STEM Friday Archives - Page 2 of 14

March 13, 2020March 13, 2020

STEM Friday #Kidlit Rachel Carson and Ecology for Kids

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 (For Kids series) by Rowena Rae. What could be better than an in depth history combined with hands-on activities to reinforce learning?

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. For example, perhaps you may 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 young nature lovers, history fanatics, and budding authors. Check out a copy today!

Related Suggestions:

Read one of Rachel Carson’s books, such as Under the Sea-Wind, The Sea Around Us, or The Sense of Wonder.

See even more activity suggestions to celebrate Rachel Carson at readwritethink.

Want to learn more? Visit our growing list of children’s books about women scientists at Science Books for Kids, including:

Age Range: 9 – 12 years
Publisher: Chicago Review Press (February 4, 2020)
ISBN-10: 0897339339
ISBN-13: 978-0897339339

Disclosure: This book was provided by the publisher for review purposes. Also, I am an affiliate with Amazon so I can provide you with cover images and links to more information about books and products. As you probably are aware, if you click through the highlighted title link and purchase a product, I will receive a very small commission, at no extra cost to you. Any proceeds help defray the costs of hosting and maintaining this website.

Come visit the STEM Friday blog each week to find more great Science, Technology, Engineering and Math books.Opens in a new window Note: this is a new link as of 1/2019.

February 14, 2020February 14, 2020

STEM Friday #Kidlit Buzzing With Questions

Entomologist and teacher Charles Henry Turner passed away 97 years ago today on February 14, 1923, so it seems appropriate to highlight the picture book 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.

Turner’s message about studying biology to help people see connections between all living things is particularly poignant.

“Biology taught us to think less about ourselves and more about others.”

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. Children are often taught the result of experiments, but aren’t exposed to the experimental process as much.

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.

A NSTA/CBC Best STEM Book

Age Range: 7 – 10 years
Publisher: Calkins Creek (November 5, 2019)
ISBN-10: 1629795585
ISBN-13: 978-1629795584

Disclosure: This book was provided by our local library. Also, I am an affiliate with Amazon so I can provide you with cover images and links to more information about books and products. As you probably are aware, if you click through the highlighted title link and purchase a product, I will receive a very small commission, at no extra cost to you. Any proceeds help defray the costs of hosting and maintaining this website.

Come visit the STEM Friday blog each week to find more great Science, Technology, Engineering and Math books.Opens in a new window Note: this is a new link as of 1/2019.

January 10, 2020January 9, 2020

STEM Friday #Kidlit The Great Shark Rescue by Sandra Markle

For STEM Friday this week, we have a middle grade book, The Great Shark Rescue: Saving the Whale Sharks by one of our favorite authors, Sandra Markle.

Whale sharks are not only the biggest fish in the world, but also the coolest sharks because they feed by vacuuming up tons of the smallest creatures in the water (see pages 18-19). Unfortunately, along with many other fascinating creatures, their numbers are plummeting and they have recently become endangered.

Markle gives numbers and explicit reasons why the populations are in decline. Sometimes the sharks are caught is nets during legal fishing while at other times they are killed by people who fish for sharks illegally. Climate change is also a factor. Scientists want to try to help the sharks, but they know little about them. It is a race to learn about whale sharks before they disappear.

In the back matter we learn that wrote the book based on interviews with experts (see “Source Notes.”) Sandra Markle makes a point of using only primary sources, if she can (see post about meeting her at the Tucson Book Festival.)

The Great Shark Rescue will thrill budding marine biologists as well as those interested in conserving endangered species. Realistically, this title could work with upper elementary readers as well as middle grade. It could be a great addition to your shelf.

Read an excerpt at Lerner
Check out all the ocean science activities under our ocean category at Growing With Science
Want to learn more about ocean animals? See our growing list of ocean-themed children’s books at Science Books for Kids.

Age Range: 9 – 12 years
Series: Sandra Markle’s Science Discoveries
Publisher: Millbrook Press TM (October 1, 2019)
ISBN-10: 1541510410
ISBN-13: 978-1541510418

Come visit the STEM Friday blog each week to find more great Science, Technology, Engineering and Math books.Opens in a new window Note: this is a new link as of 1/2019.

December 27, 2019December 26, 2019

STEM Friday #Kidlit Mary Had a Little Lab

Let’s celebrate STEM Friday with the fiction picture book, Mary Had a Little Lab by Sue Fliess and illustrated by Petros Bouloubasis.

Using her patented rollicking rhyme, Sue Fliess re-manufactures the Mary Has a Little Lamb poem into a modern tale of girl power and a blueprint for building friendships.

This fun picture book is great to read aloud. Once beginning readers hear the pattern, rhyming text makes it easier for them to guess the next line or words. Soon they will be “reading” along.

In addition, Petros Bouloubasis has added loads of visual gags to the illustrations that will make young readers want to look more closely.

Intrigued? You can get more of and idea of the flavor of the book from this official book trailer:

If the book is fiction, why promote it for STEM Friday? The best reason is that it portrays girls in STEM in a positive light. I could have done without the stereotype lab coat and lonely scientist working by herself trope, but overall Mary is imaginative, persistent, and resourceful. What more can you ask for?

Mary Had a Little Lab takes the familiar and makes it new. It’s a winning combination that children will want to read again and again. Pick up a copy to share and you’ll see.

Suggested activities:

1. Build a “lab”

Gather:

A big cardboard box for each participant or group
Art supplies like markers, crayons, paint
Assorted knobs, buttons, etc (optional)
Glue, tape, painter’s tape
Aluminum foil (optional)
Construction paper
Paper cups (optional)
Yarn (optional)
Cardboard tubes, egg cartons

Encourage the children to design and construct their own “lab.” Provide adult assistance to cut flaps and doors.

2. Learn more about sheep science

Visit our post about sheep and goats at Growing With Science blog

3. Make a sheep craft

There are millions of cute ideas for sheep crafts online, like these on Pinterest.

Public Domain Photograph by Jean Beaufort at Publicdomainpictures.net

Age Range: 3 – 5 years
Grade Level: Preschool – Kindergarten
Publisher: Albert Whitman & Company (March 1, 2018)
ISBN-10: 0807549827
ISBN-13: 978-0807549827

Come visit the STEM Friday blog each week to find more great Science, Technology, Engineering and Math books.Opens in a new window Note: this is a new link as of 1/2019.