Little Science Stars
Tick-Tock Media LTD
24 pages, pb.
978-1846961984
$5.95, C$6.95
What you first notice when you open any of these short paperback science books is the colorful pictures that pop off the page and great your eyes. They are realistic and up-close. Your child will not have to squint to see the worker bees in the honeycomb. The pages are laid out with a super balance of pictures and large text. The vocabulary is age appropriate. The pictures of children are a diverse population which is not always easy to find.
The format is higher level questioning, for example, What happens to flowers in summer? Why are flowers important? What's so good about milk.
It is refreshing to see the use of essential or critical thinking questions that lead to more than a yes/no answer in the young grades. Questions like these found in this series can easily be used as research questions for older students.
The series has text features common to a non-fiction book: contents, index, and a glossary. (A note in the beginning explains that bold faced typed words are included in the glossary.)
I would recommend this series for a library and home use. My only caveat is that they are paperback and in a library a layer of mylar covering would be needed for reinforcement. Otherwise they are super. The books are appropriate for ages 4-8. There are ten books in the series.
