I was talking to a student one day about the approximate distance between Georgia and New York and they had absolutely no clue. Their spatial abilities were suspect at best with them guessing at only a couple of hundred miles to multiple thousands. Space is like that too, except so much more interesting and potentially complex. The Planets Are Very, Very, Very Far Away puts the impossibly massive scale of the solar system into a scope that anyone is able to understand. Author Mike Vago is an author who produces books that are as much of a publishing statement as they are informative, entertaining, or both.
Vast nothingness turned into curiosity food for kidsCategory: STEM
When Dinosaurs Conquered the Skies, a STEM sibling by another name
Family, especially the older branches in our trees can be complicated, can’t it? When Dinosaurs Conquered the Skies is an illustrated book whose sibling we read in 2022. That book, When Plants Took Over the Planet is a gorgeous illustrated book that’s all about the massive wave of plants that crept out of the water millions of years ago. Its sibling, When Dinosaurs Conquered the Skies is cut from a similar cloth in its layout and illustrations. However, in reading it I decided to treat it as a narrative book, instead of a reference book and the result was quite interesting.
Do You Know Rocket Science?, go-to, fun STEM for pre-k
From its title, Do You Know Rocket Science? could be confused with something from the What Is or Who Was from the Who HQ authored series of books. While that series is awesome, they’re for older readers, which is somewhat ironic given the subject matter of rocket science. Instead, Do You Know Rocket Science? is actually a book about rocket science, that’s presented on a level that pre-k through first, as well as, their parents, will understand and enjoy. It’s from Chris Ferrie, an author who we’ve written about on a couple of occasions that has a knack for turning science and STEM into something that kids want to know about.
It’s OK if you and the young reader learn this togetherThe Power of Architecture, a love letter for those building curious kids
Being a substitute primary school teacher I know what schools look like, and sadly, most of them look the same. If you work in an office building you probably know what they look like too and I’d bet that most of them are cookie-cutter-tastic. I’m not naïve, I realize that architecture, especially those that make a statement, come at a price of either money, land, resources or a combination thereof. The Power of Architecture: 25 Modern Buildings from Around the World is an illustrated book for curious kids that want to explore how things are and the way that they could be.
It only looks high brow…… it’s really for ages 8 and upOctopuses Have Zero Bones, an instant classic and ‘best of’ any year
Octopuses Have Zero Bones is one of the best books of the year. Granted, it is very early in 2023, but that’s OK because it was technically released in September of 2022. We’re not going to let a little technicality like that get in the way of calling this book an instant classic and a ‘best of’, whichever year you want to put it in. One thing that we ascribe to is treating kids as smart as you want them to be. When our own children were younger we did it that way and it’s the way that I teach my classes, regardless of the grade. Octopuses Have Zero Bones is a counting book, but it’s so much more than just a book that’ll teach counting to toddlers.
Pick that jaw up off of the floor and jump into this fabulous book5-Minute Ada Twist, Scientist Stories, nuggets of STEM fun for ages 5-7
As we’ve said before, it’s an Ada Twist world, we’re just living in it. For kids of a certain age, see those kids who are between five and seven years old, Ada Twist has been tickling their STEM fancy since 2016. She started out in illustrated books, has branched out into chapter books, a Netflix show, and now 5-Minute Ada Twist, Scientist Stories takes the series to bed. The book doesn’t overtly say bedtime stories with Ada Twist. However, the five-minute timeline in the book’s title lets parents know that this is a safe place to read when it’s already ten minutes past where they should’ve been.
Those pre-k kids know the deal on this oneDigestion! The Musical, a madcap illustrated opus on food’s destiny for ages five and up
Upend expectations. Take what is normally expected from a thing and completely subvert it in a much more excellent manner than you are used to. Digestion! The Musical is an illustrated book that takes the normally short presentation of those books and makes it longer. It takes a subject that every elementary-aged child is curious about and turns it into a theme park of a book. There are three distinct areas of the book that looks at how the body digests food. Digestion! The Musical works as an illustrated book for young elementary ages, as well as, a primer on the human body for ages six and up. It’s also worth noting that it does this with style, STEM, humor, and poop, just in case your audiences are curious about the end results.
Human Heart Floor Puzzle for kids from Dr. Livingston puts it together
Kids love to have fun. Kids learn in different ways. Everyone knows the first statement, but not enough people acknowledge, pivot, or have the ability to pivot when the learning process might need a different mode of entry. The human body is a naturally curious topic for upper elementary and middle school students. However, there aren’t exactly internal organs that those ages have access to for ‘hands-on’ learning and books can only go so far in motivating them. Genius Games Junior has the Doctor Livingston Jr. line of puzzles that introduces the rabbit hole of our human body that fit like a glove for fifth grade and up.
Just enough education that’s partnered with puzzle fun