Finding a great children's book is like unwrapping a perfect sweet.
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Are you looking for some children’s books to read for Women’s History Month?
For STEM Friday yesterday I gathered some biographies of outstanding women in science, technology, engineering and math, plus links to other great lists. Check it out at STEM Friday Celebrates Women’s History Month!
Come visit the STEM Friday blog each week to find more great Science, Technology, Engineering and Math books.
Tags: STEM Books for Kids
The Little Plant Doctor: A Story About George Washington Carver by Jean Marzollo and illustrated by Ken Wilson-Max is an introduction to a great scientist, and also a glimpse into what it was like to be African-American during the time after the Civil War. It is a picture book to consider reading for both STEM studies and Black History Month.
This book has loads of educational potential. As a biography, the reader learns the details the childhood of a famous scientist. George Carver (he added the Washington part later) wasn’t allowed to go to school because the nearest school was for whites only. He didn’t let that stop him. He still learned how to read, and spent his time learning all he could about plants. Later he put those early studies to good use when he became a plant scientist, investigating uses for peanuts and sweet potatoes. In the back matter the author reveals he discovered over 300 ways to use peanuts in many diverse products. The endpapers feature lovely illustrations of a peanut plant and a sweet potato plant (with the primary parts labeled) to honor his work with those plants.
In an unusual choice, the narrator of the story is a tree. Some readers may not find this as appealing as others, but it might be a chance to “turn lemons into lemonade,” as the saying goes. Use the book to discuss the idea of a narrator in the story. Ask why the author might have chosen a tree to narrate (to show the passage of time, because George Carver loved plants). How does the tree narrator limit the story? (Trees can’t move around to follow the main character, etc.)
The Little Plant Doctor celebrates the early childhood of a great scientist. Perhaps it will inspire a future scientist, as well.
With a little planning, it could be fun to pair this book with an activity to sprout sweet potatoes as well.
Gather:
Determine the end of the sweet potato that was attached to the plant, if possible. That should be oriented up or out of the water. Stick some toothpicks into the middle of a sweet potato and suspend it root down into the container so that about half the potato is immersed when water is added. Keep the water level up by adding water as needed. Look for new growth. (A clear container works best so you can watch for root growth).
Reading level: Ages 5 and up
Hardcover: 22 pages
Publisher: Holiday House (April 15, 2011)
ISBN-10: 0823423255
ISBN-13: 978-0823423255
Come visit the STEM Friday blog each week to find more great Science, Technology, Engineering and Math books.
Tags: STEM Books for Kids, The Little Plant Doctor: A Story About George Washington Carver
Have you seen the newest book in the Scientists in the Field Series, Wild Horse Scientists by Kay Frydenborg? Concentrating on research by two scientists, ethologist Dr. Ron Keiper and wildlife reproductive physiologist Dr. Jay Kirkpatrick, the book reveals the challenges and the successes of studying wild horses. 
Right away, I should make it very clear for my regular readers: this is not a picture book! It would probably be best from mature readers, ages 12 and up. The books contains large, full color photographs of dead, decaying horses, and a discussion of a birth control program developed for horses. That said, for older readers interested in science, and particularly horses, this book is a must have.
If your idea of wild horses has been shaped by the beloved book Misty of Chincoteague by Marguerite Henry, you will be surprised to learn the wild horses actually live on Assateague Island, which lies in part in both Maryland and Virginia.
It turns out that wild horses have no predators in the areas where they live, and they can produce a lot of offspring. Over time the herds become too large for the amount of food they have available, and they begin to starve and to negatively impact other wildlife. In the past, portions of the herds have been captured and offered out for adoption. Looking for a better solution, the agencies in charge of managing the wild horses asked scientists to find ways to keep the wild horse numbers to more ecologically sound levels.
Did the scientists succeed? Pick up this fascinating book to find out. You will be sure to learn a lot about science and horses along the way.
Our sister blog, Growing with Science has related horse science activities.
Wild Horse Scientists by Kay Frydenborg
Hardcover: 80 pages
Publisher: Houghton Mifflin Books for Children (November 6, 2012)
Language: English
ISBN-10: 0547518315
ISBN-13: 978-0547518312
Book provided by publisher for review purposes. Cover courtesy of Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
Come visit the STEM Friday blog each week to find more great Science, Technology, Engineering and Math books.
Have you seen the latest nonfiction picture book by April Pulley Sayre, Here Come the Humpbacks
In what might become a trend, the book is laid out with the primary narrative lyrically told on the left page of a two-page spread, and more traditional expository nonfiction text in sidebars (italicized) on the right page, filling in the details and defining the vocabulary. It is like two books woven together, which gives so many options for reading.
The pastel illustrations on textured paper are an absolutely perfect accompaniment. Some of the pages are drenched in underwater darkness, others shimmer with light and action.
Seems like a lot more attention has been paid to the humpback whales in the Pacific that migrate from Hawaii to Alaska. Sayre’s focus on the movement of Atlantic whales brings them closer to home for folks on the East Coast and increases the readers awareness that whales occur worldwide.
Here Come the Humpbacks would be a wonderful choice for a trip to the beach, to an aquarium and best of all, for a warm-up to a whale-watching tour. It will be perfect for units on marine mammals, as well.
Check out Growing With Science for related whale science activities and links.
Publisher: Charlesbridge Publishing (February 1, 2013)
Language: English
ISBN-10: 1580894062
ISBN-13: 978-1580894067
Book provided by publisher for review purposes.
Come visit the STEM Friday blog each week to find more great Science, Technology, Engineering and Math books.
Tags: April Pulley Sayre, Here Come the Humpbacks, Jamie Hogan, STEM Books for Kids
Groundhogs (Pebble Plus: North American Animals)
Filled with large color photographs, this book would work well for sharing in front of the class. Written at the K-1 reading level, it is also sure to entice beginning or struggling readers, who will learn about the range, life cycle and behavior of groundhogs. After all, who wouldn’t be interested in learning more about these cute, chubby animals?
Let’s check out more about Groundhog Day with a short story inspired by the book:
It is February 2, Groundhog Day.
People say that if Groundhog sees his shadow there will be six more weeks of winter.
Where is Groundhog?
He likes to hide.
Groundhog is in his burrow.
Can he see his shadow?
No, it’s dark in there.
Where is Groundhog?
He’s next to the big rock.
Can he see his shadow?
Not yet, he’s in the rock’s shadow.
Where is Groundhog?
He’s behind that tree.
Can he see his shadow?
Not yet, the tree is blocking the light.
Where is Groundhog?
He’s out standing in the meadow.
Can he see his shadow?
Yes, he can!
Back to the burrow, Groundhog, to sleep for six more weeks.
More books to read about Groundhog Day:
Groundhog Day (Rookie Read-About Holidays)
Groundhog Day!
The Groundhog Day Book of Facts and Fun
Groundhog Weather School
Be sure to remember Groundhogs (Pebble Plus: North American Animals) by Chadwick Gillenwater
Reading level: Ages 4-8
Library Binding: 24 pages
Publisher: Capstone Press (August 1, 2012)
Language: English
ISBN-10: 1429686731
ISBN-13: 978-1429686730
See related science activities at Growing With Science.
Book provided by publisher for review purposes.
Come visit the STEM Friday blog each week to find more great Science, Technology, Engineering and Math books.
Tags: Groundhogs, STEM Books for Kids
