall Beatrix Potter, Scientist will appeal to both young readers interested in STEM and also those interested in women’s history. Investigate a copy today!

Be sure to visit Growing with Science blog for the rest of the review and hands-on activity suggestions for studying fungi.

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 .

March 13, 2020March 13, 2020

Rachel Carson and Ecology for Kids: Her Life and Ideas, with 21 Activities and Experiments

Right in time for Women’s History Month we have the middle grade title Rachel Carson and Ecology for Kids: Her Life and Ideas, with 21 Activities and Experiments by Rowena Rae.

Rachel Carson is an amazing woman who is often credited with starting the modern environmental movement. She was a trained marine biologist, conservationist and outstanding nature writer. Her final book, Silent Spring, revealed the dangers of overuse of pesticides to a wide audience.

As to be expected from a middle grade title, the book delves deeply into Rachel Carson’s life. Wonder how the author handles the fact that Rachel Carson had health problems and was dying of breast cancer while she wrote Silent Spring? Rowena Rae does not pull any punches. She explains that Rachel found lumps and had a mastectomy. My mouth dropped when I read on pages 88-89 what happened next.

Although centered on Rachel Carson’s love of nature and ecology, Rowena Rae also highlights Carson’s writing process and the power of the written word. For example, she reveals that that Carson worked hard on her early pieces to make sure they sounded good when read aloud. Then she has the reader explore how to revise their own writing using audio. In fact, several of the activities for children in the book center on writing and honing writing skills.

Rachel Carson and Ecology for Kids is another outstanding title in the Chicago Review Press For Kids series. It will appeal to both young nature lovers and budding authors. What could be better than an in-depth history combined with hands-on activities to reinforce learning?

Check out the full review and activity suggestions at Wrapped in Foil blog.

February 28, 2020February 27, 2020

Amazing Amphibians

At Growing with Science Blog we are highlighting a fantastic book for upper elementary-aged children, Amazing Amphibians: 30 Activities and Observations for Exploring Frogs, Toads, Salamanders, and More by Lisa J. Amstutz.

If you’ve never experienced one of the Young Naturalists series books from Chicago Review Press, you are in for a real treat. These books are designed not only for children who are independent researchers interested in a topic — in this case amphibians — but also for educators who need information and age-appropriate activity ideas for science lessons.

Lisa Amstutz’s text covers everything readers will want to know:

What an amphibian is
What animals belong to the different families
Amphibian anatomy
What amphibians eat
Their life cycles
Some of the threats to amphibians
And much more!

It is also filled with amazing facts. Did you know that the North American wood frog can survive being frozen solid? How about that some amphibians can absorb water from moist soil by sitting on it because they have specially absorptive skin on their bellies? Wouldn’t it be nice to be able to drink that way?

The activities (30 of them!) will keep young scientists engaged for hours. They range from making fake frog eggs from water beads to making your yard more toad friendly. Plus, there’s oodles of back matter for further research.

Amazing Amphibians is an exceptionally well organized and well written introduction to a fascinating group of animals. It is perfect for young naturalists and for hands-on learners. It is also a must-have resource for educators. Investigate a copy today!

Hop on over to Growing with Science for the full review and many related activity suggestions.

February 14, 2020February 14, 2020

Buzzing with Questions: The Inquisitive Mind of Charles Henry Turner

Entomologist and teacher Charles Henry Turner passed away 97 years ago today on February 14, 1923, so it seems appropriate to highlight the biography Buzzing with Questions: The Inquisitive Mind of Charles Henry Turner by Janice N. Harrington and illustrated by Theodore Taylor III.

Driven by a fascination with living things, Charles Henry Turner defied the odds and went to college. He kept asking questions and working hard. In 1907 he earned his PhD in Zoology from the University of Chicago and graduated magna cum laude. After graduating, Turner worked at several different teaching positions while continuing to research and publish. He made many lasting contributions to the field of insect behavior, as well as being known for helping others.

Author Janice Harrington does a great job of weaving repeating threads through the text, like the fact that Turner loved books, “never stopped asking questions” and that he was “indefatigable.” Those are wonderful take away messages.

As for STEM, this book is important because it reveals the inner working of how Turner set up experiments to answer questions that he had. For example, he trained honey bees to come to red platforms and when he offered blue, the bees ignored them. Thus, he established honey bees can see color. Presenting the experiments, and not just the results, is golden.

Buzzing with Questions is an obvious choice for budding entomologists and to share for Black History Month, but its message of hope and persistence in the face of adversity will also resonate with a wide range of readers. Celebrate Turner’s love of books by sharing a copy today.

Our full review is at Wrapped in Foil blog.

January 17, 2020January 17, 2020

Book of Flight: 10 Record-Breaking Animals with Wings

Let’s take a look at a new picture book that does more than the usual, Book of Flight: 10 Record-Breaking Animals with Wings by Gabrielle Balkan and illustrated by Sam Brewster.

Why “more than the usual”?

At 10.5 x 12.8 inches, this book is larger than many picture books.

Inside, you will discover a challenging quiz format. The author sets up questions such as “Guess Who is the Fastest Flyer” and then gives plenty of details so the reader can figure it out. Included in the question spread is a blueprint-style illustration of the animal (like on the cover) with key features labelled. Turn the page and the answer is revealed in full color. To add a bit “more,” the animal has a textured overlay on the paper that begs to be felt. Take a minute and rub your fingers over it. Then read the first person point of view story of that animal.

Although you would think that a book about flight would be about birds, the author has included insects, bats and even a fish. The last spread talks about human flight. Again, more than you expect.

Finally, the reading level is Lexile Measure: 680L, but the first book in this series (see below) got glowing reviews from the parents of preschoolers. Obviously, with a bit of help from an adult reader, these books appeal to more than the suggested age range.

Book of Flight is a perfect choice for young readers interested in animals, those in flying things, and also those trivia buffs who like facts about records. It is guaranteed to fly off the shelf!

If you have a minute, hop over to Growing with Science blog for more about the previous title in the series, Book of Bones, 10 Record-Breaking Animals.