June 2011

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Be Book Smart Sweepstakes

June 30, 2011 in Reading by Roberta | No comments

Want to promote literacy? Like shopping? Reading is Fundamental (RIF) and Macy’s have teamed up with a promotion and sweepstakes to raise money to give books to children.

First of all, if you donate $3 to Macy’s for their Be Book Smart campaign from June 24, 2011 to July 31, 2011, they will give you a coupon for $10 off on a $50 purchase. You may visit any Macy’s store in the United States to donate. Macy’s then gives the $3 to RIF.

Secondly, if you visit the Be Book Smart Facebook page, you can sign-up for a sweepstakes to win a $500 gift card. (Just be aware that you will be asked to reveal some personal information.)

So, look for a Macy’s store near you, and help get books into the hands of children.

Happy shopping!

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The Klutz Guide to the Galaxy

June 27, 2011 in Nonfiction, Nonfiction Monday Review, Science, Science Books For Summer Reading by Roberta | 1 comment

Did you ever wish there was a science kit that you could hand to your children and they would stay quietly engaged for hours? The Klutz Guide to the Galaxy (Klutz Guides) by Pat Murphy and The Scientists of Klutz Labs might be just what you are looking for.

If you have seen Klutz Guides before, you know that they come with consumable, hands-on activities. In this case the projects include making a sundial, and putting together a telescope (with plastic lenses)! The absolutely best part from a harried parent’s point of view is that all the parts are included. No looking for a bamboo skewer at 10:00 p.m. or hearing, “Mom, where’s the glue?” All the parts that need to stick together come with their own adhesive. Plus the instructions are clear enough, and the assembly straightforward enough, that most 9-12 year-old children can do it themselves. How awesome is that?

The Guide is also jam packed with information about our solar system, and major stars and constellations. I was a bit disappointed to see that they had renamed some of the constellations. For example, Cassiopeia’s Chair is labeled as “W or M.” The names are much easier for children to remember, however.

In fact, everything about this book is completely kid friendly, including a way to find out how old you would be if you were on another planet, assuming one year is equal to one orbit of the sun. Sheets are included in the back in the form of a “Galactic Passport” for recording information from the various projects.

If you are working with a child who likes science and loves hands-on activities, then this is a wonderful book for summer fun!

Accompanying Nonfiction: This book would be great paired with 13 Planets: The Latest View of the Solar System by David A. Aguilar

The copy I reviewed was provided by Janelle at Brimful Curiosities (for winning a contest). See her review and great photographs of the projects from the book.

Reading level: Ages 9-12
Spiral-bound: 67 pages
Publisher: Klutz; Spi Pap/to edition (February 1, 2011)
Language: English
ISBN-10: 9781591749202
ISBN-13: 978-1591749202

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nonfictionmonday

Nonfiction Monday is a blogging celebration of nonfiction books for kids. We invite you to join us. For more information and a schedule, stop by the new Nonfiction Monday blog to see who is hosting each week.

This week’s post is at Wendie’s Wanderings.

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Hip-Pocket Papa is a Giant Among Frogs

June 19, 2011 in Animals, Nonfiction, Picture book- nonfiction, Science, Science Books For Summer Reading by Roberta | 1 comment

Hip-Pocket Papa by Sandra Markle and illustrated by Alan Marks

Reading level:  Picture Book Ages 4-8

Summary:  The Australian hip pocket frog is like the kangaroo of the frog world, except the male carries the babies. This story follows the struggles of a tiny (the size of an adult thumbnail) male hip pocket frog as he carries his tadpoles in special pockets in his sides.  The tadpoles he carries develop into froglets using food from the original egg, a process that takes about a month.

Illustrations: Lush watercolors

Comments:  With a combination of Sandra Markle’s passion for animals and Alan Marks’ extraordinary watercolors, this story of an unusual frog is sure to capture a young reader’s interest. Sandra considers her work to be “faction,” fiction based on real life.

2011 Charlotte Zolotow Award Honor Book, as well as other awards.

Related activities:

  • Find an article of clothing with big pockets at the hips. Using marbles or small balls to represent tadpoles, see how many you can carry. Make a prediction, and then see how many actually fit. Or even better, find some plastic frogs to carry.
  • Make a poster of a typical frog’s life cycle (see From Tadpole to Frog, and here’s an example). Make another poster showing the hip-pocket frog’s life cycle.
  • Growing With Science has ideas for activities and more information at Summer Sounds: Frogs and Toads

Compatible fiction:  Frog and Toad are Friends by Arnold Lobel

Publisher:  Charlesbridge  (February 2010)

ISBN-10: 1570917086
ISBN-13: 978-1570917080

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Catch the Wind, Harness the Sun: 22 Super-Charged Projects for Kids

June 14, 2011 in Middle Grade Nonfiction, Nonfiction by Roberta | No comments

Catch the Wind, Harness the Sun: 22 Super-Charged Projects for Kids, a new book from Storey Publishing by Michael J. Caduto, will catch your eye if you are interested in hands-on projects covering environmental and science topics. You will be surprised, however, to find it is also chock full of history, current events, and even a few jokes, as well.

Renewable energy is currently a hot topic and this book is definitely a well-rounded overview, exploring from many different angles. The activities range from relatively fast and straightforward, to those requiring more time and skill.

The illustrations, running the gamut from color photographs to cartoons, clearly show how to complete each project and are very child-friendly.

The activities are original and the book has a great deal of depth compared to many other hands-on science books. Depending on your outlook on renewable energy and environmental issues, however, some people might find parts of the text a bit heavy handed, especially for a book targeted for young children. Personally, I found the addition of jokes and cartoons were a nice counter balance to the more serious aspects of the book.

The book trailer will give you a better idea what it is all about:

You may also see an extensive excerpt of the book at Google Books:

Catch the Wind, Harness the Sun: 22 Super-Charged Projects for Kids might be just the ticket to get children excited about renewable energy. Who knows where it may lead them in the future.

I would love to hear your thoughts on this book.

Reading level: Ages 9-12
Paperback: 224 pages
Publisher: Storey Publishing, LLC (April 30, 2011)
ISBN-10: 9781603427944
ISBN-13: 978-1603427944

Be sure to look for more information about children’s books at today’s Book Talk Tuesday.

Book provided for review electronically at NetGalley.

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A Butterfly Is Patient: The Book Is Spectacular

June 13, 2011 in Animals, Nonfiction, Picture book- nonfiction, Science Books For Summer Reading by Roberta | 5 comments

At one point in the new book A Butterfly Is Patient by Dianna Hutts Aston and illustrated by Sylvia Long, the author writes, “A butterfly is spectacular!” As you read it you immediately want to echo, “This book is spectacular, too!”

The team of Aston and Long have already written and illustrated two award-winning books, An Egg is Quiet and A Seed is Sleepy. This new addition is even better, if that is possible. How do you top perfection? They found a way.

Start with the front endpapers, a collection of vibrant caterpillars with names like “Moonlight Jewel” and “Hieroglyphic Flat.” Skip to the back endpapers and you will find equally vibrant illustrations of the butterflies that come from those caterpillars. You can spend hours studying the endpapers alone.

Aston packs some hard science into the text, using words such as pollination, camouflage, predator, and migration. She has obviously done her research. It is so lyrically written, however, that learning is beautiful. Each and every page is a delight.

Looking for a gift book? As well as being a high quality, enjoyable, and informative picture book for children, the glorious art and design of A Butterfly Is Patient make it a potential coffee table art book for adults (albeit a thin one). Yes, it is that good. This book is a must for libraries, for children interested in science, and anyone interested in nature.

Don’t be as patient as a butterfly, go check out a copy for yourself today! I’d love to hear what you think of it.

See another review by Amanda at A Patchwork of Books

Related butterfly science activities at Growing with Science

Reading level: Ages 4-8
Publisher: Chronicle Books (May 18, 2011)
ISBN-10: 0811864790
ISBN-13: 978-0811864794

Click on button to return to main science book list.

nonfictionmonday

Nonfiction Monday is a blogging celebration of nonfiction books for kids. We invite you to join us. For more information and a schedule, stop by the new Nonfiction Monday blog to see who is hosting each week.

This week’s post is at Books Together.

This book was provided for review purposes.

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