Counting Sheep, Why Do We Sleep? (At Home with Science) - Hardcover

Janice Lobb

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 0753405598 ISBN 13: 9780753405598

Publisher: Kingfisher Books, 2001

Synopsis

Counting Sheep! Why do we sleep? follows Archie the elephant, Frank the flamingo, Bob the duck and the rest of the gang while they explore the bedroom. Why do I go to bed? How does my lamp work? and What is moonlight? are just some of the questions that the friends discuss. With accessible diagrams and 12 step-by-step experiments (plus some of the world's silliest jokes!), they find out the simple scientific explanations to these questions and many more. A uniquely unstuffy approach to science that gets kids involved with the world around them.

About this title

About the Author:

Janice Lobb has been a lecturer for many years at the City of Westminster College, London, where she teaches science to all levels of ability. Her wide experience and enthusiasm make her the perfect author for the At Home with Science series. This series reflects her interest in making science fun by treating it as a normal part of everyday life. Peter Utton is an acclaimed illustrator who won the Smarties Book Prize for Sally Grindley's book, Shhh! in 1992. His other titles include King Arthur, the Teddy Tales collection and Harry's Stormy Night, The Labours of Hercules, The Bible Storybook, The Nursery Storybook and The Good Shepherd Storybook. He has also written and illustrated The Witch's Hand and What if?.

From School Library Journal:

Grade 1-3-These two lively books include easily accomplished experiments designed to make children aware of the existence of scientific laws. Each one has 13 busy spreads with colorful watercolor-and-pencil illustrations and large print. The headings on the left pose a question, which is then answered in a paragraph. The rest of the page is devoted to further explanation and illustrations. The right-hand pages give relevant experiments, using very simple materials. The steps are numbered, and warnings are given when appropriate. Color asks such questions as "What's in my box of paints?" The brief answer discusses pigment and absorbed and reflected light. The accompanying experiment produces a twirling color wheel. Center of gravity is demonstrated in "Why do towers topple?" The explanation of "What makes my top spin?" is oversimplified in that it does not discuss transfer of energy, nor does the discussion of wheels, although the "What makes toys go?" section does briefly discuss the stored energy in a spring. In Counting Sheep, the age-old question "Why do I have to go to bed?" is adequately answered in a paragraph about sensory data being sorted and stored and the harmful consequences of sleep deprivation. The accompanying experiment helps children find their best time of day for learning. Other spreads deal with light, clothing materials, bedroom critters, curtain opacity and glass transparency, night fears, equilibrium of a cradle, and moonlight. Jean Potter's Science in Seconds with Toys (Wiley, 1998) offers better explanations of science concepts than these books, but the projects here are more creative.
Lynda Ritterman, Atco Elementary School, Waterford, NJ
Copyright 2002 Reed Business Information, Inc.

About this edition

• Publisher: Kingfisher Books
• Publication date: 2001
• ISBN 10: 0753405598
• ISBN 13: 9780753405598
• Binding: Hardcover