Indiana Reading Journal Volume 44 Issue 1 | Page 24

WINTER BEES: AND OTHER POEMS OF THE COLD. 2014. Joyce Sidman. Illus. Rick Allen. Houghton Mifflin Harcourt. 32pp. ISBN-10: 0547906501. Beautifully crafted poetry, a wealth of scientific facts, and detailed linoleum prints convince readers that winter is not as barren as it seems at first glance. Standard 3.

Sixth Grade

ANIMAL STORIES: HEARTWARMING TALES FROM THE ANIMAL KINGDOM. 2014. Jane Yolen, et. al. Illus. Jui Ishida. National Geographic Kids. 160pp. ISBN-10: 1426317255. Prolific author Jane Yolen collaborates with her grown children to tell true stories of amazing animal acts of bravery, daring, and perseverance in a variety of biomes. Sidebars provide scientific facts about the animals. Standard 3.

WHEN LUNCH FIGHTS BACK: WICKEDLY CLEVER ANIMAL DEFENSES. 2014. Rebecca. L. Johnson. Millbrook Press. 48pp. ISBN-10: 1467721093. Relationships between a variety of predator and prey are described. Standard 3.

Primary Honorable Mention

AMAZING GIANT SEA CREATURES. 2014. DK. DK Children. 16 pp. ISBN-10: 1465419012

Typical high-quality graphics of DK books support the “fast fact” format of information about various aquatic species. Foldout pages with scaled drawings provide potential mathematical connections. Standard 3.

GRAVITY. 2014. Written and illustrated by Jason Chin. Roaring Book Press. 32 pp. ISBN-10: 1596437170. Chin succeeds with making the physical science topic of gravity accessible to young children through both text and illustrations. Endnotes provide deeper explanations about this topicEX. Standard 2.

STAR STUFF: CARL SAGAN AND THE MYSTERIES OF THE UNIVERSE. 2014. Stephanie Roth Sissen. Roaring Book Press. 40pp. ISBN-10: 1596439602. Simple text and engaging art describe Sagan’s childhood wonderings about the cosmos. Detailed backmatter explains the science and provides additional resources for a more sophisticated reader. Standard 2.

Intermediate Honorable Mention

BATMAN SCIENCE: THE REAL-WORLD SCIENCE BEHIND BATMAN’S GEAR. 2014. Agnieszka Biskup and Tammy Enz. Batman created by Bob Kane. Capstone Young Readers. 144pp. ISBN-10: 1623700647. Batman’s gadgets are showcased in full-color illustrations while textboxes explain the engineering and technology applications of similar devices in the real world. Standard 4.

IF…A MIND-BENDING NEW WAY OF LOOKING AT BIG IDEAS AND NUMBERS. 2014. David J. Smith. Illus. Steve Adams. Kids Can Press. 40pp. ISBN-10: 1894786343. Large concepts and numbers are scaled down in terms that young readers can grasp. Many of the ideas are scientific in nature such as the size of the planets, the history of the Earth, and the contents of the ocean, and resources of the Earth. Standard 2.

SUPER SNIFFERS: DOG DETECTIVES ON THE JOB. 2014. Dorothy Hinshaw Patent. Bloomsbury. 48pp. ISBN-10: 0802736181. Short stories explain the diverse ways dogs have been trained to use their noses to help others, from finding whale scat to predicting seizure activity in people. Standard 3.

References

Thomas, J., & Gulley, J. (2012). Spotlight on science: Introducing the Indiana science tradebook annual reading list. The Indiana Reading Journal, 45(1), 31-35.

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