Mummies can’t talk; but with modern scientific tools, we can still discover what a mummy has to tell us. Read the stories of mummified Egyptian pharaohs and priestesses, baby elephants, pampered pets, and even a prehistoric bison. Uncover clues to centuries-old murder mysteries and human sacrifices, and even find out what a person or animal had for their last meal! Information from real scientists explains how we know what we know about each mummy. So what do these mummies have to say? Lots, it turns out!
Noses come in all kinds of shapes and sizes that are just right for its particular animal host. Not only do most animals use their noses to breathe but for many animals, the sense of smell helps them find food, a mate, or even to know when danger is near! Following Animal Tails, Animal Eyes, Animal Mouths (NSTA/CBC Outstanding Trade Science Award), and Animal Legs, Mary Holland continues her photographic Animal Anatomy and Adaptations series by exploring many different animal noses and how those noses help the animals survive in their habitats.
Quick, name the world’s fastest animal! Did you say cheetah? If so, you’re right – sort of. Sure, the cheetah can reach speeds over 70 miles per hour (mph); but did you know that there is a species of bird that can fly faster than a race car? Did you know that that’s not even the fastest animal there is? This “dashing dozen” of nature’s speediest species examines the fastest on land, air, and sea. This story will resonate with children taking standardized tests…one size does not fit all!
Come along on a journey through the aquatic habitat of a forested wetland. Meet birds and bobcats, along with the beavers and beetles that call the soggy forest home. Kevin Kurtz continues his award-winning “A Day In” series, and once again delights readers with a rhythmic, nonfiction look into a typical day for the animals that live in this wet habitat.
Cheetahs are the most rapidly vanishing cat in Africa. Share the dreams of a bright future for cheetahs while engaging sidebars provide a wealth of natural history information. From cleat-like feet to tear-marked faces, these majestic cats are well adapted to life on the African plains. The fierce predators sprint after their prey at high-speed, an exhausting dash that leaves them ready for a nap! This rhythmic text will lull readers into cheetah dreams of their own.
One winter day, Braden and Finley hike into the woods with their wildlife scientist dad and his team to tag a mamma bear who just had cubs. The tag makes it easy to find the mamma bear in the summer when the team gets a call about an orphaned bear cub that needs a new family. But will the mama bear adoptt this new cub as one of her own? The story is based on orphaned black bear cub rescue efforts by Michigan DNR.
Yodel and his siblings have woken from their long winter’s nap and are ready to learn and grow. Nature photographer Mary Holland captures precious moments of this black bear family’s springtime adventures. Just like human children, the yearlings play, explore their surroundings, and then snuggle up with mom for milk. They even stay with a special “babysitter” while mom is away. Someday soon, the yearlings will be grown and go off on their own, but for now they can catch a nap under their mama bear’s watchful eye.
Elephants are social animals. Maggie and Annabelle used to live together at the Alaska Zoo. But after Annabelle died, Maggie was all alone. For years, zookeepers tried to keep her happy (and warm). But ultimately they sent Maggie to live at a sanctuary (PAWS). Now she is happy and at home with her new herd of other elephants. This is a heartwarming story of how zoos ensure the best for the animals in their care—even if the best is not at their zoo.
Hearing is an important sense for animals’ survival. Ears give animals vital information to help them find food or listen for predators ready to attack. This continuation of Mary Holland’s award-winning Animal Anatomy and Adaptations series features a wide variety of animal ears and how animals use them. Did you know that some animals have ears on their legs? Like the eyes, mouths, legs, and tails featured in previous books, animal ears come in a wide variety of shapes and sizes—a perfect match for each animal’s needs.
What creeps while you sleep? Short, lyrical text makes this a perfect naptime or bedtime story. Young readers are introduced to nocturnal animals and their behaviors. Older readers learn more about each animal through paired-reading sidebar information.
Using a wide variety of stunning photographs, author Kevin Kurtz poses thought-provoking questions to help readers determine if things are living or nonliving. For example, if most (but not all) living things can move, can any nonliving things move? As part of the Compare and Contrast series, this is a unique look at determining whether something is living or nonliving.
How much does an elephant weigh? How do you know? How would you know if you didn’t have a modern scale? Six-year-old Cao Chong, the most famous child prodigy in Chinese history, faced just this problem! Chong watches as the prime minister’s most trusted and learned advisors debate different methods. The principle of buoyancy and a little bit of creative thinking help this boy come up with a solution.
Readers will be fascinated by the many ways animals use their tails: to move on land, swim, warn others, steer, hold onto things, keep warm, balance, fly, attract a mate, and even to defend themselves! Apparently tails are not just for wagging when happy. Following Animal Eyes, Animal Mouths (NSTA/CBC Outstanding Trade Science Award), and Animal Legs, Mary Holland continues her photographic Animal Anatomy and Adaptations series by exploring the many ways animals use their tails.
One cold, rainy, spring night, a young girl and her scientist father participate in “Salamander Night” to follow hundreds of spotted salamanders as they venture into a vernal pool to mate and lay eggs. Together, the father-child team studies the salamanders through their complete amphibian metamorphosis, culminating in the adult salamanders' disappearance into the woods in late summer. In easy-to-understand text, the girl relates the tale through her illustrated, photographic journal.
Jojo is prepping for an exciting night; it’s time for the bat count! Bats have always been a welcome presence during the summers in the family barn. But over the years, the numbers have dwindled as many bats in the area caught white-nose syndrome. Jojo and her family count the bats and send the numbers to scientists who study bats, to see if the bat population can recover. On a summer evening, the family quietly makes their way to the lawn to watch the sky and count the visitors to their farm.
Tudley, a pond-living painted turtle, adopts other animals' behaviors--simply because he doesn't know he can't! He flies like a bird, sings like a katydid, hops like a frog, and glows like a firefly. All the while, he uses his special behaviors to help other animals. But will Tudley's new friends help him when he needs help? The "For Creative Minds" education section includes fun facts about painted turtles, rubythroated hummingbirds, fireflies, leopard frogs, and true katydids. It also contains a "Make a Hopping Tudley" craft, a recipe for hummingbird sugar water, a "Creative Sparks" section, and a "Food for Thought" section.
Octavia Octopus and her sea-animal friends love playing camouflage games to practice how they would hide from a "big, hungry creature." Octavia, however, just cannot seem to get her colors right when she tries to shoot her purple ink cloud. What happens when the big, hungry shark shows up looking for his dinner? This creative book introduces basic colors along with the camouflage techniques of various sea animals - a great introduction to marine biology! The "For Creative Minds" educational section includes fun facts about octopuses and animal camouflage and protection. The craft uses primary colors (paint or tissue paper) to help children learn about blending colors.
Modeled after The Wizard of Oz, this enchanting story describes a young giraffe who suffers from a fear of heights. On his way to the doctor, he befriends a monkey who is afraid of climbing and a hippo who is a afraid of water. What causes the three new friends to face and overcome their fears? The "For Creative Minds" section includes fun facts and animal adaptation information, as well as a "Match the Feet" game and a mix-and-match activity. Encourages children to overcome their fears and to help friends in trouble.
Join Delfina the dolphin as she imagines that she becomes other sea animals: a fish, a sea turtle, a pelican, an octopus, a shark, even a manatee! The incredible morphing illustrations will have children laughing as they learn about the real differences between these ocean animals and their respective classes.
Every day more of the world’s forests disappear. Trees are cleared for agriculture, lost in wildfires and harvested for the valuable products they supply. Called the lungs of the planet, forests play a critical role in climate moderation. What happens when they’re gone? Are replanting and afforestation efforts helping? In If A Tree Falls: The Global Impact of Deforestation, author Nikki Tate gives an accessible and balanced look at forest practices throughout history, the growth of industry and the fight for preservation. Global deforestation affects us all. Find out what you can do to protect forests today and keep them healthy for future generations.
Chemical World: Science in Our Daily Lives explores some of the materials—all of which are made of basic chemical elements—that humans use or come into contact with in their day-to-day lives. Some of these chemicals are naturally occurring—clay, mercury, lead. Others have been synthesized by chemists during the past 150 years and used in a bewildering array of products ranging from roof shingles to toothpaste. Many chemical inventions, as well as naturally produced chemicals, have had profound effects on food supply, developing medicines and creating hosts of useful items for modern life. Despite people using both natural and synthetic chemicals with (mainly) good intentions, some chemicals have had unintended negative consequences. Chemical residues have contaminated ecosystems the world over and are compromising the health of many ecosystems, animals and humans. The goal of Chemical World: Science in our Daily Lives is to introduce readers to basic chemistry and chemical history, and to show how chemicals are used for particular reasons but sometimes turn out to be harmful to environmental and human health. It invites readers to take a look at the world around them and ask questions about what’s in their environment and how the things they use and eat every day can affect their own health and the planet’s health.
Wild birds are everywhere, from the dry deserts to the icy poles. We see them soaring overhead, paddling across water, flitting through trees, pecking at the ground or our backyard bird feeders and singing from fence posts. Birds contribute to the health of the planet and provide pleasure for millions of people, but wild birds are in trouble. Today, almost 200 bird species are critically endangered. They are threatened by habitat loss, invasive species, climate change, pesticides, plastics in the environment, human-made structures and other animals. Bird’s Eye View looks at why wild birds are important, why they need help and what young people all over the world are doing and can do to give wild birds a boost.
Simon tries to be kind. But sometimes he loses his temper and acts without thinking, which almost always gets him into trouble. As Simon begins to understand his outbursts, he imagines himself in a boxing ring with his emotions. Can he come out on top and learn how to acknowledge his feelings?
Imagine walking home from school one day and seeing a brain on the side of the road, a brain that, it turns out, is looking for a new home. Or instead of paying attention to the teacher, you shoot a paper airplane across the room and accidentally rip a hole in the fabric of the universe. And what would you do if you discovered that your class reading group was actually recruiting kids with telekinetic powers? Tales from Beyond the Brain is a collection of thirteen spooky stories that are as outrageous as they are terrifying. It's a throwback to the weird tales of yesteryear, in the vein of Tales from the Crypt and The Twilight Zone, but with contemporary characters and settings. Getting an education has never been more dangerous.
What was supposed to be a relaxing ocean crossing for Billy Stuart and his friends after their adventures on the island of Crete quickly transforms into a veritable odyssey. A violent storm throws them off their maritime course and leads to a downpour of events with potentially tragic consequences: mutiny, vicious monster attacks, siren songs and more. The dire situation doesn't get any better when they finally make it to shore. A thousand dangers make the Zintrepids' every waking moment seem like a nightmare. And is Billy Stuart still on the trail of his grandfather, the explorer Virgil Stuart who has traveled through time? Or are the Zintrepids forever lost in an unknown age and strange place? Brightly illustrated and enhanced with games and puzzles throughout, Billy Stuart and the Sea of One Thousand Dangers is the third title in the Billy Stuart Adventures series, following Billy Stuart and the Zintrepids and Billy Stuart in the Minotaur's Lair.
