Synopses & Reviews
For a kid, watching a solid turn into a liquid or a liquid into a gas is nothing short of magic. In
Explore Solids and Liquids! With 25 Great Projects kids experience the wonder of different states of matter. Theyand#8217;ll learn what matter is made of, how it can change, and how these interactions really work in our universe. With plenty of activities and projects, young readers gain a solid understanding of the matter they touch, see, feel, and experience every single day.
As young readers discover the basic concepts and vocabulary of chemistry, they will experiment with household objects to discover how solids, liquids, and gases occupy space. Kids will dissolve solids into liquids and bring them back again, use salt and pepper to demonstrate water's surface tension, and fly helium-filled balloons to see what happens to molecules at different temperatures. Illustrated with cartoon illustrations and filled with fun facts, Explore Solids and Liquids! makes science entertaining and exciting.
Review
Explore Gravity! With 25 Great Projects by Cindy Blobaum
National Science Teachers Association
Are you looking for projects about gravity that are equally interactive as well as instructive? Explore Gravity! is sure to be one of the more popular science books in your class.”
Planet Earth: 25 Environmental Projects You Can Build Yourself
National Science Teachers Association
"This delightful and informative guide to the natural world is sure to captivate the attention of young readers."
Booklist
Both comprehensive and approachable, this title combines explanations of science concepts and environmental issues with hands-on projects."
2008 Moonbeam Children's Book Award
Parent's Choice Foundation Recommended
Energy: Investigate Why We Need Power and How We Get It
Children's Literature
"Bursting with basic facts, fun trivia, informative sidebars and lots of hands-on projects, this introduction to the basics of energy is certain to engage budding scientists."
National Science Teachers Association
"I highly recommend this wonderfully informative book . . . It allows teachers to teach about energy resources in a fun, engaging, and easy way."
2009 Moonbeam Children's Book Award
Review
Praise for
Explore Solids and Liquids! With 25 Great Projects Library Media Connections
This introduction to basic chemistry investigates solids, liquids, and gases and how these forms of matter change and transform. With a frog-like creature with Albert Einsteinand#8217;s face as the guide, each chapter provides background material leading the reader to a series of well-constructed hands-on activities. . . This is an attractive presentation, easy to navigate, that encourages young readers to learn through text and experimentation." Recommended
Booklist
". . . The accessible text takes a friendly tone, providing ample background information and easily recognizable everyday examples. Cartoon illustrations, inset boxes with facts, and occasional jokes help keep readers engaged. Experimenters are asked to make predictions, try multiple variations, and record observations. . . This should provide inspiration and insights into scientific exploration for students, teachers, and budding mad scientists.and#8221;
National Science Teachers Association Recommends
"Need something new to spice up your explorations? Twentyand#150;five easy to do investigations, easy to find materials, and excellent explanations will help any teacher to make the study of matter more exciting for classes filled with eager students.
The book, Explore Solids and Liquids, includes everything necessary to quickly get students learning. Separated into six chapters, covering all states of matter as well as mixtures and compounds, the book is colorful and easy to use. and#147;Did You Know?and#8221; circles filled with scienceand#150;based factoids, are prominent throughout this resource along with realand#150;world connected historical information that make the experiments more meaningful.
Indeed this book has also got some great extras, like Matter Mad Libs and science jokes in the form of Laugh It Up circles. The ease with which these experiments can be done is the real appeal for both teachers and students. The chapters include narratives that help connect these experiments to STEM applications as well! This book is a mustand#150;have for any teacher's personal library!"
Christine Burillo-Kirch, Ph.D
and#147;Thoughtful, engaging explanations coupled with fun experiments and endearing illustrations that demystify difficult scientific concepts. A generation of future scientists will be inspired to go into the kitchen and get to the crux of the matter of and#145;matterand#8217;!and#8221;
Jennifer Schulze, MSEd, Reading Specialist Instructor, Western Oregon University
and#147;This versatile book can be used by a classroom teacher or homeschool parent, inquisitive or struggling student. Itand#8217;s interesting, easy to read, and spot on where matter is concerned.and#8221;
Dr. Christopher Gorman, Professor of Chemistry, North Carolina State University
and#147;Fun activities that illustrate how matter behaves in its different forms. Just the sort of thing to pique a budding, young scientistand#8217;s curiosity!and#8221;
Dr. Todd F. Hoover,? Early Childhood and Adolescent Education,? University of Pennsylvania
and#147;An engaging book both visually and in content, using classic activities and discrepant events, as well as new and exciting ones! A good book to help children go and#145;hands-onand#8217; to learn about solids and liquids.and#8221;
Planet Earth: 25 Environmental Projects You Can Build Yourself
National Science Teachers Association
"This delightful and informative guide to the natural world is sure to captivate the attention of young readers."
Booklist
and#147;Both comprehensive and approachable, this title combines explanations of science concepts and environmental issues with hands-on projects. Extensive further readings and an eye-catching design filled with drawings complete a title that while educating kids about the environment steers them past despair with the reminder that every individual action helps."
Parent's Choice Foundation Recommended
Energy: Investigate Why We Need Power and How We Get It
National Science Teachers Association
"I highly recommend this wonderfully informative book for any middle school science classroom. It allows teachers to teach about energy resources in a fun, engaging, and easy way."
2009 Moonbeam Children's Book Award
About the Author
Kathleen Reilly has written several books for Nomad Press, including
Planet Earth: 25 Environmental Projects You Can Build Yourself;
The Human Body: 25 Fantastic Projects Illuminate How the Body Works;
Explore Weather and Climate! with 25 Projects; and
Natural Disasters: Investigate Earths Most Destructive Forces with 25 Projects. She is an award-winning author of several other science books for kids and is a contributor to dozens of publications, including
Better Homes and Gardens,
Family Circle,
Family Fun,
National Geographic Kids, and
Parents. Kate lives in Raleigh, North Carolina.
Bryan Stone is a cartoonist and the illustrator of several books for Nomad Press including Explore Night Science!, Explore Flight!, Explore Rivers and Ponds!, Explore Rocks and Minerals!, and Explore Electricity!. He lives in Hartland, Vermont.
Table of Contents
Introduction: Matter Really Matters
Chapter 1: Solids
Chapter 2: Liquids
Chapter 3: Gases
Chapter 4: The Changing States of Matter
Chapter 5: More Matter!
Chapter 6: Mixtures and Compounds
Glossary
Resources
Index