Saturday, April 2, 2011

Picture Book (Science): Newton and Me

Newton.phpSummary of Newton and Me
It is Saturday morning.  A young boy is awakened by his playful dog, Newton.  They decide to spend their day playing and exploring outside.  Together, they demonstrate simple experiments in force and motion.  For instance, they roll a ball on different surfaces/areas and observe differences in speed and pathway.  Next, they throw the ball up in the air at different forces. The duo, also, try pushing and pulling experiments with toy and full-size trucks as well as a wagon, a bike, and a rope.  As the day comes to a close, the boy realizes:

Playing with Newton gave me the notion
that pushing and pulling are forces of motion.

Evaluation:
Newton and Me is the perfect combination of realistic fiction and scientific facts.  The young boy conducts experiments using everyday items in common activities.  Through his observations, he is able to draw scientific conclusions.  This book is ideal to induce experimentation and curiosity or to introduce a unit or lesson on force and motion.  The bright colorful pictures (by Sherry Rogers) with the smooth, rhyming text (by Lynne Mayer) will captivate young readers.    

Teaching Opportunities:
Sylvan Dell has developed a 25-page across the curriculum teaching guide.  The book page also includes various quizzes and other resources. 

2 comments:

  1. I think incorporating science or history into picture books is a great way to expose young children to the world around them. Newton and Me looks like an engaging book. Thanks for the post!

    ReplyDelete

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