Book Description

This Level 1 book is appropriate for children who are just beginning to read.

In Born to Be a Butterfly, children will witness the magical transformation as a newly hatched caterpillar becomes a beautiful Red Admiral Butterfly. For children who are just beginning to read and who have a limited vocabulary, these 32-page Level 1 books-about everything from tadpoles to puppies-use word repetition and simple sentences to convey meaning. Picture dictionary boxes with word labels "show" the meanings of words. These books contain between 400 and 450 words each, and they are 80 percent pictures and 20 percent text.

The Dorling Kindersley Readers combine an enticing visual layout with high-interest, easy-to-read stories to captivate and delight young bookworms who are just getting started. Written by leading children's authors and compiled in consultation with literacy experts, these engaging books build reader confidence along with a lifelong appreciation for nonfiction, classic stories, and biographies. There is a DK Reader to interest every child at every level, from preschool to grade 4. ... Read more

Reviews (1)

Born to be Beautiful
I have always thought that the transformation from caterpillar to butterfly is just amazing. In this story, a butterfly flits from flower to flower and looks for a leaf where she can lay her eggs. The photography is stunning and you can actually see the caterpillar growing inside the egg. Once the caterpillar hatches, she eats and eats and eats.

As the caterpillar gets bigger and bigger, she sheds her skin until finally she looks for a sturdy leaf and hangs upside down. The outside skin turns hard and inside, she is turning into a beautiful creature. One day the chrysalis splits open and a new butterfly emerges to dry in the sunshine.

On the last page, there is a picture word list and your child can sign and date the back cover to remind them of their accomplishment when they are able to completely read this book on their own.

Educational! ... Read more

Reviews (4)

The Best!
This kit has a real Ren & Stimpy feel to it. I mean, a kit full of bird barf? While not as rewarding as watching the owl caugh up the actual pellet in the wild, this education book is likely to open doors to the world of birding in ways no youngster, teacher, or parent ever expected. Truth be told, kids find body functions funny, and barfing is one of the favs.

And by the way, my thanks to whoever took the pic of the Great Horned Owl on the front cover.

FUN AND ENTERTAINING!!
My 8 year old son was so excited to get this book. Naturally, he loves anything gross and Owl Puke combined that natural affinity for the 'yuck' factor with an entertaining (and educational) read. (Great title, too). I highly recommend this book to parents everywhere and look forward to seeing what's next from Hammerslough!

great
I love this book!! My son couldn't wait to open it and he learned so many good things from the skeleton. Definetly a great book for youngsters!

Useless. Missing the point.
This is horrible. Why buy a book that shows you how to find skeletons in owl puke when the joy of watching the actual owl puke has been completely forgotten?

Sure, it may be marketing savvy to name the book "Owl Puke" and to label the box containing owl puke "Owl Puke," but to not witness a real life owl puking seems perverse in my opinion. Call me old-fashioned.

But the song "Hot Shot City" is particularly good. ... Read more

Book Description

Explore the world of living things, and trace the discoveries that explain the amazing diversity of life on Earth.

The theory of evolution changed our understanding of the natural world -- and Eyewitness Evolution is the perfect way to learn more about it! Discover what life was like millions of years ago; how new species develop; and learn why pandas have false thumbs and penguins stand upright. Superb full-color photographs of animals, plants and fossils make this book a compelling look at evolution. ... Read more

Reviews (2)

Excellent Reference Work For Children
With a wealth of drawings, pictures, and photographs, this book explains the basics of natural selection and the evolution of life on earth.

The authors also do a good job of confronting issues that have little to do with science but which may nevertheless be raised by some in connection with this branch of human knowledge. References to certain mythological beliefs are done in a professional and non-offensive way, with reasoned explanations of why people may have thought the way they did (or do). This book is highly recommended for children in Middle School who are confronted with class-mates who do not understand evolution or who for some reason have been taught that it is not 'true.'

But the main strength of this book is a strong presentation of the evidence for natural selection that is found in nature. By combining many interesting facts about fascinating animals with a small dose of hard science this book is a perfect introduction to areas of science such as geology and anthropology. As such it also provides much information that will complement Middle School science classes. This book should be in every educated family's library.

Historical /Sensitive Coverage of Evolution Teen Appropriate
I was looking for a book on evolution to give to a child who was asking questions about the subject. I found this book in eyewitness fashion to be low on text but told its story through many engaging interesting pictures. The book sensitively dealt with questions of creation and biblic questions relating to evolution, answering them with scientific and historical information. It also provided multicultural references and included creation stories from non-western cultures as well.

This book is a must for high school or even junior high science teachers who are faced with justifying teaching their subject matter to parents, board members and community members. Not to mention, its a beautiful descriptive book that is a welcome addition to any general level scientific book collection. ... Read more

Book Description

Middle grade students learn how 14 mammals are born, learn and mature. Each animal chapter is written from the point of view of thebaby mammal and is filled with both fun facts and solid science. ... Read more

Reviews (3)

Book Review
The book, 'If My Mom Were A Platypus'was written by Dia L. Michels. It provides a nice introduction to 13 animals (including humans), and provides basic information regarding birth, growth, diet, and other interesting scientific facts. Written from the point of view of the newborn animal and it's mother, the book is targeted towards upper elementary and middle school audiences. However, it can be enjoyed by younger children. It makes a good family readaloud and can be used for basic research. The illustrations are realistic and colorful, and the book includes a glossary and index.

Entrancing and Educational
If My Mom Were A Platypus is an entrancing children's book covering all sorts of animal babies-platypus, koala, lion, orangutan, whale, shrew and more. The beautifully-illustrated text pulls in children by pretending they are the baby. If My Mom Were A Platypus describes in detail how different babies eat, learn, grow and mature. This fact-loaded book delights both adults and children and is extraordinarily hard to put down. Even the ending is superb. Includes glossary and index and highlights endangered or threatened species. Activity guides are available at PlatypusMedia.com. Perfect for school or home use. Ages 4-adult.

A Great Book For Kids!
My three year old daughter loves this book. The book tells how different mammals are born, nursed, grow, eat, etc. It is really fascinating [I found it very interesting myself]. While the book is long and written for a much older audience, it still held my young daughter's attention [though we read only a few pages at a time]. The book is very educational and would be especially nice for families who breastfeed. It ends with the birth of a human mammal and tells how the baby is born and nursed and grows etc. This is a really neat book! ... Read more

Reviews (4)

Scabs: beyond an apologia

Surreal, and incredibly entertaining.
A great coffee table book

Not bad
I'm a big fan of "Everyone Poops" and "The Gas we Pass" which are also by Yagyu. This book gives kids an excellent look into how their bodies react to cuts and what scabs are all about. Kids ask the darndest questions...and this book gives them some answers. Fun reading for the entire family.

Even better than "Holes in Your Nose"
I'm a great fan of this entire series, but "All About Scabs" is a great addition -- destined to become a classic. Every child has scabs, and has questions and fears about them. The text is highly amusing, which makes the book fun for adults to read out loud. This one may be even better than "Holes in Your Nose" and "Everyone Poops." All three belong on every child's bookshelf, and on the shelf of anyone who ever has an occasion to entertain a young child. My eight year old, who grew up with nightly readings of "Everyone Poops" and "The Holes in Your Nose" likes this new one just as much. Bravo!!

Keen! Simple & Direct explaination of the healing process.
Straightforward explaination of what happens when we get injured - even a child can grok this, which is good, since that's the real intended audience... ... Read more

Reviews (3)

Good for younger kids too!
I bought this book to help me explain my growing belly to my 2 year old son. Most of it is beyond him, but he enjoys the flaps that show different versions of the same scene. His favourites are (1) Mum with a big belly on the outside and flip for the baby inside, (2) happy baby and flip for crying baby, (3) awake baby and flip for sleeping baby. So he now points to my belly and says "baby". I don't know how I would have got the idea across to a 2 year old otherwise. A handy-dandy book to help prepare an only child for the twins that are coming soon!

Not bad, but there are better titles. . .
If you are considering purchasing this, some points to consider are: Cartoon-ish illustrations with talking eggs and sperm. Text refers to the uterus as a "womb", umbilical cord as a "tube" and navel as a "belly-button" without giving accurate labels. Also uses terminology such as "pees" and "poops." Describes the mother as being uncomfortable and "ready for the baby to come out" along with an illustration of an unhappy, 7-months-pregnant woman. Text also states the baby comes out of the "opening between the mother's legs" again, without giving proper name. Presumes presence of Doctor and Nurse at birth, and alludes to labor and birth process but does not illustrate or detail. To its credit, the book does a fair job of explaining role of sperm in determining gender, and that eggs come from the woman and sperm from the man. Does not address intercourse in any way, but shows fertilization with talking eggs/sperm. Illustrations are colorful and bright. Creative description of amniotic sac (without calling it such!) and comparison to a goldfish in a bag of water. Describes what baby might experience in utero. Shows breastfeeding mother but then shows bottles as well. Illustrations of fetal development are accompanied by "real-size" outlines. Not a bad choice if your interest is in explaining fetal development (consider Nilsson's "How Was I Born?" for photographs), but not a good choice if you want to discuss intercourse and birth. May be great for some families, but we prefer Joanna Cole's "How You Were Born" and "How Babies Are Made" by Andrew Andry.

Very Informational
I thought that this book provided very good insight to a question, that is often raised by children at a young age. This book answered many questions regarding where babies do come from. Most pre-school children think that they come from mommy's stomach. I would reccommend this book for early-childhood educators,as well as parents of young children who are expecting again. ... Read more

Book Description

How to tell the difference between living and nonliving things—an essential first skill in scientific sorting and classifying—is explored with hands-on activities and colorful diagrams.

Best Children’s Science Book List 1995 (S) ... Read more

Reviews (1)

Good text
This easy to read text was a good book for helping me learn biology for my college classes.I really liked topics on animal structure and function and ecology.I also found Patrick Leonardi's "The Ultimate Study Guide for Biology: Key Review Questions and Answers with Explanations" vol 1, vol 2, and vol 3 to have excellent test preparation questions that guided me on the importants points to study (and very helpful for my exams!). ... Read more

Reviews (1)

Fortunately not typical of the Christians I know
The basic description of the scientific method and most of the superficialties are clearly explained.Good enough.

But then we get to origins and science, which is the heart of any system.Here it's very contradictory.The entire section on biology and origin first states that contemporary evolution is observable and real, then states that obviously evolution as origin is wrong as it contradicts the infallible Bible, then says that the Bible is theology, not science and doesn't give details so shouldn't be relied upon overly.After that, it stereotypes all evolutionists as anti-Christian, moral relativistic types with no regard for ethics.It attacks Christian evolutionists and old-Earth Creationists as deluded and not real Christians(tm).But, everyone operates on faith and it's wrong to attack others faiths, we're told.

The bigotry and stereotypes simply don't hold up for anyone who's spent even a few minutes debating with people from various belief systems.It's a desperate attempt to not think too hard in case one questions one's beliefs, which is the fundamental necessity of any good religion or science--only by questioning assumptions can one find truth and defend it with confidence and faith.

Not recommended. ... Read more

Reviews (1)

ok
hard book to understand and not written too clearly, however if your teacher required it, ure ganna have to sruggle ... Read more