Build It Yourself
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Artificial Intelligence
Thinking Machines and Smart Robots with Science Activities for Kids
by Angie Smibert
Part of the Build It Yourself series
What is artificial intelligence? How is artificial intelligence going to change our lives? "Alexa, play my favorite song! Alexa, shut the garage door!" Imagine a world in which you simply call out a request while sitting in your living room and have a small computer comply. Suddenly, the driving beat of your favorite song fills the air while in the distance you hear the grind of the garage door coming down. This scenario is no longer science fiction! Our world is becoming increasingly inhabited by machines that can talk to us, listen to us, perform as asked, and even solve problems with no direction from humans. A machine with artificial intelligence is one that can perceive its environment and change its computing and behavior to reflect that environment, while using tools at hand to solve problems or reach goals. In Artificial Intelligence: Thinking Machines and Smart Robots with Science Activities for Kids, one of four titles in the Technology for Today set, readers ages 10 to 15 learn the early definitions of AI and discover how these definitions, and the tests that are applied to determine whether a machine has AI or not, have changed as machines have grown increasingly competent in unexpected ways. Through a combination of science activities and student-paced learning, readers discover the AI machines of today and their uses in various fields, such as entertainment, the military, and health care. Includes 25 STEAM activities that encourage the development of important skills, including comparing and contrasting, looking for detailed evidence, making deductions, and applying critical analysis to a wide variety of media. What about the future? How will AI affect the way we understand and integrate with technology and with each other? How can AI improve our lives? Is there anything dangerous about AI? What are the ethical issues surrounding the use of AI? Essential questions such as these promote critical examination of issues from all sides, while primary sources and science-minded engineering activities, such as experimenting with the programs Sound Net and iNaturalist and making a model of a neural network, let readers have a blast learning about the age of thinking machines we're in right now. In the Technology for Today set, readers ages 10 to 15 explore the digital landscapes of today and tomorrow through hands-on STEAM activities and compelling stories of how things work, who makes them work, and why. Titles in this set include Industrial Design: Why Smartphones Aren't Round and Other Mysteries with Science Activities for Kids; Big Data: Information in the Digital World with Science Activities for Kids; Projectile Science: The Physics Behind Kicking a Field Goal and Launching a Rocket with Science Activities for Kids; and Artificial Intelligence: Thinking Machines and Smart Robots with Science Activities for Kids. Nomad Press books integrate content with participation. Common Core State Standards, the Next Generation Science Standards, and STEM Education all place project-based learning as key building blocks in education. Combining content with inquiry-based projects stimulates learning and makes it active and alive. Nomad's unique approach simultaneously grounds kids in factual knowledge while allowing them the space to be curious, creative, and critical thinkers.
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Industrial Design
Why Smartphones Aren't Round and Other Mysteries with Science Activities for Kids
by Carla Mooney
Part of the Build It Yourself series
What is industrial design? How does it affect our everyday lives? Why do microwaves open with a swinging front door? Why aren't smartphones round? Why do drivers sit on the left in the United States? Industrial design is the study of the design process behind the products we use every day, from blenders to school buses to laptops. In Industrial Design: Why Aren't Smartphones Round and Other Mysteries with Science Activities for Kids, readers ages 10–15 engage in and learn about the engineering design process from its earliest beginnings when individuals designed and crafted their own tools to today, when engineers work to find the best design for products that are then manufactured in bulk by automated machines. Why does design matter? It's the design of a product that increases or decreases its chances at success. If the design of your phone isn't quite right and you feel uncomfortable or frustrated every time you use it, you probably won't buy that model again. Engineers consider the user experience of every product they design to ensure that users have the best experience possible. Good design combines the right materials, colors, details, and form to make a person want to buy and use a product. A well-designed product is easy to use and does what it is meant to do. In Industrial Design, readers practice their own engineering design skills using the engineering design process and learn how to create useful, aesthetically pleasing designs for a variety of products. They learn about the history of industrial design and the transition from craft-based design to mass production. Through fun science and engineering projects, they explore the steps of the industrial design process including brainstorming, idea sketching, technical drawings, creating models and prototypes, and product testing. Like a good designer, they learn how to evaluate products for function, usability, ergonomics, aesthetics, and green design. Throughout Industrial Design, inquiry-based activities, essential questions, links to online primary sources, and an extensive engineering glossary all promote critical and creative thinking and serve to highlight the importance and beauty of engineering design and the role it plays in our world. Why do microwaves open with a swinging front door? Why aren't smartphones round? Why do drivers sit on the left in the United States? Industrial design is the study of the design process behind the products we use every day, from blenders to school buses to laptops. In Industrial Design: Why Aren't Smartphones Round and Other Mysteries with Science Activities for Kids, one of four titles in the Technology for Today set, readers ages 10–15 engage in and learn about the engineering design process from its earliest beginnings when individuals designed and crafted their own tools to today, when engineers work to find the best design for products that are then manufactured in bulk by automated machines. Why does design matter? It's the design of a product that increases or decreases its chances at success. If the design of your phone isn't quite right and you feel uncomfortable or frustrated every time you use it, you probably won't buy that model again. Engineers consider the user experience of every product they design to ensure that users have the best experience possible. Good design combines the right materials, colors, details, and form to make a person want to buy and use a product. A well-designed product is easy to use and does what it is meant to do. In Industrial Design, readers practice their own engineering design skills using the engineering design process and learn how to create useful, aesthetically pleasing designs for a variety of products. They learn about the history of industrial design and the transition from craft-based design to mass production. Through fun science and engineering projects, they explore the steps of the industrial design process including brainstorming, idea sketching, technical
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Big Data
Information in the Digital World with Science Activities for Kids
by Carla Mooney
Part of the Build It Yourself series
What is big data and what does it have to do with you? Have you watched videos online today? Did you post photographs on social media? Did you upload your English essay to Google docs? All of these questions are questions about data. Data is information. It can be stored in books, magazines, on graph paper, in computers, and with many other methods. Most of the data that exists today is stored in computers, and the amount of data humans produce is doubling every year and half. That's why it's called big data! In Big Data: Information in the Digital World with Science Activities for Kids, one of four titles in the Technology for Today set, kids ages 10 to 15 explore the definition of data and learn about the relationship between data, computers, and people. They learn about the history of data, the transition from paper to computers, and the role that search engines such as Google play in handling data. Data management, data analytics, and the history of computers are all topics covered in this book on big numbers for kids. Data is something computer scientists think about a lot. A computer's capacity to function and perform is directly related to how much data it can store. A computer that can't store much data won't be very popular. As more and more of our daily lives become connected to computers-schoolwork, watching movies on a laptop, paying for snacks with a debit card-computers are required to handle more and more data. New improvements in data storage mean that there are fewer limits on the amount of data businesses can store, but what does that mean for users? How does data management make our lives easier? Do we need all of this information or are we storing data we'll never use again simply because we can? Throughout Big Data, 25 STEAM investigations and experiments provide hands-on, problem-solving opportunities for students that incorporate various challenges and tools. Using readily available household items and recycled materials, each activity will take the reader through an inquiry-based, open-ended investigation that leaves plenty of room to explore individual creativity. With essential questions, fun facts, and links to online primary sources and videos, kids will mine the topic of big data and become better, more informed digital citizens of the world! In the Technology for Today set, readers ages 10 to 15 explore the digital landscapes of today and tomorrow through hands-on STEAM activities and compelling stories of how things work, who makes them work, and why.
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Planet Earth
Finding Balance on the Blue Marble with Environmental Science Activities for Kids
by Kathleen M. Reilly
Part of the Build It Yourself series
The environment is all around us, whether you live in a city, suburb, or the country. Sometimes, it's easy to ignore. But forgetting about the environment isn't an option if we want our planet to be healthy!
Planet Earth: Finding Balance on the Blue Marble with Environmental Science Activities for Kids introduces middle grade readers to all the parts of the natural world, including the oceans, the atmosphere, the earth, and everything in between. In this book, kids master ecology basics, such as the food web and animal habitats, while also learning about environmental issues such as wind and solar power, endangered species, climate change, and more. Stories about new innovations in fields such as recycling, agriculture, and energy production galvanize readers to turn their creative thinking skills to their own inventions.
Planet Earth includes hands-on STEM activities and critical thinking exercises to encourage readers to discover connections among their observations of their immediate environment and the larger world around them. Fun facts, links to online primary sources and other supplemental material, and essential questions encourage readers to ask themselves what they could do differently to make the world a healthier place.
Planet Earth is part of a set of four Build It Environmental Science books that explore the history and science of the planet and all that live on it through hands-on STEM activities and real-life environmental connections. Other titles in this series are Biodiversity, Garbage, and Biomes.
Nomad Press books integrate content with participation. Common Core State Standards, the Next Generation Science Standards, and STEM Education all place project-based learning as key building blocks in education. Combining content with inquiry-based projects stimulates learning and makes it active and alive. Nomad's unique approach simultaneously grounds kids in factual knowledge while allowing them the space to be curious, creative, and critical thinkers.
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The Solar System
Out of This World with Science Activities for Kids
by Delano Lopez
Part of the Build It Yourself series
Look up! What do you see? The sun, moon, stars, other planets? You're checking out the solar system!
The Solar System: Out of This World with Science Activities for Kids invites middle school kids on a journey of a lifetime to explore the comets, meteors, asteroids, sun, planets, and moons that make up the solar system. Kids learn about the history of space exploration and discovery, along with the tools of astronomy that have made it possible to study celestial objects even outside our own solar system. While space seems far away, and really, it is, The Solar System brings it closer to the classroom with fun facts and engaging language kids will find exciting!
Space has been fascinating to humans since we first looked up, and that sense of wonder is still very much a part of a young astronomer's experience. As the tools of space exploration become more and more sophisticated, the farther reaches of outer space become accessible to everyone back on Earth. Photos from the rovers on Mars, images of Pluto from New Horizons spacecraft, communications from Comet 67P via the Philae comet probe all bring the solar system up close and personal for anyone with an internet connection.
The Solar System includes hands-on STEM activities and critical thinking exercises related to astronomy and space exploration. Fun facts, links to online primary sources and other supplemental material, and essential questions encourage readers to take a deep dive toward the outer limits of our home!
Nomad Press books integrate content with participation. Common Core State Standards, the Next Generation Science Standards, and STEM Education all place project-based learning as key building blocks in education. Combining content with inquiry-based projects stimulates learning and makes it active and alive. Nomad's unique approach simultaneously grounds kids in factual knowledge while allowing them the space to be curious, creative, and critical thinkers.
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Bots!
Robotics Engineering
by Kathy Ceceri
Part of the Build It Yourself series
An action-packed book for middle schoolers that explores the roles robots play in our world, including the history, engineering, and key players in this STEAM field-plus loads of hands-on robotics activities so kids can learn design, engineering, and coding, and develop their own innovative ideas for future robots!
Robots are everywhere! They vacuum our houses, work in our factories, help us learn at school, and play with us at home. They sample rocks from other planets, survey disaster zones from the air, and bring back images from the bottom of the ocean. In Bots! Robotics Engineering with Hands-On Makerspace Activities, kids 9 to 12 learn the how, why, and who behind the robots we have today.
• Explore the history of robots and artificial intelligence and read short biographies of important innovators such as Ada Lovelace, Charles Babbage, Alan Turing, Leonardo da Vinci, Dean Kamen, and Nikola Tesla, and Cynthia Breazeal.
• Engage in science-minded learning by constructing a hydraulic arm, formulating an edible inflatable soft robot, designing a motorized ArtBot, and testing your own gravity-powered mini-walker. Learn coding basics by writing pen-and-paper programs in Logo and creating virtual robots in the free online language Scratch. Discover how to build low-cost programmable cardboard robots using microcontrollers such as Micro bit or Circuit Playground Express and Microsoft Make Code. And find out how to train an "AI computer" to think by playing an unplugged Machine Learning version of the math game Nim.
• Essential questions, links to online primary resources, fascinating facts and brief sidebars help readers learn the basics of robotics while exploring their creativity as they design and build their own robots and robotic components.
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Backyard Biology
Investigate Habitats Outside Your Door With 25 Projects
by Donna Latham
Part of the Build It Yourself series
BIOLOGY IS THE STUDY OF LIFELife is everywhere, thriving in the city and in the country, teeming in ecosystems around the planet-in deserts, oceans, and even the Arctic. And life is right outside your door! Backyard Biology invites children ages 9 and up to investigate living things-especially in yards, parks, nature areas, and playgrounds. Trivia and fun facts bring animals, plants, and microorganisms to life, in all their wonder.Readers become Nature Detectives with activities and projects that encourage children to make discoveries. Children will construct a plankton net to collect pond samples, and they'll grow microorganisms in a Winogradsky Column. They'll discover what mystery plants sprout from collected soil samples and build a rolypoly habitat. When children experiment with phototropism and geotropism, they'll discover the ways plants move. In Backyard Biology, children will scout out different habitats to observe and investigate-and do their part to protect them.
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George Washington
25 Great Projects You Can Build Yourself
by Carla Mooney
Part of the Build It Yourself series
George Washington: 25 Great Projects You Can Build Yourself offers a fascinating look into the life and times of our nation's first president. Readers ages 9 and up can explore Washington's years as a young Virginia gentleman, his military battles, and his political contributions to a fledgling nation. 25 hands-on activities help kids learn about this legendary figure in American history. George Washington: 25 Great Projects You Can Build Yourself includes biographical sidebars, illustrations, historical facts that allow kids to explore George Washington in a fun, hands-on way.
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Climate Change
Discover How It Impacts Spaceship Earth
by Joshua Sneideman
Part of the Build It Yourself series
For more than 200 years, scientists have been observing, measuring, and analyzing information about our planet's climate. Studies show that the earth is in constant transition and humans have an effect on what happens. In Climate Change: Discover How It Impacts Spaceship Earth, young readers examine real studies concerning planetary science, Arctic ice bubbles, and migratory patterns. Kids explore the history of human impact from the Industrial Revolution to our modern-day technology, as well as the innovations underway around the world to address global climate change.The idea of climate change can be scary, but every one of us has the ability to make a difference. Focused on a pro-active approach to environmental education, Climate Change engages readers through hands-on activities and helps kids deconstruct myths about our changing world. Kids are directed to digital supplemental material that makes complex concepts easier to understand through visual representation. Climate Change offers a myriad of ways to think of our Spaceship Earth as the singular resource it is.Climate Change meets Common Core State Standards for literacy in science and technology; Guided Reading Levels and Lexile measurements indicate grade level and text complexity.
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Amazing Kitchen Chemistry Projects
You Can Build Yourself
by Cynthia Light Brown
Part of the Build It Yourself series
In Amazing Kitchen Chemistry Projects You Can Build Yourself, kids ages 9 and up will experiment with kitchen materials to discover chemistry. Readers will learn about atoms, molecules, solids, liquids, gases, polymers, the periodic table, the important history of science, and much more. Along the way, they'll make goop, cause chemical reactions, and create delicious treats, and all of it will illustrate important chemistry concepts. Amazing Kitchen Chemistry Projects is a fun and exciting way for young readers to learn all about chemistry and become scientists right in the kitchen.
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Inca
Discover The Culture And Geography Of A Lost Civilization With 25 Projects
by Lawrence Kovacs
Part of the Build It Yourself series
Revealing legends and legacies, Inca: Discover the Culture and Geography of a Lost Civilization with 25 Projects offers engaging insight into the continent-sprawling ancient Inca culture. The text and activities invite learners on a journey along the Inca Trail. They'll visit the city of Cuzco and the majestic Machu Picchu, built on a jagged ridge thousands of feet above the Urubamba River. Kids will learn about cultural beliefs, rituals, scientific advances, and languages. They'll create Salar de Uyuni salt crystals and build a tropical cloud forest. This captivating educational tool also features unique illustrations, informative sidebars, fun-fact questions, and vocabulary that will interest readers from start to finish.
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Garbage
Investigate What Happens When You Throw It Out With 25 Projects
by Donna Latham
Part of the Build It Yourself series
Kids become "rubbish warriors" in Garbage: Investigate What Happens When You Throw It Out. Encouraged to think about the choices they make that generate garbage in the first place, readers learn ways to reduce, reuse, recycle-and rethink their actions. Along the way, kids explore the science of garbology, discover fascinating information archaeologists learn by excavating middens, and use projects to investigate the world of trash. Activities include whipping up a delicious edible landfill, brewing natural dyes for a T-shirt, and comparing the effects of commercial and homemade cleaners. Kids will learn that the battle against the world's overwhelming waste problem begins with them.
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Rocketry
Investigate The Science And Technology Of Rockets And Ballistics
by Carla Mooney
Part of the Build It Yourself series
Rocketry: Investigate the Science and Technology of Rockets and Ballistics introduces students to the fascinating world of rocketry and ballistics. Readers discover the history of rocket development, from the earliest fire arrows in China to modern-day space shuttles, as well as the main concepts of rocketry, including how rockets are launched, move through the atmosphere, and return to earth safely. Exploring the science behind rocket flight, kids learn how the forces of thrust, gravity, lift, and drag interact to determine a rocket's path, then imagine new uses and technologies in rocketry that are being developed today and for the future.Combining hands-on activities with physics, chemistry, and mathematics, Rocketry brings fun to learning about the world of rocket science. Entertaining illustrations and fascinating sidebars illuminate the topic, while Words to Know highlighted and defined within the text reinforce new vocabulary.Projects include building a pneumatic blast rocket and launcher, testing a rocket recovery system, and designing a rocket model of the future. Additional materials include a glossary, and a list of current reference works, websites, and Internet resources.This title meets Common Core State Standards for literacy in science and technology; Guided Reading Levels and Lexile measurements indicate grade level and text complexity.
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Great World War Ii Projects
You Can Build Yourself
by Sheri Bell-Rehwoldt
Part of the Build It Yourself series
From spy maps and victory banners to spotter planes and ration cakes, Great World War II Projects You Can Build Yourself brings one of the most defining periods of American and world history to life through hands-on building projects and activities. Detailed step-by-step instructions for creating each project combine with historical facts and anecdotes, biographies, and trivia about the real-life models. Together they give kids a first-hand look at daily life at home and on the front lines during America's war years.
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Tools Of The Ancient Romans
A Kid's Guide To The History & Science Of Life In Ancient Rome
by Rachel Dickinson
Part of the Build It Yourself series
Tools of the Ancient Greeks: A Kid's Guide to the History and Science of Life in Ancient Greece explores the scientific discoveries, athletic innovations, engineering marvels, and innovative ideas created more than two thousand years ago. Through biographical sidebars, interesting facts, fascinating anecdotes, and fifteen hands-on activities, readers will learn how Greek innovations and ideas have shaped world history and our own world view.
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Skyscrapers
Investigate Feats Of Engineering With 25 Projects
by Donna Latham
Part of the Build It Yourself series
Over centuries and across cultures people have defied gravity in a quest to build the tallest, grandest structures imaginable.Skyscrapers: Investigate Feats of Engineering with 25 Projects invites children ages 9 and up to explore the innovation and physical science behind these towering structures. Trivia and fun facts illustrate engineering ingenuity and achievements from the ancient pyramids to the Empire State Building. Readers will develop an understanding of how our modern, sophisticated building techniques and materials evolved over time.Activities and projects encourage children to explore the engineering design process. They will engage in hands-on explorations of wind, test Newton's laws of motion, and experiment with the strength of different shapes. In the process they will learn about gravity, inertia, oscillation, and static electricity. Using various materials and engaging in trial and error, readers will construct their own towers and skyscrapers. Skyscrapers meets common core state standards in language arts for reading informational text and literary nonfiction and is aligned with Next Generation Science Standards. Guided Reading Levels and Lexile measurements indicate grade level and text complexity.
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Comics
Investigate the History and Technology of American Cartooning
by Samuel Carbaugh
Part of the Build It Yourself series
Comics have a rich and varied history, beginning on the walls of caves and evolving to the sophisticated medium found on websites today. For a kid, comics can be more than entertainment. Comics can be a lifeline to another world, one in which everyone has the potential to become a superhero and children are welcome to all the power adults have overlooked.Comics: Investigate the History and Technology of American Cartooning follows the trajectory of comics from their early incarnations to their current form. Kids learn how to sketch comic faces and bodies, invent a superhero, draw manga characters, and create their own graphic novel or webcomic. Short biographies of famous cartoonists provide inspiration and introduce specific comic styles. Comics introduces the technology available to budding young cartoonists, while they channel their creative powers and develop their storytelling skills.Part history, part instruction, pure fun, Comics entertains and informs young readers while challenging them to join the cartooning conversation.This title meets Common Core State Standards for literacy in language art, and social studies; Guided Reading Levels and Lexile measurements indicate grade level and text complexity.
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3-D Engineering
Design And Build Your Own Prototypes
by Vicki V. May
Part of the Build It Yourself series
How did somebody come up with the idea for bridges, skyscrapers, helicopters, and nightlights? How did people figure out how to build them?In 3D Engineering: Design and Build Your Own Prototypes, young readers tackle real-life engineering problems by figuring out real-life solutions. Kids apply science and math skills to create prototypes for bridges, instruments, alarms, and more. Prototypes are preliminary models used by engineers-and kids-to evaluate ideas and to better understand how things work.Engineering design starts with an idea. How do we get to the other side of the river? How do we travel long distances in short times? Using a structured engineering design process, kids learn how to brainstorm, build a prototype, test a prototype, evaluate, and re-design. Projects include designing a cardboard chair to understand the stiffness of structural systems and designing and building a set of pan pipes to experiment with pitch and volume.Creating prototypes is a key step in the engineering design process and prototyping early in the design process generally results in better processes and products. 3D Engineering gives kids a chance to figure out many different prototypes, empowering them to discover the mechanics of the world we know.
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Canals And Dams
Investigate Feats Of Engineering With 25 Projects
by Donna Latham
Part of the Build It Yourself series
Canals and Dams: Investigate Feats of Engineering invites children ages 9 and up to explore the innovation and physical science behind the amazing waterways and barriers our world depends on. Trivia and fun facts illustrate engineering ingenuity and achievements from ancient aqueducts to the Suez Canal and the Hoover Dam. Readers will discover that engineers and builders alike put their lives on the line to advance civilization, experiencing triumphs and tragedies in building big. Through dazzling success and heartbreaking failure, they developed increasingly sophisticated tools and building methods.Activities and projects encourage children to explore the engineering process and to try, try again through trial and error. They'll engage in hands-on explorations of buoyancy, Newton's third law of motion, and forces that push and pull structures. They'll create a paper-cup zip line, build an arch, and simulate a tsunami, while experimenting with gravity, hydroponics, and velocity. In Canals and Dams: Investigate Feats of Engineering, children will gain an appreciation for the important field of engineering as they develop their own building skills.
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Amazing Africa Projects
You Can Build Yourself
by Carla Mooney
Part of the Build It Yourself series
While Africa is one continent it contains many diverse countries. Amazing Africa Projects You Can BuildYourself introduces readers ages 9 and up to the stunning landscapes, ancient civilizations and ethnic groups, unique traditions, and amazing wildlife of the vast African continent.With 25 fun projects that kids can complete using common household supplies and many recycled materials, kids learn about life in Africa. Step-by-step instructions show young readers how to make their own shields for an initiation ceremony, cook banana fritters and fufu cakes, and design animal masks to commemorate the seasons. Kids will celebrate Africa and its place in our world.
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The Underground Railroad
Navigate The Journey From Slavery To Freedom With 25 Projects
by Judy Dodge Cummings
Part of the Build It Yourself series
Imagine leaving everything you've ever known-your friends, family, and home-to travel along roads you've never seen before, getting help from people you've never met before, with the constant threat of capture hovering over your every move. Would you risk your life on the Underground Railroad to gain freedom from slavery?In The Underground Railroad: Navigate the Journey from Slavery to Freedom, readers ages 9 to 12 examine how slavery developed in the United States and what motivated abolitionists to work for its destruction. The Underground Railroad was a network of secret routes and safe houses operated by conductors and station masters, both black and white. Readers follow true stories of enslaved people who braved patrols, the wilderness, hunger, and their own fear in a quest for freedom.In The Underground Railroad, readers dissect primary sources, including slave narratives and runaway ads. Projects include composing a song with a hidden message and navigating by reading the nighttime sky. Amidst the countless tragedies that centuries of slavery brought to African Americans lie tales of hope, resistance, courage, sacrifice, and victory-truly an American story.
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Energy
25 Projects Investigate Why We Need Power & How We Get It
by Kathleen M Reilly
Part of the Build It Yourself series
Energy is a vital part of our lives. It powers our computer, lights our home, and moves our car. It also costs a lot of money and pollutes our environment. In Energy: 25 Projects Investigate Why We Need Power and How We Get It, kids ages 9–12 learn about the history and science of the world's energy sources, from nonrenewable fossil fuels such as oil and natural gas to renewable sources such as solar and wind power. Sidebars and fun trivia break up the text, making it easily accessible and engaging, while hands-on projects encourage active learning. Requiring little adult supervision and using supplies commonly found in most households, activities range from constructing a battery to recreating an oil spill to see how difficult cleanup can be. By exploring the advantages and disadvantages of each energy source, kids will gain insight into the future of energy and its impact on our planet.
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Projectile Science
The Physics Behind Kicking a Field Goal and Launching a Rocket with Science Activities for Kids
by Matthew Brenden Wood
Part of the Build It Yourself series
What are the forces behind ballistics? Why do rocks and rockets soar through the air in an arch? The game is on the line. Suddenly, you hear the crack of a bat and the roar of crowd. Where will the ball land? How far will it travel? Is it a home run? You might think that hitting a home run or nailing a three-pointer is just luck, but there are many forces at work that determine if you've made a game-winning shot or the final out. If you've ever kicked a ball, thrown a rock, or even played Angry Birds, you've experimented with the forces behind ballistics. In Projectile Science: The Physics Behind Kicking a Field Goal and Launching a Rocket with Science Activities for Kids, one of four titles in the Technology for Today set, kids ages 9 to 12 learn why projectiles follow the paths they do and what factors influence those paths. Readers who are fascinated with potato cannons, slingshots, and rocketry will love taking that next step and applying what they learn about the laws of physics to the science of figuring out where to aim. Math is the language you use to understand the science of ballistics. In this book, readers will learn about the forces that act on the projectiles and how to calculate those forces to make educated predictions about where their homemade rockets and other projectiles will land. 25 Safe, hands-on STEAM activities using materials that are easy to acquire are a terrific way to foster real-life learning about ballistics. Kids will perform Galileo's famous test for gravity, create clinometers to measure height and distance, and build a machine that can throw curve balls. Essential questions that promote critical examination of the science, primary sources, online videos, and science-minded engineering activities let readers have a blast learning about the physics of ballistics! In the Technology for Today set, readers ages 9 to 12 explore the digital landscapes of today and tomorrow through hands-on STEAM activities and compelling stories of how things work, who makes them work, and why. Titles in this set include Industrial Design: Why Smartphones Aren't Round and Other Mysteries with Science Activities for Kids; Big Data: Information in the Digital World with Science Activities for Kids; Projectile Science: The Physics Behind Kicking a Field Goal and Launching a Rocket with Science Activities for Kids; and Artificial Intelligence: Thinking Machines and Smart Robots with Science Activities for Kids.
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Electricity
by Carmella Van Vleet
Part of the Build It Yourself series
Fascinating explanations of something we use every day! Kids ages 8 to 12 discover where electricity comes from, how it works, and how we can make it more efficient.
It's everywhere. In our homes, schools, offices, on the train, in our cars-even inside our bodies!
Electricity: Circuits, Static, and Electromagnets with Hands-On Science Activities for Kids explores the science of electricity and the technology we've developed to harness the energy to power our lives. By diving into the topics of static electricity, currents, circuits, electromagnetism, motors, and ways we might produce and use electricity in the future, kids ages 8 to 12 gain a full view of how electricity works and why it's so important to human society.
And while it's tempting to think electricity was invented by humans, it existed since before the earth was even formed! In this book, we'll examine the electricity found in nature and even inside our own bodies.
Hands-on STEM activities, entertaining illustrations, essential questions, text-to-world connections, fascinating sidebars, and links to online resources and videos get kids hooked on the fascinating subject they all use in their daily lives-electricity! Additional materials include a glossary, a list of media for further learning, a selected bibliography, and index. Aligns with Common Core state standards and Next Generation Science Standards.
All books are leveled for Guided Reading level and Lexile.
All titles are available in paperback, hardcover, and ebook formats.
Carmella Van Vleet is a former teacher and the award-winning author of nearly two dozen books for kids and adults. She is the author of Explore Ancient Rome, Robotics, and Aviation: Cool Women Who Fly from Nomad Press. She lives in Ohio.
Website: carmellavanvleet.com
Micah Rauch is a freelance graphic designer and illustrator from the beautiful state of Montana. He received a BFA in graphic design from Montana State University in Bozeman, Montana and has illustrated several books for Nomad Press, including Kitchen Chemistry, Fairground Physics, and Crazy Contraptions.
Website: micahrauch.com
Instagram: instagram.com/micahrauch
Where can you find electricity? Everywhere! In Electricity: Circuits, Static, and Electromagnets with Hands-On Science Activities for Kids, readers 8 to 12 explores the science of electricity and the technology we've developed to harness the energy to power our lives. Hands-on science projects and essential questions offer kids a full view of how electricity works and why it's so important to human society.
Praise for Robotics! With 25 Science Projects for Kids by Carmella Van Vleet
School Library Connections
"In addition to multiple ideas for projects available at the end of each chapter, there are games, journal ideas, flowcharts to help with planning, information about coding, and even jokes. All these "extras" will keep young readers interested and involved in the book. This is an excellent addition to any library serving elementary to middle grade students. Recommended."
Praise for a previous edition of Electricity!
Booklist
"With a heavy emphasis on STEM and engaging trivia, this well-designed title is a quality introduction to the basics of electricity."
Timeline
Introduction: What is Electricity?
Chapter 1: Static Electricity
Balloon on the Wall
Make an Electroscope
Design a Boogie Balls Box
See Static Electricity in Action
Chapter 2: Currents
Make a Voltaic Pile
Create a Vinegar Battery
Test Conductors and Insulators
Observe Watts vs Power
Chapter 3: Circuits
Build a Simple Closed Circuit
Make a Flashlight
Chapter 4: Electromagnetism
Make a Magnetic Field Viewer
Build a Compass
Create an Electromagnet
Mix Up Some Magnetic Slime
Chapter 5: Motors and Generators
Build a Water Turbine
Try a Homopolar Motor
Make a Simple Motor
Build a capacitator
Chapter
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Geology Of The Great Plains And Mountain West
Investigate How The Earth Was Formed With 15 Projects
by Cynthia Light Brown
Part of the Build It Yourself series
Answering intriguing questions such as Why does the largest river system in North America meander across the middle of the continent? and How does such a system relate to the rugged Rocky Mountains?, this fun-filled book delves into the majestic Great Plains region. The chapters concisely clarify the interrelated subjects of terrain, climate, and the great movements of the earth itself while illustrating the important changes that are still occurring in the area's rivers, lakes, plains, and unpredictable weather. Brimming with fascinating facts, educational sidebars tell how earthquakes in New Madrid, Missouri caused waves to go upstream in the Mississippi River; why and how tornadoes form; and how invasive species are threatening the Great Lakes and what people are doing about it.
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Entrepreneurship
Create Your Own Business
by Alex Kahan
Part of the Build It Yourself series
From the early days of traders and trappers to today's global online marketplace, business is the glue that holds our world together. In Entrepreneurship: Create Your Own Business, children learn what it takes to transform a great idea into their own new business. Through plenty of hands-on activities, art and history meet economics and math while young readers gain a solid understanding of how a business works.Kids use familiar resources to develop a business idea of their own, create a presentation for potential investors, and utilize basic cost and price analysis worksheets. The skills they learn by writing a business plan, creating a prototype of an item to sell, designing packaging, and finding ways to advertise their products translate into language, math, and problem-solving skills that are relevant across all subjects. Cartoon illustrations, fun facts, and interviews with successful entrepreneurs make Entrepreneurship entertaining and informative. Supplemental materials include a glossary, list of resources, and an index.Entrepreneurship meets common core state standards in language arts for reading informational text and literary nonfiction; Guided Reading Levels and Lexile measurements indicate grade level and text complexity.
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Natural Disasters
Investigate Earth's Most Destructive Forces With 25 Projects
by Kathleen M. Reilly
Part of the Build It Yourself series
When natural disasters happen they grab headlines around the world. People, creatures, and the environment are all impacted when nature gets out of control. Natural disasters can be upsetting to live through, but scientists today better understand their causes and how we can protect ourselves and others. Natural Disasters: Investigate Earth's Most Destructive Forces with 25 Projects teaches readers about some of the natural disasters throughout history, what caused them, their impact on civilizations, and how people today cope with natural disasters. Readers of this book will make their own shake tables, create a cake batter lava flow, invent a wind tunnel, and experiment with avalanches. These hands-on activities engage readers and add depth to the text while ensuring that the learning is made lasting and fun.
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Fairground Physics
Motion, Momentum, and Magnets with Hands-On Science Activities
by Angie Smibert
Part of the Build It Yourself series
Head to the fair to learn about physics with cool trivia facts, hands-on science activities, and lots of accessible science!
Where can you experience the laws of motion, the fun of physics, and the chemistry of cotton candy? The fair!
In Fairground Physics: Motion, Momentum, and Magnets with Hands-On Science Activities, readers ages 9 to 12 learn about the forces that rule our world and everything in it by examining the rides, games, and even food you might find at a county fair. Ride the carousel and discover centripetal force. Throw darts at a balloon and learn about projectile science. Hop on a roller coaster and name the types of energy involved in whizzing you around the track and upside down!
Fun at the fair extends into real-life, hands-on learning that kids will keep front of mind even as they swing through the air and guzzle down some funnel cakes. This book is full of text-to-self and text-to-world connections!
• Real world science is a great way to engage kids with learning about science, and it doesn't get much more real than at a fairground. By using examples that most kids have experienced, Fairground Physics both captures the imagination and provides a foundation of reality on which to base explanations of complex scientific concepts.
• Force, motion, and gravity affect everyone whether we take notice or not, and understanding how the laws of physics work is an essential part of understanding the physical underpinnings of our very existence.
• Fairground Physics engages readers through hands-on activities, such as designing a roller coaster and making ice cream, along with interesting trivia, fascinating sidebars, and links to online material that supports and supplements learning.
About the Build It Science set and Nomad Press
Fairground Physics is part of a set of four Build It Science books that explore accessible science. The other titles in this set are Climate Change, Backyard Biology, and Kitchen Chemistry.
Nomad Press books in the Build It series integrate content with participation. Combining content with inquiry-based projects stimulates learning and makes it active and alive. Nomad's unique approach simultaneously grounds kids in factual knowledge while allowing them the space to be curious, creative, and critical thinkers.
All books are leveled for Guided Reading level and Lexile and align with Common Core State Standards and Next Generation Science Standards.
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The Silk Road
Explore The World's Most Famous Trade Route With 20 Projects
by Kathy Ceceri
Part of the Build It Yourself series
From Roman times until the Age of Exploration, the Silk Road carried goods and ideas across Central Asia between two major centers of civilization, the Mediterranean Sea and China. In The Silk Road: Explore the World's Most Famous Trade Route, readers ages 9–12 will learn about the history, geography, culture, and people of the Silk Road region.Marco Polo was just one of many who set out on the Silk Road in search of wealth, power, or knowledge. These adventurers braved vast deserts, towering mountain peaks, warring tribes, and marauding bandits. Silk garments, wool rugs, and fine glass were the prizes for those who survived the trip. Activities using everyday materials bring the Silk Road to life. Young readers will see how ideas in math, science, religion, and art were spread by travelers along with the treasures they found.The Silk Road takes readers on an exciting, interactive adventure to a faraway place and celebrates its important role in human history and development..
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Keystone Species
Meet The Animals Key To Ecosystem Health And Biodiversity With Hands-on Science Activities For Kids
by Laura Perdew
Part of the Build It Yourself series
A hands-on project book about the keystone species keeping habitats healthy!
Who's keeping the ecosystem healthy?
In any ecosystem, every species has a role to play. From towering trees and ginormous whales to the smallest microorganisms, plants, fungi, and insects, each species is important to the overall health of the ecosystem. But some of those species play such vital roles that without them, the ecosystem might collapse. These are called keystone species.
In Keystone Species: Meet the Animals Key to Ecosystem Health and Biodiversity with Hands-On Science Activities for Kids, readers ages 9 to 12 are introduced to several different types of keystone species from around the world as they discover the crucial roles these animals play in their ecosystems. Meet the predators, herbivores, ecosystem engineers, mutualists, and foundational species that all play a keystone role in regulating an ecosystem. Investigate how these ecosystems function, learn about threats to wolves, sharks, beavers, alligators, flying foxes, bees, wildebeests, bison, and coral, and dive into what happens when these species disappear. Throughout the book, find stories about science-based conservation practices that inspire kids to do their part in protecting their own environments.
Keystone Species includes hands-on activities and critical thinking exercises to help readers gain a deeper understanding of ecosystems and the role of every species. STEM activities, a narrative writing style, fun facts, words-to-know, and links to primary sources, videos, and other relevant websites take readers on an exploration of keystone species around the world.
Additional materials include a glossary, a list of media for further learning, a selected bibliography, and index. All books are leveled for Guided Reading level and Lexile and align with Common Core State Standards and Next Generation Science Standards.
All titles are available in paperback, hardcover, and ebook formats.
Laura Perdew is an author, writing consultant, and former middle school teacher. She is the author of The Fort (Page Street Kids, 2020) and over 50 books for the education market including Biodiversity: Explore the Diversity of Life on Earth (Nomad Press, 2019) which is on the Booklist editors' list of the Top 10 Books on the Environment & Sustainability for Youth 2020. Laura lives in Boulder, Colorado.
Website: lauraperdew.com
Micah Rauch is a freelance graphic designer and illustrator from the beautiful state of Montana. He received a BFA in graphic design from Montana State University in Bozeman, Montana and has illustrated several books for Nomad Press, including Kitchen Chemistry, Fairground Physics, and Crazy Contraptions.
Website: micahrauch.com
Instagram: instagram.com/micahrauch Who's keeping the ecosystem healthy? In Keystone Species: Meet the Animals Key to Ecosystem Health and Biodiversity with Hands-On Science Activities for Kids, readers ages 9 to 12 investigate several different types of keystone species from around the world as they discover the crucial roles these animals play in ecosystems. Hands-on science projects and essential questions offer kids a deep exploration into predators, herbivores, ecosystem engineers, mutualists, and foundational species keeping our world healthy!
Praise for Spit Nests, Puke Power, and Other Brilliant Bird Adaptations by Laura Perdew
School Library Journal
"A cool science title for younger readers to learn about bird adaptation. Educators can use this text in the classroom; many STEAM lessons could be inspired by these funky adaptations."
Praise for Biodiversity by Laura Perdew
Booklist
Top 10 Books on the Environment & Sustainability for Youth: 2020
"Activities and accessible text bring the importance and complexity of biodiversity to upper-elementary and middle-school students."
Praise for Extinction by Laura Perdew
National Science Teachers Association Reco
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Backyard Biology
Discover the Life Cycles and Adaptations Outside Your Door with Hands-On Science Activities
by Donna Latham
Part of the Build It Yourself series
Offering a deep peek into the world right outside your door, this life science book for middle readers gets kids excited about the natural world with fantastic hands-on science experiments! Where can you study biology? Everywhere! Do you need special equipment? No! Biology is the study of life, and life is all around you. You can find life thriving in the city and in the country, teeming in ecosystems around the planet-in deserts, oceans, and even the Arctic. Backyard Biology: Discover the Life Cycles and Adaptations Outside Your Door with Hands-On Science Activities introduces readers ages 9 to 12 to the amazing world of life science right outside their doors, no matter where they live. Plentiful text-to-self and text-to-world connections provide foundational learning. This title has been revised and updated to reflect 2020 educational standards and incorporate new scientific discoveries!
• Backyard Biology: Discover the Life Cycles and Adaptations Outside Your Door with Hands-On Science Activities invites readers ages 9 through 12 to investigate living things in their own environments, including yards, parks, nature areas, and playgrounds.
• Backyard Biology turns readers into Nature Detectives with activities and projects that encourage children to build on a foundation of textual discovery and apply their knowledge to real-world problems and solutions.
• Activities include constructing a plankton net to collect pond samples and growing microorganisms in a Winogradsky column.
• Projects use materials already in most homes, reimagining and repurposing everyday items, as well as mining the recycling bin!
• Essential questions, short sidebars, and links to online primary resources help readers learn about the natural world around them and connect that natural world to the very survival of the human species.
About the Build It Science set and Nomad Press
Backyard Biology is part of a set of four Build It Science books that explore accessible science. The other titles in this set are Fairground Physics, Climate Change, and Kitchen Chemistry.
Nomad Press books in the Build It series integrate content with participation. Combining content with inquiry-based projects stimulates learning and makes it active and alive. Nomad's unique approach simultaneously grounds kids in factual knowledge while allowing them the space to be curious, creative, and critical thinkers.
All books are leveled for Guided Reading level and Lexile and align with Common Core State Standards and Next Generation Science Standards.
All titles are available in paperback, hardcover, and ebook formats.
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Cities
Discover How They Work With 25 Projects
by Kathleen M. Reilly
Part of the Build It Yourself series
To a child, a city is a chaotic, vibrant community whose workings can seem quite mysterious. How did people create subways? How does the water get to the very top of a skyscraper? Is there any organization to a bustling metropolis? Cities: Discover How They Work gives kids a view into the inner functioning of urban areas. They'll learn about all the parts that come together to make cities work and how they've grown and changed since the very first riverside settlements.Fascinating sidebars, unique illustrations, Words to Know, and fun Did You Know facts combine with age-appropriate hands-on activities to make learning about complex urban environments fun and reinforce learning. Projects include creating subway cut-aways to understand how transportation systems work, building an aqueduct to learn how cities get water, and experimenting with skyscraper design and water filtration. This STEAM title, which integrates science, technology, engineering, art, and math includes a glossary, list of resources, and index.Cities meets common core state standards in language arts for reading informational text and literary nonfiction and is aligned with Next Generation Science Standards. Guided Reading Levels and Lexile measurements indicate grade level and text complexity.
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Amazing Leonardo Da Vinci Inventions
You Can Build Yourself
by Maxine Anderson
Part of the Build It Yourself series
Amazing Leonardo da Vinci Inventions You Can Build Yourself introduces readers to the life, world, and incredible mind of Leonardo da Vinci through hands-on building projects that explore his invention ideas. Most of Leonardo's inventions were never made in his lifetime-they remained sketches in his famous notebooks. Amazing Leonardo da Vinci Inventions You Can Build Yourself shows you how to bring these ideas to life using common household supplies. Detailed step-by-step instructions, diagrams, and templates for creating each project combine with historical facts and anecdotes, biographies and trivia about the real-life models for each project. Together they give kids a first-hand look intothe amazing mind of one the world's greatest inventors.
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Gravity
Mass, Energy, and the Force that Holds Things Together with Hands-On Science
by Cindy Blobaum
Part of the Build It Yourself series
Discover the natural force of gravity in this colorful exploration of the phenomenon that affects us all!
What's up? What's down? What's keeping you steady?
In Gravity: Mass, Energy, and the Force that Holds Things Together with Hands-On Science Activities, scientists ages 8 to 12 explore the invisible but powerful force that is responsible for keeping the entire universe in place-including you! Gravity is the natural phenomenon that makes everything in the universe attracted to everything else. On Earth, that means gravity is why we fall down toward the ground, the reason we have tides, and why we weigh a certain number of pounds.
Hands-on STEM activities, entertaining illustrations, essential questions, text-to-world connections, fascinating sidebars, and links to online resources and videos in this book are as forceful as gravity itself! Additional materials include a glossary, a list of media for further learning, a selected bibliography, and index. Aligns with Common Core state standards and Next Generation Science Standards.
All books are leveled for Guided Reading level and Lexile and are available in paperback, hardcover, and ebook formats.
Cindy Blobaum is the author of many nonfiction books for children, including Skulls and Skeeltons! and Explore the Ice Age! for Nomad Press. She is a contributor to Highlights, Hopscotch for Girls, and Plays magazines and has designed science-based programs and teacher workshops for nature organizations throughout the United States. Cindy lives in Iowa.
Micah Rauch is a freelance graphic designer and illustrator from the beautiful state of Montana. He received a BFA in graphic design from Montana State University in Bozeman, Montana and has illustrated several books for Nomad Press, including Kitchen Chemistry, Fairground Physics, and Crazy Contraptions.
What's keeping you down? Gravity! In Gravity: Mass, Energy, and the Force that Holds Things Together with Hands-On Science Activities scientists ages 8 to 12 explore the invisible but powerful force that is responsible for keeping the entire universe in place-including you! Hands-on science projects and essential questions offer kids a deep exploration into this phenomenon that affects us all, all the time.
Praise for Explore Predators and Prey! With 25 Great Projects by Cindy Blobaum
National Science Teachers Association Recommends
"Explore Predators and Prey! With 25 Great Projects provides a unique combination of solid, engaging, accurate text and hands-on experiences . . . As a teacher myself, it presents itself as nearly a complete unit plan! I can imagine building a unit based on this book and the resources it provides . . . I would definitely recommend this book, and will be seeking out others in this series!"
Praise for Explore the Ice Age! With 25 Great Projects by Cindy Blobaum
Booklist
"This appealing series title explores the most recent Ice Age, beginning with where the ice came from and continuing to the end of the Ice Age. . . Particularly fun are the factual errors revealed in the movie Ice Age. Included are a time line, glossary, resources, essential questions, and examples of Ice Age sites around the U.S. Great for browsing, but even better for STEM programming in classroom, library, and after-school settings."
Praise for Skulls and Skeletons! With 25 Great Projects by Cindy Blobaum
School Library Connections
"This title provides students with lots of data about how our bodies work and how bones are essential for protecting our organs, making blood, and keeping ourselves heathy. End pages include a list of museums to visit, essential questions on the topics covered, and a QR code glossary. Recommended."
Timeline
Introduction: Finding Down
Chapter One: Getting to Know Gravity
On the Straight and Level!
Pushing Up!
Personal Anti-Gravity Machine
Chapter Two: Gravity Basics: Matter and Mass
Set the Bottle
Find Your Center of Gravity
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Maya
Amazing Inventions You Can Build Yourself
by Sheri Bell-Rehwoldt
Part of the Build It Yourself series
Revised in 2012 Maya: Amazing Inventions You Can Build Yourself introduces readers ages 9–12 to the world of the ancient Maya, the most advanced and mysterious civilization of the New World. From ceremonial masks to hieroglyphics, and calendars to musical instruments, Maya: Amazing Inventions You Can Build Yourself gives readers a chance to experience how the Maya lived, cooked, worshipped, entertained themselves, and interacted with their neighbors through hands on building projects that use common household supplies. Detailed step-by-step instructions for each project are combined with historical facts and anecdotes, biographies, and trivia. Together they give kids a first-hand look at daily life in ancient Mesoamerica..
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Innovators
The Stories Behind The People Who Shaped The World With 25 Projects
by Marcia Amidon Lusted
Part of the Build It Yourself series
Most people have heard of Thomas Edison, Steve Jobs, and Mark Zuckerberg, but how about Daniel Hale Williams, Mae Jemison, and Mary Anderson? The world owes a lot to the unsung heroes of innovation, people who used their ideas to make the world a better place through advances in health, technology, food science, and discovery! In Innovators: The Stories Behind the People Who Shaped the World, readers ages 9 to 12 learn about many inventions, products, processes, and improvements people have made to create the reality in which we live.For example, in 1938, Ruth Wakefield added bits of chocolate to her cookies and invented Toll House chocolate chip cookies. In 2012, at the age of just 15, Jack Andraka developed a speedy and cheap method to detect pancreatic cancer. Being innovative means thinking creatively and critically to solve problems and find improvements-all it takes is an open mind, curiosity, and a desire to come up with ideas! Hands-on activities use the engineering design process and include creating a homemade version of Silly Putty and figuring out how to make a solar-powered oven. Links to primary sources, videos, and relevant websites offer a digital experience for deeper, independent learning and inspiration.Nomad Press books in the Build It Yourself series integrate content with participation. Common Core State Standards, the Next Generation Science Standards, and STEM Education all place project-based learning as key building blocks in education. Combining content with inquiry-based projects stimulates learning and makes it active and alive. Nomad's unique approach simultaneously grounds kids in factual knowledge while allowing them the space to be curious, creative, and critical thinkers.
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Biomes
Discover the Earth's Ecosystems with Environmental Science Activities for Kids
by Donna Latham
Part of the Build It Yourself series
Would you rather live in the desert or the grasslands? Middles schoolers can discover new worlds by reading Biomes: Discover the Earth's Ecosystems with Science Activities for Kids, which discusses the world's biomes in terms of climates, geologies, resources, and organisms! Essential questions, fun facts, and hands-on STEM experiments make this book a fully immersive learning experience!
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Mapping And Navigation
Explore The History And Science Of Finding Your Way With 20 Projects
by Cynthia Light Brown
Part of the Build It Yourself series
How did we get from 20-foot-long maps to GPS devices small enough to fit in the palm of our hands? How does GPS work and what can it tell us? How do ancient mapmaking techniques used by the Romans and Greeks influence the satellite technologies we use today? The history of mapmaking is full of remarkable characters who charted the unknown with an ever-changing set of tools. In Mapping and Navigation: The History and Science of Finding Your Way, kids ages 9–12 will learn the history and science behind the evolution of mapmaking, and how much is still out there for discovery.Readers will explore ideas through hands-on experiments while learning new terminology and interesting facts. Projects include using triangulation to measure distances, creating contour lines on a mini-mountain to understand elevation changes on a map, and inventing a sundial and compass to understand the basics of navigation. Whether mapping the solar system or mapping their own backyard, all readers will be able to understand mapping technologies and see the world in new and exciting ways.
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Great Colonial America Projects
You Can Build Yourself
by Kris Bordessa
Part of the Build It Yourself series
Great Colonial America Projects You Can Build Yourself introduces readers ages 9–12 to colonial America through hands-on building projects. From dyeing and spinning yarn to weaving cloth, from creating tin plates and lanterns to learning wattle and daub construction. Great Colonial America Projects You Can Build Yourself gives readers a chance to experience how colonial Americans lived, cooked, entertained themselves, and interacted with their neighbors.
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Planet Earth
24 Environmental Projects You Can Build Yourself
by Kathleen M. Reilly
Part of the Build It Yourself series
Planet Earth: 25 Environmental Projects You Can Build Yourself provides an engaging guide to the natural world and encourages children ages 9 and up to get their hands dirty and actively connect with the environment. It then introduces key environmental issues-wind and solar power, pollution, endangered species, global warming, and recycling-and posits potential solutions. Trivia, fun facts, and 25 captivating hands-on projects investigate ecology basics, such as the food chain, oxygen, and animal habitats, as well as ways to lessen the strain on Earth's resources by reducing human consumption and waste. With Planet Earth kids will learn how to respect and protect our unique planet.
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Extinction
What Happened To The Dinosaurs, Mastodons, And Dodo Birds? With 25 Projects
by Laura Perdew
Part of the Build It Yourself series
Have you seen a dodo bird recently? Do you have mastodons playing in your back yard? Not likely-these species are both extinct, which means the entire population has died out. More than 99 percent of all species, or about 5 billion, have gone extinct since life first formed on Earth 4.5 billion years ago. Some of those species went extinct at the same time in an event know as a mass extinction.
What type of event could cause such a massive die off? This is a question that scientists have asked for decades as they explore the causes of extinction. In Extinction: What Happened to the Dinosaurs, Mastodons, and Dodo Birds? readers ages 9 to 12 learn about the scientific investigative work necessary to answer these questions and find the culprit behind mass extinctions. Follow the scientists as they look at all potential reasons for extinction, including asteroid impacts, massive volcanic eruptions, excessive gases in the atmosphere, climate change, and more.
Where do scientists find clues to help them answer their questions? In rocks-scientists travel the globe to excavate the evidence. They look for fossils that might tell them what lived before an extinction and what lived after. They also examine the chemical elements in rocks at the boundaries between geologic eras, as well as the structure of rocks. As they follow the evidence, the pieces of the puzzle come together to form a clearer picture of events that happened millions of years ago, whether it's an asteroid strike or a massive volcanic eruption.
Extinction is not just a thing of the past. It is happening right now, at a higher rate than is typical. Because of this, there is debate about whether or not the presence of humans on Earth is having the same effect as an asteroid strike or a massive volcanic eruption. Are we currently experiencing the sixth mass extinction? And if so, what are the causes? Can we stop it?
Extinction: What Happened to the Dinosaurs, Mastodons, and Dodo Birds? includes hands-on activities and critical thinking exercises to encourage readers to consider humans' role in the current extinction, what we can learn from past extinction events, and how they can be part of efforts to prevent extinction. Hands-on activities, a fun narrative style, interesting facts, species spotlights, and links to primary sources combine to bring the subject of extinction to life in a fun and engaging way.
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Amazing Arctic And Antarctic Projects
You Can Build Yourself
by Carmella Van Vleet
Part of the Build It Yourself series
Amazing Arctic & Antarctic Projects You Can Build Yourself explores the Earth's polar regions with 25 interactive projects, activities, and experiments. Kids ages 9 and up will discover that the coldest places on Earth hold fascinating scientific wonders and mysteries. Historical facts and anecdotes, biographies, and fascinating trivia support the fun projects to teach young readers about the harsh polar climate, immense Arctic tundra, magical Northern Lights, vast glaciers, ancient frozen lakes, remarkable animals and plants, brave explorers, innovative people who live and work at the top and bottom of the world, and the vital importance of conservation. With Amazing Arctic & Antarctic Projects You Can Build Yourself kids will gain an appreciation for the exciting and extraordinary polar environments.
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The U.S. Constitution
Discover How Democracy Works With 25 Projects
by Carla Mooney
Part of the Build It Yourself series
Where did the American democratic tradition begin? From ancient civilizations in Greece and Rome to the Enlightenment in Europe, democratic ideas throughout time have influenced the development of democracy in the United States.In The U.S. Constitution: Discover How Democracy Works, children ages 9 through 12 learn about the foundation of democracy and how the documents crafted hundreds of years ago still have an impact on our country today. They explore the Declaration of Independence, U.S. Constitution, and the Bill of Rights, among others. These documents provide a framework with which we make the laws and processes that help keep democracy a vital paradigm.Through hands-on projects, which include analyzing how the promises made in the Preamble of the Constitution were put into practice and investigating how to balance the freedom of speech in the digital age, students investigate how American democracy operates. With colorful illustrations, interesting sidebars, and links to online primary sources, this book asks readers to consider the effect of technology on democracy and make predictions about future documents that will be important to the preservation of democracy around the world.
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Evolution
How Life Adapts To A Changing Environment With 25 Projects
by Carla Mooney
Part of the Build It Yourself series
Why do humans walk on two legs? Why do fish have gills? Life on Earth is incredibly diverse and part of the reason for this is evolution, or the theory that living things change with time. Evolution: How Life Adapts to a Changing Environment explores the theory of evolution, its history, how we think it works, examples of creatures who have evolved in response to specific circumstances, and what this might mean for the future of our planet.
For billions of years, the amazing story of life on Earth has been unfolding. Millions of years ago, life on earth was nothing like it is today. Dinosaurs roamed the earth and pterosaurs flew through the skies. Millions of years before the dinosaurs, it was even more different. Strange ocean creatures lived in the seas, while the land was barren. Throughout its history, Earth has been home to an incredible diversity of living things that have changed dramatically over the many millennia. How have these living creatures changed so much? And how did that change happen? The answer: evolution!
In Evolution: How Life Adapts to a Changing Environment, readers ages 9 to 12 will study evolution, or the process by which living things change over time. One of the most important ideas in biology, evolution explains why there are so many different living organisms on earth. It also explains why you are the way you are. Because of evolution, you walk on two legs and communicate with language. And although evolution is the story of our past, it also helps us understand our future and how we continue to evolve.
Throughout Evolution, investigations and experiments provide hands-on, problem-solving opportunities for students, incorporating various challenges and tools. Readers simulate the process of natural selection, trace the blue whale's evolutionary tree, and examine how fossils provide evidence of evolution and adaptation. Using readily available household and recycled materials, each activity takes the reader through an inquiry-based, open-ended investigation that leaves plenty of room to explore individual creativity. Evolution: How Life Adapts to a Changing Environment takes readers on a journey from our common ancestry to our shared future on an incredibly diverse planet.Nomad Press books in the Build It Yourself series integrate content with participation. Common Core State Standards, the Next Generation Science Standards and STEM Education all place project-based learning as key building blocks in education. Combining content with inquiry-based projects stimulates learning and makes it active and alive. Nomad's unique approach simultaneously grounds kids in factual knowledge while allowing them the space to be curious, creative, and critical thinkers.
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The Science and Technology of Marie Curie
by Julie Knutson
Part of the Build It Yourself series
A science biography that delves into the world of Marie Curie, a person who revolutionized the way we perceive the universe while getting the world to question gender roles and social norms. Follow in her footsteps, with hands-on STEM activities!
In The Science and Technology of Marie Curie, readers ages 9 through 12 explore Curie's groundbreaking scientific research in physics and chemistry and discover how her work forced people to rethink the very structure of the surrounding world and the role of women within it. Her commitment to understanding things the human eye, can't even see led to the discovery of two new elements, polonium and radium, and to the birth of a new field of research around radioactivity. In the process, she was the first woman to earn a Nobel Prize and the only person ever to win two Nobel Prizes in two different scientific fields, all as she reset society's ideas about women's roles in society.
• The year 2021 will mark the 110th anniversary of Curie's receipt of the Nobel Prize for Chemistry.
• Projects use materials already in most homes, reimagining and repurposing everyday items, as well as mining the recycling bin.
• Projects include Playing Mendeleev's game of cards, Making a 3-D model of the periodic table, and Computing the half-life of M&Ms.
• Make career connections in the fields of engineering, chemistry, medicine, and more!
• Addresses disciplinary core ideas (e.g., "Structure and Properties of Matter") and crosscutting concepts (e.g., "Energy and Matter;" "Influence of Engineering, Technology, and Science on Society and the Environment") for NSTA's NGSS curriculum.
• Numerous, direct connections to Dimension 2 of the C3 Framework ("History" Grades 3-5), providing opportunities for young readers to explore how a historically significant person evolved in context and engendered both scientific and social change.
• Additional materials include a glossary, a list of media for further learning, a selected bibliography, and index.
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Geology Of The Eastern Coast
Investigate How The Earth Was Formed With 15 Projects
by Cynthia Light Brown
Part of the Build It Yourself series
Taking a unique approach to a fascinating region of the United States, this activity guide looks at the underlying processes that have shaped the Eastern Coast. Beginning with the connection between geology and geography, the chapters move into a discussion of plate tectonics and landforms such as the Appalachian Mountains, Piedmont area, and Coastal Plains. The aspects of climate, rivers and lakes, and the ecosystems of the temperate forest and wetlands-including bayous and the Everglades-are covered in detail. Engaging sidebars explain why the New River is one of the oldest in the world, how once-endangered alligators are now thriving, how hurricanes form, and more. Combining fun facts with hands-on experiments, this handbook features projects such as building folded mountains, creating dissolving "corals," and making an eye of a storm.
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Bioengineering
Discover How Nature Inspires Human Designs With 25 Projects
by Christine Burillo-Kirch
Part of the Build It Yourself series
In Bioengineering: Discover How Nature Inspires Human Designs, young readers explore designs and innovations that come from nature. Leonardo da Vinci studied birds' wings to draw his design of a man-made flying machine and engineers still look to birds when attempting to make planes more aerodynamic. And a burr on your shirt from walking through a field sticks like Velcro, doesn't it? The plant and animal world provides engineers and scientists with a host of ideas to apply to the human world to make it a better place to live.Bioengineering explores different fields, including communication, transportation, and construction, and follows the process of engineering from the raw material of the natural world to the products we use in the human world every day. Activities such as building cantilevers and inventing a new fabric that mimics pinecone behavior require kids to think critically about their own needs and find creative ideas to fulfill those needs using designs from nature. Essential questions and links to digital and primary resources make this book an engaging and illuminating experience.
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Fault Lines & Tectonic Plates
Discover What Happens When The Earth's Crust Moves With 25 Projects
by Kathleen M. Reilly
Part of the Build It Yourself series
Readers explore the science of plate tectonics in a way that makes complex topics fun and understandable.Uses an inquiry-based approach to encourage readers to reach their own conclusions about topics scientists are still exploring.Readers gain a solid understanding of how the physical world evolves over time.Children learn the reasons behind major natural events such as earthquakes, changing them from an unknown, scary event to something understandable. Fosters the utilization of the scientific method by modeling its use. This STEM-focused book uses an inquiry-based approach and open-ended activities to encourage creative thinking.Meets the NSTA's NGSS earth and space science standards for middle school.Links to online primary sources promote further thought and exploration beyond the page to deepen readers' curiosity about this topic.Meets the Common Core state standards in language arts for reading informational text.Guided Reading Levels and Lexile measurements indicate grade level.