Mummy Math: An Adventure in geometrySummary: This book is about a family that travels to Egypt to find the mummy of an ancient pharaoh. The two children Matt, Bibi, and their dog Riley gets separated from the rest of the family and locked inside the tomb. They decide to set off on their own to find the mummy. While inside the tomb they find hieroglyphics on the walls that they believe can help them find the mummy. The hieroglyphics happen to be geometric solids. The children must use their math skills to help them on their journey. They continue to read for clues having to do with how many faces each shape has. Luckily, the children know their stuff when it comes down to geometric shapes and so will the reader after going on this adventure with them. Matt, Bibi, and Riley are eventually lead to the mummy's tomb where they find the mummy.
Analysis: This is a fiction book. It is told from third person point of view. It is a great tool to use when teaching geometric shapes. Students get to learn while at the same time reading about the adventures of Matt, Bibi, and their dog Riley. It teaches readers what a shape is and all the shapes used to make three-dimensional shapes. This book can also be used to teach students about the number of faces that each geometric shape has. The illustrations in the book also let students see what the shapes look like. I believe students are more likely to remember the information about the shapes after reading this book. Activity: After reading the book I would have my students work with a partner to complete a graphic organizer. The students will have to fill in the name of the shapes, how many faces each shape has, and the shape of the base. I would also have them compare and contrast the geometric solids. Citation: Neuschwander, C., & Langdo, B. (2005). Mummy math: an adventure in math. New York: Henry Holt. |
How a seed grows Summary: This is a book that goes into detail describing to readers how exactly a seed grows. It describes to readers that a seed is a plant that has not started to grow. It names some of the plants we eat and flowers that all grow from seeds. The book tell the readers some things they could use to plant seeds themselves. In the book they planted bean seeds using egg shells and soil. The book tell the reader that the plants needs sunlight and that they should water it everyday for it to grow. It also goes into detail about the different parts of a plant such as, roots and shoot and shows the process that seeds go through as they grow.
Analysis: This book is a nonfiction book. It is a great book to use in the classroom when teaching a lesson about plants and what they need to grow and all of the parts of a plant. This book is very informative. The illustrations in the book are very helpful with showing the readers the steps they must go through to successfully plant seeds. The illustrations are also helpful with identifying what the parts of a plant look like. I think this is a great way to teach the students about plants rather than just reading from a science book. Activity: With this book I would have the students do an experiment where they get to see a seed actually grow. Along with the experiment I would have them them doing a lab write-up to record the materials needed, process, and growth. For the experiment, I would have my students save their milk cartons from lunch and provide them with soil and seed. We would then ensure that our seed gets the necessities such as, sunlight and water that it needs to grow as described in the book. Not only will my students learn from reading the book but they hand-on activity that gives them that more concrete learning. Citation: Jordan, H. J., & Krupinski, L. (2015). How a seed grows. New York, NY: Harper, an imprint of HarperCollins |
Henry's freedom box: A true story from the underground railroadSummary: This book is based on a true story from the underground railroad. It tell the story of a slave by the name of Henry Brown. Henry's slave owner becomes ill and he thinks there may be a chance that he will be set free. Instead his master decides to give him to another slave owner. As a child, Henry was taken from his family and forced to go work in a warehouse. He eventually meets and marries another slave, Nancy and have children with her. Both his wife and children are all eventually taken and sold in the slave market and he doesn't see them again. Henry dreams of freedom and going to a place where there are no slaves. With a little help, he decides to mail himself to freedom. The book goes into detail telling the reader about Henry's journey to freedom while being cramped in a box. After reaching the destination he was shipped to in Philadelphia, he decides to claim that first day of freedom as his birthday. He didn't have a birthday before then because no one kept track of slave birthdays. Henry successfully made it to freedom.
Analysis: This book is a nonfiction book. It is told from third person point of view and tells the true story of a slave named Henry Brown. This is a great book to use when teaching students about slavery. Readers get to hear about the struggles that slaves had and the measure that they went through to reach freedom. The illustration in the book are also great and go perfectly with the text. I have read this book many times and really enjoy it. Activity: With this book I would have my students do a writing activity or you could call it a graphic organizer. I would give my students a picture of Henry to glue on to a piece of construction paper. I would then have them do a sensory figure. I would have the students write and describe what Henry may have been thinking, what Henry was hearing, some things Henry may have been smelling, and how Henry might have been feeling on his journey. This is a great activity for a teacher to get an understanding of whether or not the student understands and comprehended what was going on in the book. Citation: Levine, E., & Nelson, K. (2013). Henrys freedom box. Columbus, O.H.: Zaner-Bloser. |