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Science books
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From: Robin Smith <robinsmith59>
Date: Tue, 12 Jul 2005 10:22:05 -0500
From Dean Schneider:
I teach 7th- and 8th-grade English, but I love books of all sorts -- picture books, fully illustrated nonfiction, YA, historical novels.... It seems to me that science, like history, is often poorly taught, with the goal of simply trudging through a curriculum, covering material. All of these great science books being discussed can bring bright, lively books into classrooms and libraries, books by writers and illustrators who so clearly love what they are writing about. On the floor next to my chair here in my office at home are a few books I pulled that I've collected as examples of fascinating science:
Sneed Collard's A Firefly Biologist at Work and The Forest in the Clouds Larry Pringle's Sharks! Strange and Wonderful and Bats! Strange and Wonderful Joy Cowley and Nic Bishop's Red-Eyed Tree Frog Caroline Arnold's Giant Shark and On the Brink of Extinction Brenda Guiberson's Into the Sea several of Steve Jenkins' books Song of the Water Boatman & Other Pond Poems by Joyce Sidman, illus. by Beckie Prange
Even an old history and English person like me gets caught up in these well written and beautifully illustrated books. I agree with Katy Horning: don't be fooled by the apparent simplicity of some of these books. Think of the difficulty of taking a big, sometimes controversial, topic and writing a poetic, beautiful book accessible to a six-year-old. And Lisa Peters' Our Family Tree is a perfect example. The text is lively and poetic and sophisticated and a great read-aloud for children young and old, and Lauren Stringer's illustrations are gorgeous.
If you're lucky enough to work in a school that has a budget for visiting writers and artists, inviting them to your school is to bring science to life with their books, slides, discussions, and passions for their subjects. Sneed Collard and Larry Pringle came to my school together a couple of years ago and we all had a great time. If you don't have such a budget, there are all of these great books! Fill your homes and schools with them. Read them aloud, have them in your school and classroom libraries. The books themselves have the power to inspire a love of science in kids
(and adults).
Dean Schneider The Ensworth School Nashville, TN schneiderd at ensworth.com
Received on Tue 12 Jul 2005 10:22:05 AM CDT
Date: Tue, 12 Jul 2005 10:22:05 -0500
From Dean Schneider:
I teach 7th- and 8th-grade English, but I love books of all sorts -- picture books, fully illustrated nonfiction, YA, historical novels.... It seems to me that science, like history, is often poorly taught, with the goal of simply trudging through a curriculum, covering material. All of these great science books being discussed can bring bright, lively books into classrooms and libraries, books by writers and illustrators who so clearly love what they are writing about. On the floor next to my chair here in my office at home are a few books I pulled that I've collected as examples of fascinating science:
Sneed Collard's A Firefly Biologist at Work and The Forest in the Clouds Larry Pringle's Sharks! Strange and Wonderful and Bats! Strange and Wonderful Joy Cowley and Nic Bishop's Red-Eyed Tree Frog Caroline Arnold's Giant Shark and On the Brink of Extinction Brenda Guiberson's Into the Sea several of Steve Jenkins' books Song of the Water Boatman & Other Pond Poems by Joyce Sidman, illus. by Beckie Prange
Even an old history and English person like me gets caught up in these well written and beautifully illustrated books. I agree with Katy Horning: don't be fooled by the apparent simplicity of some of these books. Think of the difficulty of taking a big, sometimes controversial, topic and writing a poetic, beautiful book accessible to a six-year-old. And Lisa Peters' Our Family Tree is a perfect example. The text is lively and poetic and sophisticated and a great read-aloud for children young and old, and Lauren Stringer's illustrations are gorgeous.
If you're lucky enough to work in a school that has a budget for visiting writers and artists, inviting them to your school is to bring science to life with their books, slides, discussions, and passions for their subjects. Sneed Collard and Larry Pringle came to my school together a couple of years ago and we all had a great time. If you don't have such a budget, there are all of these great books! Fill your homes and schools with them. Read them aloud, have them in your school and classroom libraries. The books themselves have the power to inspire a love of science in kids
(and adults).
Dean Schneider The Ensworth School Nashville, TN schneiderd at ensworth.com
Received on Tue 12 Jul 2005 10:22:05 AM CDT
