Education | Page 9 of 39

Kind-of green is great too, here are some go-to ways to get it done

Want to make a switch toward more organic living, but not interested in going totally green? I get that! I was in the same position, so I came up with ideas to help me live more sustainably in manageable ways.

Cut Down On Your Waste

While we’d all love to have solar panels on our home and live without an electric bill, it just isn’t feasible. There are smaller changes that you can make in your life that will help cut down on the fossil fuels that your family creates. A big way to help the environment is to cut down on your waste. Stop using plastic grocery bags, and definitely quit throwing them in the trash. Make a conscious effort to recycle. Find ways to use your leftovers versus simply throwing them away. Consider starting your own compost pile! It may even motivate you to start the garden you’ve been dreaming of having.

Kind-of green is great too, here are some easy, go-to ways to get it done

A little green is better than no green at all

Magical Creatures and Mythical Beasts lights up international myths

Parents of a certain age will remember going to Spencer’s. It was the cool store where you could find those pop-culture items, Greg Brady beads, and blacklight posters. Spencer’s is still around, we have one at our local mall, but the teens we know don’t have as magical an impression as we did with it back in the day. To an extent, Magical Creatures and Mythical Beasts is a book that channels aspects of that black light magic. It’s an immersive seek-and-find illustrated book that looks at worldwide mythology, putting them on display using the UV flashlight it comes with.

Magical Creatures and Mythical Beasts is a book that shows you worldwide mythical creatures when the supplied UV light is shown on the pages.

Myths and beasts there be in plain sight ya see

What Breathes Through Its Butt? is fresh air for curious kids

Our family has lots of non-fiction books on animals, nature, and science in the house. A reference book is a great thing to have around because you never know when school-age children will need something in it. Granted there is that whole internet thing, but a book allows for that random sense of discovery that online searching simply doesn’t satisfy. However, odds are that all of, or almost all of your non-fiction animal reference books are encyclopedic, or listing in the presentation. That certainly leads to discover and learn about new creatures, but might not motivate kids to read it page to page. What Breathes Through Its Butt? is a non-fiction book on animals, but it’s unlike any critter book you or your kids have seen.

A Stem book for elementary kids that asks questions

Little People, Big Dreams, Charles Darwin is go-to, smart fun for 4 and up

“This is not a baby book”, I told our nine-year-old. “Are you sure, it looks like a baby book”, he said with an unsure look. I understand why he questioned us. Little People, Big Dreams Charles Darwin looks like a book that demos young, and it can be. It does so in a way that the content is presented younger and certainly speaks to audiences that aren’t of his mature student behavior or the third-grade vintage. To us, it’s a book that takes a very smart subject and brings it down to a level that he can easily understand. This series is fun, engaging, makes young readers think about real people, and does so in a way that second graders can understand.

Little People, Big Dreams, Charles Darwin is smart, go-to for ages 4 and up

This series is great and this book is awesome.

Honeybee, a massive love letter to bees that young readers will relish

It’s a testament to an author when their work can be beautiful, moving, educational and disgusting all in the same book. Somewhere in a combination of those adjectives is the secret sauce for getting elementary-aged readers hooked into a subject matter they otherwise might not be attracted to. Honeybee, The Busy Life of Apis Mellifera by Candace Fleming and Eric Rohman is an oversized illustrated book that wrangles all of those things, as well as a little poetry AND a narrative device. The result is a coherent story that has action, the wonder of life, the reality of death, and the promise of a new day. As a bonus, it’s also a true story about something all kids and parents know of, but really don’t know anything about.

The fabulous buzz on this book is true

Blades of Freedom, a smart mglit graphic novel that entertains

In speaking with our elementary school library one of their biggest desires is for kids to read more non-fiction books. For those older elementary students, as well as, anyone who appreciates smart books that educate through humor and real events the Hazardous Tales series must be on your list. Nathan Hale’s Hazardous Tales is an ongoing graphic novel series on Amulet Books that cover a variety of people, events, or things. They’re also some of the best, not to mention educational series of books that have the potential to engage young readers on real-life happenings. Blades of Freedom is the tenth book in the series and it brings the elements that fans enjoyed from earlier books, but also digs deeper into history and unknown nuggets.

An educational… and fun non-fiction graphic novel? yup.

KIBO 10 Home Edition, go-to coding at home for ages 4-7

I am not a coding teacher. However, after trying to teach two elementary-aged students the basics of coding in a number of different ways I have determined the common stumbling block that both of them had. It has to do with the go, stop, turn left, go, stop, rotate, go, blink, go, conundrum. We reviewed a great product from Kinderlab Robotics the other year that was awesome but did have a high price point and geared at classrooms. That robot solved the aforementioned issue that our kids had in learning coding, and now they’ve released the KIBO 10 Home Edition that does so at a much friendlier level to your purse strings.

Coding need not be greek for those aged 4-7

Who Gives A Poop?, STEM, fun, edutainment for 10 and up

Regardless of your stance on books, STEM, mglit, or chocolate chip cookies, we can all agree that Who Gives A Poop?, Surprising Science From One End To The Other is one of the cleverest book titles you’ll ever run across. The book is a story of things that we see every day. Sometimes it’s hiding in plain sight and other times it smacks us on the shoulder while we’re sitting at the pool. It’s worth noting that actually did happen to our son this summer from a passing seagull. Now that I’ve read this book I know that so many things could’ve been gleaned by taking a look at that white splotch that splattered from him onto our stuff.

It’s science. Stem. funny. readable. and makes ages 10 and up curious