Teachers and parents, here is another favorite from Marianne, who has a special talent. The kids think it is entertainment while teachers and parents think it is a great lesson about the Arctic! This book combines singing, counting, and full-body action with terrific cut-paper illustrations that kids will want to imitate. Over in the Arctic, the snow goose honks and the wolf howls. Children too will joyfully honk and howl while they count the baby animals and sing to the tune of Over in the Meadow. And they will hunt for hidden animals on each page. A big plus for educators are several pages of extension ideas for curriculum and art projects as well as resources on the web and elsewhere.
This wonderful book is natural science - in this case, about desert animals - with a flair. A boy walks up to an impressive saguaro cactus and wonders who could be living on this arid ground? As night falls, he walks away. And then the place comes alive! A haven for creatures in a waterless land. The entertaining, repetitive rhyme is an attention-grabbing read-aloud that culminates in successful learning. Field Notes at the end of the book describe the animals in detail and include an unusual fact.
Someone is always awake in the forest--and someone else is always asleep! Some animals are alert in daytime and sleep at night. Others are alert at night, and are sleepyheads during the day. Plus be sure to count the animals. Teachers: this book is a very pleasant way to combine science and literature.
Teachers! This book is like a whole unit on migration wrapped in a winning combination of easy verse, factual language, and beautiful illustrations. For animals, migration is a powerful compulsion to travel, sometimes over long distances, often skipping many meals. Sometimes, as in the case of the monarch butterfly, a round-trip takes several generations. Why do they do it? How do they succeed? The ten featured species offer a broad representation of migration: loggerhead turtles, monarch butterflies, manatees, ruby-throated hummingbirds, Pacific salmon, Canada geese, California gray whales, caribou, Arctic tern, and emperor penguin. The book is loaded with additional tips for teachers. Once again Marianne Berkes combines her teaching, writing, and theatrical skills to combine entertainment with education--creative non-fiction at its best.
This book is a rare find, well deserving of the prestigious Picture Book of the Year award from CBC-NSTA. The science about dragonflies is perfectly integrated into a story in which the remarkable metamorphosis of a dragonfly from a mucky nymph ("Eeeewww," says Eliza) to a beautiful winged creature ("Magnificent!" says Aunt Doris) is a metaphor for the magic of how Eliza, too, is growing up. Teachers will find it useful primarily in an elementary science unit on insects, life cycles and habitats, but also in for language arts lessons in theme, symbolism, and metaphor. The watercolor illustrations are rich, whimsical, and fun. There are two pages of additional science in the back. This is an exceptional example of creative non-fiction writing.
This collection of true stories of animal behavior is not only captivating and thought-provoking, but also a terrific way for teachers and parents to have children to consider feelings--whether animal or human. A young antelope was being dragged into a river by a crocodile. A nearby hippopotamus saw what was happening and charged the croc, which released the antelope. The hippo gently pulled the antelope up the riverbank, comforting and protecting it until it died. Was this compassion? A zoo monkey routinely used a banana to bribe a moose to carry him across a moat designed to keep him confined to a small island. Was this cleverness?
This book is a year-after-year favorite with teachers. It engagingly leads readers around the world following a drop of water--whether as steam or snow, inside a plant or animal, or underground--teaching the wonders and importance of the water cycle. (There is lots of geography, too.) Four pages of science about the qualities of water are included.
Years after a great oak tree tumbled to the ground, a whole community of animals made it their home. Roly-polies and daddy longlegs prowled here and there, while chipmunks and salamanders dashed everywhere. Question: Is the old tree alive? Or is it now dead? This lighthearted book offers a marvelous insight into a unique and easily-accessible community of forest animals. Jennifer DiRubbio's vivid close-up illustrations bring these fascinating creatures to life. Parents and teachers: the author offers over a dozen "activities, projects, and lots of cool ideas" ranging from suggestions for an animal diary, readers theatre, finger play, and much more that will help make learning fun.
Arrow-shaped footprints lead a young backyard naturalist to a flock of funny-looking birds with big strong feet - Wild Turkeys! Once nearly extinct, these comical critters now gobble their way across North America. Follow Jenny through a year of enchantment as she shares her discovery of these wonderful birds. Gobble, gobble! Jenny wrote a journal, too, with lots of fascinating stuff about a distinctly American bird. Although it once numbered in the millions, wild turkeys nearly disappeared with overhunting and habitat destruction, but are now making a comeback. The illustrations are block prints over collages. The collages are made from cut and torn paper plus all sorts of things from nature--bark, leaves, feathers, even wasp nests! The author also offers tips for children to make their own cut-paper pictures and how to keep a nature journal.
A cricket, a rat, and a bat live happily in a dark cave. Each one has a unique way of navigating without light, but one day, an explorer enters the cave and brings light. Written in rhyme, this is a good beginner reader.
After observing his mother use a stick to fish for termites in an anthill, a young chimpanzee learns how to do the same.
"Everyone poops - yes, it's true. From aardvarks to the humped zebu." Indeed. And aren't we all at least a little bit curious about this subject matter? Told in rhyme, smart and sublime, here's a fun and fact-filled field guide to poop around the world and very close to home. Kids will discover surprising uses, words, forms, and facts about something in which they have a natural interest. Who knew that a wombat produces cubes? Or poop's many uses for housing, cooking, and fun at county fairs? While it may dismay and stink, there's more to this stuff than you might think!
Explore 6 different habitats in this book and find out about the different animals that make their homes there.
All about magnets - from their different shapes to the concept of repel and attract.
Discover the four seasons, the temperature changes on crops and animals.
Students learn that insects come in all shapes and sizes. Some fly, some crawl, some hop, but they all have certain things in common. The perfect tool for young elementary classrooms.
Understanding life processes of plants and animals and their basic needs.
A look at the concept of mother and baby farm animals. For example, when the mother is a sheep, the baby is a lamb. Great photos and illustrations.
An introduction to electricity. Find out how we use electricity and how to build a circuit.
Discover that Earth has many cycles: day and night, the seasons, the water cycle... and how we have a life cycle.
Find out how water moves, how it can be a solid, liquid, or gas. Find out how Earth can use the same water over again in the water cycle.
What hatches from an egg? Not just baby birds. In this book students will discover a number of different animals that hatch from an egg. Great photos and illustrations.
The Wind blows, clouds bring rain and snow, learn how it all works.
Fun illustrations lead the reader through a safari adventure in Africa. Clickable illustrations allow readers to go back and view photos of African animals and listen to animal sound effects.
Introduce your students to the diverse culture of animals that live in the oceans of the world. Many animals are identified.
