Nonfiction: Log Life (Amy Hevron)

Title: Log Life

Author: Amy Hevron

Illustrator: Amy Hevron

Target Ages: 5 and up

Genre:  Nonfiction Science Picture Book

Publisher Summary: 

“A fallen log

is full of life.

Peek inside this tiny habitat

and meet the plants

and the creatures

that call it home.”

First Lines: “Once there stood a giant fir tree that stretched to the sun. One stormy day, a great gust came.  The tree creaked…and cracked…and collapsed.”

Memorable Moments: 

EVERYTHING

Evaluation: 

This book is an ideal introduction for young readers learning about habitats.  However, older readers could use it as a springboard for research or projects.

The narrative shows how a “dead” tree gets a second life as a nurse log. It begins in the spring of first year. The child-friendly multimedia illustrations show how different organisms quickly make their home in the nurse log.  Fungi, lichens, liverwort, and much more join in the lively party in their new habitat. Then, the insects and animals are introduced that make this place to call home or to find food. Cute dialogue boxes for the different organisms keep this potentially dense topic lively and child-centered.  

The story skips ahead 10 years and moves to the summer season.  Now, lots of new organisms inhabit the log–from frogs who find a cool den in the hollowed parts to salamanders who slither in the hollows to hide.  

It jumps three more times–to autumn in 100 years, winter in 500 years, and spring again in 1000 years. As a result, readers get a glimpse of the life cycle of a nurse tree in all the different seasons and through many centuries.  

The narrative is a story of cause and effect.  Because one group moves in, it attracts others.  As the nurse log changes, so do the creatures and organisms that make a temporary or permanent home there.  (Ideal crossover skill)

With so much ground being covered, it may seem like this book too comprehensive for children. Not to worry, Hevron does an excellent job keeping the log’s narrative light and readable. Everything from the pictures to the text are age appropriate. 

Log Life is an amazing science picture book!  It is geared for the elementary level, but it is so accessible, fascinating, and informative, readers of all ages will enjoy getting a look into this little known world.  

Activities and Extension Ideas for Lesson Plans:

• Comparison:  Create a Venn diagram comparing/contrasting this habitat with another habitat. 

• Causal: Use a graphic organizer to plot one or more causal relationships or a causal chain that occurs in this habitat.  

• Creative Writing:  Write about log life from the perspective of one of the animals or organisms. 

• Research: Students can pick one of the creatures who make a nurse log home.  Then, write a paper, fill in a graphic organizer, or create a SlideShow with the new information they found.

• Art:  Use a medium like a shoebox or small poster board to create a 3-dimensional or multi-media replica of one of the stages of the nurse log.

• Reading: Also, read A Log's Life by Wendy Pfeffer. Compare and contrast the different depictions of this habitat. This paid TPT resource has 19 activities could accompany either or both books.

For more Perfect Picture Book suggestions visit Susanna Leonard Hill's blog.

Daylight Starlight Wild Life (by Wendell Minor)

Title: Daylight Starlight Wild Life

Author:  Wendell Minor

Illustrator:  Wendell Minor

Target Ages: 3-7

First Lines:  “The sun shines on Earth, bringing the light and warmth of day.  Do you know these daylight visitors?  Then Earth spins away from the sun, bringing darkness and cool of night.  Do you know these starlight visitors?”

Publisher Summary:  “In amazing lifelike, luminous paintings, Wendell Minor, one of America’s finest wildlife and landscape painters, reveals the variety of wildlife that surrounds us when we are sleeping and when we are awake.  He invites readers to experience the movements, sounds, colors, and texture of diurnal and nocturnal creatures.”

Evaluation and Learning Activities:

The first 2-page spread previews all the animals that will be covered in this day/night comparison.  Children get a visual of the two types of animals—diurnal and nocturnal—grouped together.  Parents and educators can begin by teaching or reviewing the animals.  Then, see how many the children can identify as you read together.

The scope of the pictures varies. Two-page spreads with a single animal like the red tailed hawk and wide-eyed owl give readers a feeling of the wide expanse as well as the majesty of the creatures and nature.  Then, there are also landscape split screens with different animals, such as woodchucks in the day (top) and skunks at night (bottom), which prompt a sense of movement and connectedness.  Many of the others give a side-by-side comparison of similar animals, such as white-tailed deer—red fox, chipmunk—deer mouse, and tiger swallowtail butterfly—Luna moth.  The illustrations in all their forms are fantastic!  Worth the trip to the bookstore or library to see!

The text is straightforward, just one descriptive line per animal.  Adult readers can point out the key ideas in the words and pictures.  For instance, the cottontail rabbit and opossum are on facing pages.  Both have a trio of young.  Discuss the difference in how the two species travel and interact with their environments.  The opossum “plods” through the field and forages with her babies on her back.  However, the rabbit is more cautious as her babies follow her lead.  Similarly, the grey squirrel and flying squirrel are contrasted.  Discuss similarities and difference in how they look and act.

For older children, introduce animal classification—mammals, reptiles, birds, amphibians, and insects.  The author includes some additional “Fun Facts” on each animal.  Copy the pages.  Cut the pictures out. May also want to paste on to small notecards or halved index cards for durability. Work together to classify between nocturnal and diurnal categories or based on the aforementioned animal classifications.

After reading, parents can accompany children on a walk during the day and at dusk/night in a place where animals are likely to be spotted. See how many of the creatures from the book you can find together as well as others not mentioned.  Classroom teachers are not likely to be able to take kids on an evening walk, but they can encourage children to do one with their families. Students can share their experiences during circle or other group time.  Make a chart with the name and/or picture of each animal.  As a child shares an experience seeing one, add a check mark.  Af the close of the unit, complete math problems with the data.  

Daylight Starlight Wild Life is an outstanding introduction to animal habits and classification.  Readers of all age will love the amazing illustrations and enjoy the insightful journey the book takes you on. 

Other Book Connections:

I also recommend Divya Srinivasan’s Little Owl’s Day. A noisy squirrel wakes up Little Owl.  Fascinated by the sun and the creatures moving around during the day, he explores the woods in a new light.  Traveling around he meets butterflies flittering, dragonflies skimming, wolf pups playing, and many other daytime animals.  As the day comes to a close, he observes the diurnal animals settling down and the nocturnal ones waking up.  The adorable cartoon animals and dynamic illustrations are ideal for the 2-5 age group. 

X Why Z Animals (by Mark Shulman & James Buckley Jr.)

Summary of X WhyZ Animals (by Mark Shulman & James Buckley Jr.)

X Why Z Animals is written for inquiring young minds.  This non-fiction book is broken into 8 sections, each a different class of animals—mammals, reptiles, amphibians, insects, arachnids, sea animals, birds, and dinosaurs.  The sections begin with a brief description of each class, including a description of characteristics unique to them.  Then, there are questions that kids commonly ask like:

Why do chameleons change color?

Why do snakes stick out their tongues?

Why do baby deer have spots?

Why do roosters crow in the morning?

Why do dolphins make clicking sounds?

Why do fish swim in schools?

The questions have a short explanation in child-friendly language.  There are also “X Why Z Facts” interspersed throughout, which are fun tidbits about animals.  Colorful photographs compliment each page of this “Time for Kids” book. 

Evaluation

The book is oversized with big print and vivid photographs.  The information is laid out well and the questions are engaging.  It is ideal for sitting with young children and reading out loud.

X Why Z Animals could be used in a classroom to accompany units on different classes of animals.  The only downside is that each animal class is not dealt with equally.  For instance, there are 20 pages devoted to mammals, but only 2 for amphibians. Granted it, children may be more interested in mammals because of their interaction with them at home, on farms, and in the woods.  However, I feel the coverage could be a bit more equal. 

Overall, I enjoyed this book.  I recommend it for kids ages 3-8.  They will enjoy the pictures and dialogue about some of their favorite animals. 

The X Why Z series includes books on space, the human body, and general questions.

Picture Books (Science): Life Cycles

At my local library, there is an exciting new science series exploring the life cycles of plant and animals (both vertebrates and non-vertebrates).  They are written by L.L. Owens and published by The Child’s World.  Of course, the series covers the most commonly researched life cycles like butterflies and frogs, but they also delve into others like a fern, a clown fish, and a chicken.  I checked out The Life Cycle of an Earthworm and The Life Cycle of a Snail. 

Each book begins with a general overview defining a life cycle.  Then, it delves into background information about the subject.  There are so many fascinating facts about snails in the book, such as how they move, sense, and eat.  Even though children will likely be more familiar with earthworms, there is still much to learn.  For instance, they use their skin to detect light and to breath air.  Next, their origins, early lives, and adulthood are described, which includes their habits and predators.  Finally, the reproductive process is explained.  Interestingly, snails and earthworms have both parts necessary to reproduce.   Each book is rounded out with a colorful 2-page summary of the life cycle. 

As an adult, I found myself expanding my own schema of knowledge, but the information is written in a manner that youngster will understand.  The text is well-written and appealing.   One of the highlights is the large, vibrant photographs of their stages and behaviors.  Many are rare action shots like a mole eating a worm or a snail laying eggs. 

I recommend this Life Cycle series for ages 7 and up.  In addition to the earthworm and snail, the following living things are covered: butterfly, chicken, clown fish, daisy, fern, frog, human, ladybug, polar bear, and snake. These books are a wonderful supplement or extension of a science curriculum.  Many families will, also, find them to be educational leisure reading.  

This post is linked up with Science Sunday at Adventures of Mommydom.  

Picture Books (Science): Animal Diaries--Life Cycles Series

New from Bearport Publishing for Spring 2012 is the Animal Diaries:  Life Cycles series.   There are five incredible titles—perfect for young readers—A Butterflies Life, A Frog’s Life, A Kangaroo’s Life, A Snake’s Life, and A Spider’s Life.   This series is not only a celebration of the wonders of creation and the animal kingdom, but of childhood curiosity.  Each one is written through the perspective of a child, journaling about his/hers observations.  There are large, close-up photographs to give child readers’ an in-depth examination.  Several of the pages have interactive text boxes that challenge the reader to describe what they see or to make predictions.  I reviewed two books in the series:  A Spider’s Life and A Snake’s Life.  Both are written by Ellen Lawrence. 

A Spider’s Life 

This journal begins in May when Ella, the young observer, finds two spiders involved in a mating ritual.  She draws her own picture of the event at the corner of the page.  A stunning full-page picture of the spider faces the entry.  Text bubbles offer additional facts and information about the spider.  Then, on June 1 she describes how the spider creates an egg sac and lays her eggs.  Each new entry chronicles the changes that occur as the young arachnids hatch, leave the sac, and venture out on their own.  She observes as one of them hunts, jumps, and eats.  The cycle draws to a close in December as the spider hibernates for winter. 

A Snake’s Life 

While Grace is at her Uncle Joe’s ranch, she stumbles upon two California mountain king snakes in mid April.  Two months later, she finds 10 eggs hidden inside an old tree stump.  Readers get to view pictures of the stump, the life size eggs, and the snake laying the eggs.   When the babies hatch, Grace describes her experience observing and touching them.  Snap shots and information show one of the snakes shedding his skin, sunbathing on a rock, and eating a rat!   In December, the snakes looks for a place to sleep for the winter. 

Animal Diaries:  Life Cycles series depicts observing and journaling about animal life as exciting and practical.  It is sure to inspire young budding scientists to try their hand at it.  Take your children out on nature walks this spring—in your yard, at a park, or in the woods.  Encourage them the get out their magnifying glasses, cameras, and notebooks.  They can create their own Animal Diary.  

Also, children can pick an animal or insect, research it, and create a journal with pictures from the Internet and other sources that parallels what they learned in their investigation. 

I highly recommend Animal Diaries: Life Cycles for ages 4-9.   Teachers (home and classroom) and parents are sure to spark excitement and a love for nature and animals with this series. 

This post is link with Science Sunday at Adventures in Mommydom

and Sunday Showcase at Mom of 2 Posh Divas.

Picture Book (Science): Animalogy, Animal Analogies (by Marianne Berkes)

Animalogy is not your traditional book about animals.  Instead, author Marianne Berkes compares and contrasts various creatures from insects to mammals using analogies.   Behaviors, sounds, body parts, and classifications are just some of the comparisons made between creatures that on the surface appear to have no connection.  Here is a sample:  

Robin is to wing, as goldfish is to fin.

Beaver is to build, as spider is to spin.

Youngsters have the opportunity to discover the connections within the analogies and to practice creating their own using similar patterns.  In addition, each pair (as exemplified above) of analogies ends in rhyme.  Children can identify the rhyming words and brainstorm other related ones. 

CathyMorrison, illustrator, depicts her subjects in minute detail—whether it is the fins on a goldfish or the hairs on a spider’s legs.  Every living thing is beautifully portrayed in its natural habitat.  Readers catch a glimpse of the African savannah, rocky mountain terrain, dense forests, and much more!   Each page and comparison is a starting point for lively discussion and interaction between adult readers and child listeners. 

I recommend Animalogy for ages 4-9.  It is a excellent resource for teachers and parents.  For additional resources to extend student learning, visit the Sylvan Dell website for a FREE full-color 48-page color teaching guide full of exciting and educational ideas.


This post is linked up with Enchanted Thursday blog hop at Enchanted Homeschooling.