Exploring Creation with Astronomy


Jeannie Fulbright - 2004
    Narration and notebooking are used to encourage critical thinking, logical ordering, retention, and record keeping. Each lesson in the book is organized with a narrative, some notebook work, an activity, and a project. The activities and projects use easy-to-find household items and truly make the lessons come alive! They include making a solar eclipse, making craters like those found on Mercury, simulating the use of radar to determine hidden landscape, keeping track of the phases of the moon, making a telescope, making fog, and making an astrometer to measure the brightness of a star. Although designed to be read by the parent to elementary students of various grade levels, it is possible for students with a 4th-grade reading level to read this book on their own. Grades K-6.

The Story of Napoleon (The Children's Heroes)


H.E. Marshall - 2007
    Focuses on his military exploits, including his victories in battle after battle, followed by his exile to the island of Elba, his subsequent return to lead the disastrous Russian campaign, his final loss at Waterloo, and his last days on the lonely island of St. Helena. A volume in the highly-acclaimed Children's Heroes series, edited by John Lang.

The Endless Steppe: Growing Up in Siberia


Esther Hautzig - 1968
    The Rudomin family has been arrested by the Russians. They are "capitalists' enemies of the people." Forced from their home and friends in Vilna, Poland, they are herded into crowded cattle cars. Their destination: the endless steppe of Siberia.For five years, Esther and her family live in exile, weeding potato fields and working in the mines, struggling for enough food and clothing to stay alive. Only the strength of family sustains them and gives them hope for the future.

Marco Polo: His Travels and Adventures


George M. Towle - 1880
    A young Venetian of the thirteenth century, brought up amid luxury and wealth, of a bold spirit and a curious mind, went forth from his home in the beautiful Queen City of the Adriatic, and for many years lived among a far-off Asiatic people, and at a court of barbaric and yet splendid pomp. He made many far and dangerous journeyings in the wild distant lands and among the fierce tribes of Cathay, Thibet, India, and Abyssinia. His life was passed amid an almost incessant succession ot exciting events, of strange adventures, and of hair-breadth escapes. He rose to high distinction and power at the Tartar court of the mighty Kublai Khan, one of the most famous conquerors and potentates who ever, in either ancient or modern times, have led legions to devastating wars, or have ruled teeming millions with despotic sway. Nor did his career of valor and stirring action end with his return, middle-aged and laden with riches, to his native Venice. He engaged in the bitter warfare between the two rival republics of the sea, Venice and Genoa; became a prisoner of the latter state; and while in prison, dictated the wondrous narrative of his adventures which still survives, a precious legacy left by this great traveller to later generations. I have attempted to transform the somewhat dry and monotonous translation of this narrative into an entertaining story, that may engage the attention and the interest of my young readers; for which it certainly presents ample opportunities. If the task is properly done, no one can fail to follow Marco Polo from his Venetian home, across the entire continent of Asia to the court of Kublai Khan, and in his various adventures and journeys while in the far-off Orient, without eager curiosity and ever-deepening interest. The central figure of the story is heroic, for Marco Polo was in all things manly, brave, persevering, intelligent, and chivalrous; and the scenes and incidents in which he was the leading actor were in the highest degree thrilling and dramatic. This pre-1923 publication has been converted from its original format for the Kindle and may contain an occasional defect from the original publication or from the conversion.

Fifty Famous Stories Retold


James Baldwin - 1896
    Selecting the best of our literary heritage, Baldwin cast it into a form that delights children of all ages. Beginning with stories of heroes from British history, including King Alfred and the Cakes, King Canute on the Seashore, and Bruce and the Spider, the book moves on to tales of other lands. From Ancient Greece come stories of The Brave Three Hundred, Alexander and Bucepahlus, and Diogenes the Wise Man. Introducing the history of Rome are the Story of Cincinnatus, Horatius at the Bridge, and Julius Caesar. The stories of William Tell, Arnold Winkelried, and Robin Hood impart a bit of the flavor of the Middle Ages. Rounding out the collection are a number of timeless tales that show heroes in action: Damon and Pythias, The Sword of Damocles, Picciola, and The King and His Hawk.Children naturally take a deep interest in such stories. The reading of them will not only give pleasure but will help to lay the foundation for broader literary studies since nearly all are the subjects of frequent allusions in poetry and prose. Young children will enjoy having these stories read to them, while older children will delight in reading them to themselves.Book Details: Format: Paperback Publication Date: 11/1/2005 Pages: 200

Paddle-to-the-Sea


Holling Clancy Holling - 1941
    Paddle's journey, in text and pictures, through the Great lakes to the Atlantic Ocean provides an excellent geographic and historical picture of the region.

Carry On, Mr. Bowditch


Jean Lee Latham - 1955
    Nathaniel Bowditch grew up in a sailor’s world—Salem in the early days, when tall-masted ships from foreign ports crowded the wharves. But Nat didn’t promise to have the makings of a sailor; he was too physically small. Nat may have been slight of build, but no one guessed that he had the persistence and determination to master sea navigation in the days when men sailed only by “log, lead, and lookout.” Nat’s long hours of study and observation, collected in his famous work, The American Practical Navigator (also known as the “Sailors’ Bible”), stunned the sailing community and made him a New England hero.

Famous Men of the Middle Ages


John Henry Haaren - 1904
    Each story in this book by John Haaren is told in a clear, simple manner, and is well calculated to awaken and stimulate the youthful imagination. Notable characters featured in Famous Men of the Middle Ages include Attila the Hun, Charlemagne, William the Conqueror, Frederick Barbarossa, Marco Polo, and William Tell. Somewhat surprisingly, Famous Men of the Middle Ages also includes a chapter about one woman: Joan of Arc.

The Librarian Who Measured the Earth


Kathryn Lasky - 1994
    A perfect introduction to mathematical concepts for young readers, written by a Newbery honor-winning author!This colorfully illustrated biography of the Greek philosopher and scientist Eratosthenes, who compiled the first geography book and accurately measured the globe's circumference, is just right for budding mathematicians, scientists, historians, and librarians! Filled with fascinating details about Eratosthenes's world (and in print since 1994), kids are sure to flip through the pages time and again.

What's Your Angle, Pythagoras? A Math Adventure


Julie Ellis - 2004
    In ancient Greece, young Pythagoras discovers a special number pattern (the Pythagorean theorem) and uses it to solve problems involving right triangles.Book Details: Format: Paperback Publication Date: 4/1/2004 Pages: 32 Reading Level: Age 8 and Up

The Handbook of Nature Study


Anna Botsford Comstock - 1911
    Written originally for those elementary school teachers who knew little of common plants and animals, and even less about earth beneath their feet and the skies overhead, this book is for the most part as valid and helpful to day as it was when first written in 1911.

Abigail Adams: Witness to a Revolution


Natalie S. Bober - 1995
    Rarely is she described as a woman in her own right. Although her primary focus and concerns were in her role as wife and mother, she lives in history because of her extraordinary letters to her family and to her friends. She was a witness to the gathering storm of the Revolutionary War. She saw the Battle of Bunker Hill from a hilltop near her home, and soldiers marching past her door frequently stopped for a drink of water. Because she was so close to the scene, she was able to give firsthand reports of the American Revolution to her husband and other leaders creating a new government, as she wrote about the times and the people who played vital roles in the birth of our nation.Mingling the intimate with the momentous, she documented what it was like to live at a time when education was not available to young women, and when pregnancy and childbirth meant the fear of death. Colonial women were called upon to make life-and-death decisions for their children, to educate their daughters, and to run their farms when their husbands were away for months, or sometimes for years, at a time. Yet they had, at best, second-class legal and political status.Abigail Adams's independent spirit, her sense of humor, and her remarkable intellect, as shown in her letters, open a wide window on a crucial period in our nation's history, and bring Abigail Adams and her time to life.

James Herriot's Treasury for Children: Warm and Joyful Tales by the Author of All Creatures Great and Small


James Herriot - 1992
    From the springtime frolic of Oscar, Cat-About-Town to the yuletide warmth of The Christmas Day Kitten, these stories-radiantly illustrated by Peter Barrett and Ruth Brown-are perennial favorites, and this new complete edition will make a wonderful gift for all readers, great and small.

Facing the Lion: Growing Up Maasai on the African Savanna


Joseph Lemasolai Lekuton - 2003
    Readers share Lekuton's first encounter with a lion, the epitome of bravery in the warrior tradition. They follow his mischievous antics as a young Maasai cattle herder, coming-of-age initiation, boarding school escapades, soccer success, and journey to America for college. Lekuton's riveting text combines exotic details of nomadic life with the universal experience and emotions of a growing boy.

The Little Duke


Charlotte Mary Yonge - 1854
    The hall was large and low, the roof arched, and supported on thick short columns, almost like the crypt of a Cathedral; the walls were thick, and the windows, which had no glass, were very small, set in such a depth of wall that there was a wide deep window seat, upon which the rain might beat, without reaching the interior of the room. And even if it had come in, there was nothing for it to hurt, for the walls were of rough stone, and the floor of tiles. There was a fire at each end of this great dark apartment, but there were no chimneys over the ample hearths, and the smoke curled about in thick white folds in the vaulted roof, adding to the wreaths of soot, which made the hall look still darker.