Book: Prehistoric Actual Size

       Title:  Prehistoric Actual Size

·        Author: Steve Jenkins

·        Illustrator: Steve Jenkins    

·        Publisher: Houghton Mifflin Company

·        Copyright: 2005

·        ISBN#: 0-618-53578-0

·        Genre: Science, Picture Book

·        Library Location: Pampa Lovett Memorial Library

·        Summary:

                 

This book is a picture of creatures from the past in the prehistoric times. It has the name of the animal with a definition how to sound out the name and it also has the time, which it lived, and what the size of the animal. This book also tells about how scientist name and found out information from fossils. It tells what a fossil is and how knowing the past is helping scientist in the future. Scientist looks at fossils and determines the age of the fossil and what the specimen looked like ate, and when it died.

    

·        Personal Comments:

           

I liked this book because it showed all these creatures and what they looked like. The pages folded out, you could look at the animals, and the book had a page that you could look at and read about when the animal lives what it at and so on. This book would be good to start out in a biology class to start the study of fossils.  

·        Suggested Use in Classroom:

           

I would like to use this book to get my students interested in the animals before our time to show them what they looked like and what the meaning of there existence means to us now. It will show my students how to research prehistoric animals. It also gets them involved by showing fossils. It is just a fun book for the kids to look at and understand what a fossil is and how it is so valuable for scientist to have them.

Book: Cam Jansen: the Mystery of the U.F.O.

  Title:  Cam Jansen: the Mystery of the U.F.O.                                                                                                       

·        Author: David A. Alder

·        Illustrator: Susanna Natti

·        Publisher: Puffin Books

·        Copyright: 1980

·        ISBN#: 0-14-240011-4

·        Genre: Fiction

·        Library Location: Pampa Lovett Memorial Library

·        Summary:

                  Cam Jansen and her best friend Eric were walking home one day after school. There was a kitten up in a tree, Cam coxed it down with some left over tuna fish she had from lunch. When she put the cat down, she noticed lights in the sky over the park. The cat got back up into the tree so she got some bread and got the cat down once again but this time she put her in her coat pocket. They notice the lights were moving around and the town’s people were starting to gather across the street. People were taking pictures of these lights; Eric wanted to enter a photo in the local newspaper contest for the best picture. Therefore, he started taking pictures of the scene. Cam had a photogenic memory so every time she wanted to remember something she would say click. Therefore, when she said click Eric would take pictures. After the lights went away, it got the best of Cam so she went to investigate what she had saw in the park. She found the tree where the lights had touched and found some earth objects that did not make since. They heard some voices and saw two silver people with green hands walking to the other side of a wall that lead to the racket ball courts in the park. Cam decided to see what they were up to. They found out that the silver people were not from outer space but children making a hoax of the whole thing for the newspaper contest. At the end of the story Eric had taken a picture of the cat, Neptune they named her, licking a women’s hand during the light show in the sky and he won an honorary mention for the contest.

    

·     Personal Comments:

           

 I liked this book because it reminded me of being a kid trying to find out the truth of something. Cam is a smart girl and had her friends to help her investigate the problem of the UFO’s that the whole town was talking about. In addition, when I was a kid I liked to read mystery books, it kept me interested in the book.

·        Suggested Use in Classroom:

            I wanted to use this book in my classroom because it talks about the planets and what the names are. In addition, it has the mystery of UFO’s, which is a big science mystery all by itself anyways. I thought this would be a fun book to get my students interested in the planets and get their imagination juices flowing. It also teaches the students about the benefits of having friendship and people to help when the situation gets tough. I know that UFO’s are not really a science but the information in the book will help the students get ready for the Solar System and the Universe.

Book: The Adventures of Vin Fiz

·        Title:  The Adventures of Vin Fiz

·        Author: Clive Cussler

·        Illustrator: William Farnsworth

·        Publisher:  Philomel

·        Copyright: 2006

·        ISBN#:  0399244743

·        Genre: Fiction

·        Library Location: Pampa Lovett Memorial Library

·        Summary:

                  Twins Casey and Lacey Nicefolk, from Castroville, California travel the United States in a model of the Vin Fiz Plane by the Wright Brothers. A man came to their house one summer and he built the children a magical box that would turn toys into real, working machines. They decided one day to make the model airplane into the real thing and fly to New York. They started out early in the morning with their dog Floppy; they faced many challenges along the way. They had to save a town from henchmen making the towns people slaves in a gold mine. Casey and Lacey also had to help a runaway train stop that was full of passengers and to capture the bandits. Finally, their last adventure was to save two girls from going off the Niagara Falls in Buffalo NY. 

·        Personal Comments:

I chose this book because it had adventure and danger in it. I want my students to be excited and curious. I like them to get involved with the book. This book to me was a great read and I am twenty-three years old. I never knew what was going to come around the corner next. It helped me remember what it was like to be a kid and have a vivid imagination.

·        Suggested Use in Classroom:

            I would like to use this book in my classroom, because I feel that it has a connection of how the different parts of the United States has different landscapes and it comes together with the hierarchy of the different types of ecology for my biology class. The history of the Wright Brothers and what they did to make “Flight” become possible, shows my students how the physics of flight work into the world of biology.

Book: The River

·        Title:  The River

·        Author: Gary Paulsen         

·        Illustrator: Neil Waldman   

·        Publisher: Yearling

·        Copyright: 1991 by Gary Paulsen

·        ISBN#: 0-440-40753-2

·        Genre: Fiction                                 

·        Library Location: Pampa Lovett Memorial Library

·        Summary:

                 

                  The river is about a boy who had been stranded in the forest fifty-four days with only a hatchet after his plane had crashed over the vast wilderness in the Northeast. It had been two years since this crash and the government has asked him to do it all over again. To help them understand how they can better make their training become as real as possible, Brian decides to make the journey once again to help other people learn how to survive out in the wilderness. Brian will not be alone this time Derek Haltzer; a government psychologist will be going with him to write down how to survive the wilderness.  They land on the lake they previously picked out on a map everything was going well until a violent storm came. Derek and the radio were struck by lightning, the radio was dead, and Derek was in a coma. It is up to Brian to save him. He makes a decision to take him down river to a trading post for help.

    

 ·   Personal Comments:

           

            I really enjoyed this book. It has adventure, terror, and heroism. I thought that this book was a good read because it had different things in this book I thought that would be a good experience for kids to understand what is was like to be in the woods. It has survival skills that cannot be taught in schools. It shows how someone can try his or her best to do the impossible to save a life.  I also liked this book because it has a good description on how the wilderness looks like and what lives in the wilderness.

·        Suggested Use in Classroom:

           

       I would like to use this book in my classroom, because it shows relationships in the world between hierarchy of ecosystems, species, and landscapes. These would be a great way to introduce the Kingdoms in biology to my class. This story has a great ending and it shows how to survive in the wood. This book will have a good influence on the children and show them how they can relate the book by what they learn about ecosystems and animals in the classroom.

Book: Dark Day in the Deep Sea

·      

         Title:  Dark Day in the Deep Sea

·        Author: Mary Pope Osborne                                                                      

·        Illustrator: Sal Murdocca

·        Publisher: Random House

·        Copyright: 2008 by Mary Pope Osborne    

·        ISBN#:978-0-357-83731

·        Genre: Oceanography children book, Fiction

·        Library Location: Pampa Lovett Memorial Library

·        Summary:

Jack and Annie set out on another adventure to find the four secrets of happiness for Merlin. They have found two of the secrets and they are on their way to find the third. They start out in their hometown in a magical tree house. They have a book called the Deep Sea; they open it up and make a wish. They arrive on a beach back in time to meet the HMS Challenger. They get to come aboard the ship and explore the magical world deep under the sea. They discover many wonderful creatures with the help of Henry. At the end of the day, they discover that all creatures should be honored and treated with respect. The crew had to listen to the truth to understand this meaning. Jack and Annie had discovered the third secret and went back to their own time by the tree house.

    

·        Personal Comments:

 I liked this book because it had facts about the ocean and the history of the first ships to sail around the world searching for the treasures under the vast ocean and the creatures in them. They discovered how the landscape was under the ocean. Without these brave sailors, we would know about our oceans. It gives the students the facts need to understand how the ocean became known to the world, but it is a fictional story to keep them interested about the story.

·        Suggested Use in Classroom:

            I would use this in the classroom when I was going to teach the students about the ocean. It is a small book so it would not take long to read. In addition, it has facts on how they determined the depth of the ocean, how they caught specimens, and how they named many creatures from the dark depths of the water. It is an adventure story of kids close to the age of my

students. It also has a meaning of life where it teaches the kids what true happiness is. This can help with children’s home lives and how they can make their lives better.

PBS Teachers

Name of Website: PBS Teachers

Website Address: http://www.pbs.org/teachers/

Copyright Date/Update:  Copyright© 1995 – 2009 Public Broadcasting Service (PBS). All rights reserved.

Author/organization credentials:   This page is designed to facilitate submissions about content providers or forum participants who provide or post copyright protected material without necessary rights and permissions.

Web site design and ease of navigation: This website is very accessible and can be easily navigated. This website design is for teachers to find material for their classroom and lesson plans. It will help teachers find material for all ages and grades. The tool bar at the top has the grade levels, which they are looking for, and a search bar if the information is not right there. It is easy to read. Once you scan your mouse pointer over the tool bar it will have a drop down menu for the grade level subjects. Then the teacher may precede to the next area she or he wishes to search. It has resource material and featured content information and articles for the teacher to read. I like this because it gives the teacher information on how to teach to the class and other comments by other teachers.

Response and Recommendation of use:  I would use this site to better my classroom management skills. To provide better material on the subject I am teaching. This will not only help me but my students learn. The PBS program has many different shows and activities for teachers to help their students in the classroom and outside of the classroom. This will help not only teachers but parents as well. Students can have their parents watch the programs with them and become a family night. This will help the students achieve better in school and at home. Teachers need all the help they can get with the demand of higher thinking and achievements for the students and school. This website will help take the pressure off some of the lesson planning. If the teacher is prepared for the students, the students will have maximized learning time.

Brain Pop

Name of website: Brain Pop

Website Address: http://www.brainpop.com/

Copyright date and/or last update:  © 1999-2010 BrainPOP. All rights reserved.

Author/organization credentials:   Founded in 1999, this site is creates animated, curriculum-based content that engages students, supports educators, and bolsters achievement. This site helps students with new topics of subject material and other school related issues. It can help students review for test.

Web site design and ease of navigation: I like this site because it has fun, colorful squares as the navigational keys. It has big words and you can find what you are looking for with ease. It has categories of all subjects not just Science. Once you click on the topic you, as it will go into depth about that one subject material. After you have chosen a specific topic, then it will have definitions of that word, information, and a clip for visual aid. I like this the most because it can let the visual learners see what is going on in the subject they are learning.

Response and Recommendation of use:  This site is probably my favorite for a classroom of any age or grade. It will help the different learning styles in the classroom come together as one. It has so many subjects to learn from all teachers can use this site for information other than the textbook. With subjects such as science and math, it is hard for students sometimes to see and understand the material the teacher is lecturing on. If this site can help the students study or learn, new material the teacher will be a head in the learning and teaching. The only thing that is upsetting about this site is that you have to subscribe to the site to get full access for the information. I would try to get the school administrators to get this site on the schools list of websites to have access to. This will only improve a technology-based environment for the school and the students.

Marian Koshland Science Museum of the National Academy of Sciences

Name of Website: Marian Koshland Science Museum of the National Academy of Sciences

Website Address: http://www.koshland-science-museum.org/index.jsp

 Copyright date and/or last update:  copyright 2010 National Academy of Sciences. All rights reserved

Author/organization credentials:   These people are responsible for the website: Marian Koshland Science Museum
Erika Shugart
Annie Drinkard
Shantia Douglas
S2N Media, Inc.
John Prusinski
Kathryn Prusinski
Joan Endres
David Holm
Michael Conlon
Marissa Shalfi

Objective Consulting, Inc.
Gene W. Homicki
Allen S. Firstenberg
Nancy Deschenes
Miranda Jones

This site is to give the public a chance to have virtual tour of the museum.

Web site design and ease of navigation:  This site is designed for a virtual tour of the museum. The exhibits are set up so that students and other people alike can visit the museum without having to leave their homes or schools. It is very easy to navigate with a tool bar at the top and the categories on the left hand side. This site is more for a teacher or a parent to help younger children to look at the exhibits, but for older students it would be easy for them to search the site. In addition, the site offers online web quest for students to have a lesson over the exhibits in the museum. For example, Global Warming, it shows different countries and how they use the energy to light the cities and the causes of the heat. It is easy to read and find information about.

Response and Recommendation of use:  I like this site for the reason, which students can get a museum experience without living the classroom. It gives teachers and students the opportunity to broaden the horizons of our students. It also gets the students to learn about different types of sciences that they could not possibly get in the classroom of some low social economical schools across the country that could not afford to send the students to the actual museum. The textbook in a classroom is not always the best way to learn. I would like to use this site in my classroom to have the students do an activity on a web quest. This not only helps students understand what they are learning better, but it will give them more information and knowledge with an adventurous trip.

Science News for Kids

Name of Website: Science News for Kids

Website Address:  http://www.sciencenewsforkids.org/

Copyright date and/or last update: Copyright © 2010 Society for Science & the Public

Author/organization credentials:   Tom Siegfried, Editor in Chief, Science News for Kids and Emily Sohn, Writer, Science News for Kids, This site is a non-profit organization for kids ages 9-14 older children may go on as well. This is a published magazine from the Science News. It has many companies and other organizations that sponsor this site. Founded in 1921, Society for Science & the Public has the mission of advancing the popular understanding of science through publications and educational programs. The organization administers the Intel Science Talent Search, the Intel International Science and Engineering Fair, the Broadcom MASTERS, and other programs in science education.1719 N St., NW, Washington, DC 20036 | 202-785-2255 | editor@snkids.com

Web site design and ease of navigation:  The design of this site is very simple and has many links on the left column for different categories. On the tool bar above, it has links to puzzles, Sci-Fi, Science fair, Teacher zones. On the left column, there is links to many different science related topics, for example, Chemistry and Mathematics. The navigation is simple click on a subject then it will connect too many different credited articles on the subject. The teacher zone is a great place for teachers to find different websites pertaining to science and other information that is suited for the classroom.

Response and Recommendation of use:  I really like this site because of the many articles on so many subjects. Students can have access to read about many creatures in the world that they may have never seen before. With teachers in mind the articles on this site can be very useful for a lesson plan in many subjects not just science. In addition, the site has recommended websites for teachers to look at. This can help teachers find material for their classroom or other material for the students. The teacher can also assign an article for a journal or other writing assignments. The teacher is the one who can have many possibilities to further their student’s education as they choose.

National Geographic Kids

Name of Web Site:  National Geographic Kids

 Web Site Address:  http://kids.nationalgeographic.com/kids/

 Copyright date and/or last update:  © 1996-2010 National Geographic Society. All rights reserved.

 Author/organization credentials:  National Geographic Kids is published by the National Geographic Society. All rights reserved. 

 Web site design and ease of navigation:  This website is very kid friendly, which I like. It has bright colors and moving animals on the screen. It has many activities, videos, pictures, and stories about people and places. The buttons are easy to read and you are able to navigate quickly through the site. It also has activities that the students or children can get involved. This site has a good tool bar which is has all the categories you can go to. I would change one thing about the tool bar, that the menu bar had drop down categories so that the children could go straight to the menu they wanted without going through the whole site.  This also has a poll for the kids to vote on numerous of things. This is a good education step to teach children the importance of their voices through voting. National Geographic Kids also has current news stories on animals and other major issues on the site, this helps the kids be involved with current events around the world. Over all I like this site for a science community for students and teachers.

Response and Recommendation for Use: I like this site because of the so many different thing that the children can do. This is a good science and cultural site for the kids to explore many different regions of the world without living the computer. It is kid friendly with games and activities to do.  I would like to use this site when we are learning about different countries, animals, and habitats. We could have a field trip to the tropical rain forest during class. Teachers could make so many good lesson plans with this site. Not only Science teachers could use this but, Social Studies and English Literature teachers could as well. The stories are fascinating and will have a cultural aspect to the students learning.