A Wizard from the Start: The Incredible Boyhood and Amazing Inventions of Thomas Edison


Don Brown - 2010
    At age fourteen he coined his personal motto: “The More to do, the more to be done,” and then went out and did: picking up skills and knowledge at every turn. When learning about things that existed wasn't enough, he dreamed up new inventions to improve the world. From humble beginnings as a farmer’s son, selling newspapers on trains and reading through public libraries shelf by shelf, Tom began his inventing career as a boy and became a legend as a man.

Colleges That Change Lives: 40 Schools You Should Know About Even If You're Not a Straight-A Student


Loren Pope - 1996
    This new edition includes a revised group of colleges and for the first time addresses the issues of home schooling, learning disabilities, and single-sex education. Pope encourages students to be hard-nosed consumers when visiting colleges, and shows how the college experience can enrich every young person's life, whether they are "A", "B", or "C" students.Included in the profiles are: -- Evaluations of each school's program and "personality"-- Interviews with undergraduates, professors, and deans-- Information on what happens to the graduates and what they think of their college experience.

Scholastic Dictionary Of Idioms


Marvin Terban - 1996
    Included are idioms from Native American and African American speech as well as the Bible, Aesop, and Shakespeare.

One Is a Snail, Ten Is a Crab: A Counting by Feet Book


April Pulley Sayre - 2003
    we must be counting by feet! Children will love this hilariously illustrated introduction to simple counting and multiplication with big feet and small - on people and spiders, dogs and insects, snails and crabs - from one to one hundred!

The Omnivore's Dilemma: The Secrets Behind What You Eat


Richie Chevat - 2009
    "What's for dinner?" seemed like a simple question - until journalist and supermarket detective Michael Pollan delved behind the scenes. From fast food and big organic to small farms and old-fashioned hunting and gathering, this young readers' adaptation of Pollan's famous food-chain exploration encourages kids to consider the personal and global health implications of their food choices.In a smart, compelling format with updated facts, plenty of photos, graphs, and visuals, as well as a new afterword and backmatter, The Omnivore's Dilemma serves up a bold message to the generation that needs it most: It's time to take charge of our national eating habits - and it starts with you.

Three Cups of Tea


Sarah L. Thomson - 2006
    Includes new photos and illustrations, as well as a special interview by Greg’s twelve-year-old daughter, Amira, who has traveled with her father as an advocate for the Pennies for Peace program for children.

The Prime Number Conspiracy: The Biggest Ideas in Math from Quanta


Thomas Lin - 2018
    The stories show that, as James Gleick puts it in the foreword, "inspiration strikes willy-nilly." One researcher thinks of quantum chaotic systems at a bus stop; another suddenly realizes a path to proving a theorem of number theory while in a friend's backyard; a statistician has a "bathroom sink epiphany" and discovers the key to solving the Gaussian correlation inequality. Readers of The Prime Number Conspiracy, says Quanta editor-in-chief Thomas Lin, are headed on "breathtaking intellectual journeys to the bleeding edge of discovery strapped to the narrative rocket of humanity's never-ending pursuit of knowledge."Quanta is the only popular publication that offers in-depth coverage of the latest breakthroughs in understanding our mathematical universe. It communicates mathematics by taking it seriously, wrestling with difficult concepts and clearly explaining them in a way that speaks to our innate curiosity about our world and ourselves. Readers of this volume will learn that prime numbers have decided preferences about the final digits of the primes that immediately follow them (the "conspiracy" of the title); consider whether math is the universal language of nature (allowing for "a unified theory of randomness"); discover surprising solutions (including a pentagon tiling proof that solves a century-old math problem); ponder the limits of computation; measure infinity; and explore the eternal question "Is mathematics good for you?"ContributorsAriel Bleicher, Robbert Dijkgraaf, Kevin Hartnett, Erica Klarreich, Thomas Lin, John Pavlus, Siobhan Roberts, Natalie WolchoverCopublished with Quanta Magazine

The Burgess Animal Book for Children


Thornton W. Burgess - 1922
    During their "classroom" chats, she not only teaches Peter about Arctic Hare and Antelope Jack but also tells him about such creatures as Flying Squirrel, Mountain Beaver, Pocket Gopher, Grasshopper Mouse, Silvery Bat, Mule Deer, and Grizzly Bear.Told with all the warmth and whimsy of Burgess's stories, this engaging book acquaints youngsters with many forms of wildlife and the animals' relationships with one another. The charming collection of entertaining tales is sure to transport today's young readers to the same captivating world of nature that delighted generations of children before them.

Exploring Creation with Biology


Jay L. Wile - 1998
    It is recommended that the student take this course during the same year that he or she is taking Algebra 1. Exploring Creation With Biology is a college-prep biology course that provides a detailed introduction to the methods and concepts of general biology. Heavily emphasizing the vocabulary of biology, it provides the student with a strong background in the scientific method, the five-kingdom classification scheme, microscopy, biochemistry, cellular biology, molecular and Mendelian genetics, evolution, dissection, and ecosystems. It also provides a complete survey of the five kingdoms in Creation. Please note that this course does not contain a discussion of human anatomy and physiology. Most college biology professors do not consider it to be a part of a solid, college-prep biology course. Human anatomy and physiology is such a detailed subject that it merits an entire high school course (Please see Human Body, Fearfully and Wonderfully Made). Students who take and understand this course will be very well-prepared for a tough university biology course. The student text contains all student material, on-your-own questions and solutions, laboratory exercises, and chapter study guides. Color illustrations and diagrams."

George's Secret Key to the Universe


Lucy Hawking - 2007
    George's parents, who have always been wary of technology, warn him about their new neighbors: Eric is a scientist and his daughter, Annie, seems to be following in his footsteps. But when George befriends them and Cosmos, their super-computer, he finds himself on a wildly fun adventure, while learning about physics, time, and the universe. With Cosmos's help, he can travel to other planets and a black hole. But what would happen if the wrong people got their hands on Cosmos? George, Annie, and Eric aren't about to find out, and what ensues is a funny adventure that clearly explains the mysteries of science. Garry Parsons' energetic illustrations add humor and interest, and his scientific drawings add clarity; there are also eight 4-page full-color inserts of scientific photos.

Ask Elizabeth: Real Answers to Everything You Secretly Wanted to Ask About Love, Friends, Your Body... and Life in General


Elizabeth Berkley - 2011
    Ask Elizabeth the book utilizes her accrued wisdom to dispense supportive counsel on topics including, but not limited to, self-esteem, menstruation, peer pressure, adjusting to new situations, and hanging out with boys.

The One World Schoolhouse: Education Reimagined


Salman Khan - 2012
    Today millions of students, parents, and teachers use the Khan Academy's free videos and software, which have expanded to encompass nearly every conceivable subject; and Academy techniques are being employed with exciting results in a growing number of classrooms around the globe.Like many innovators, Khan rethinks existing assumptions and imagines what education could be if freed from them. And his core idea-liberating teachers from lecturing and state-mandated calendars and opening up class time for truly human interaction-has become his life's passion. Schools seek his advice about connecting to students in a digital age, and people of all ages and backgrounds flock to the site to utilize this fresh approach to learning.In THE ONE WORLD SCHOOLHOUSE, Khan presents his radical vision for the future of education, as well as his own remarkable story, for the first time. In these pages, you will discover, among other things:* How both students and teachers are being bound by a broken top-down model invented in Prussia two centuries ago* Why technology will make classrooms more human and teachers more important* How and why we can afford to pay educators the same as other professionals* How we can bring creativity and true human interactivity back to learning* Why we should be very optimistic about the future of learning.Parents and politicians routinely bemoan the state of our education system. Statistics suggest we've fallen behind the rest of the world in literacy, math, and sciences. With a shrewd reading of history, Khan explains how this crisis presented itself, and why a return to "mastery learning," abandoned in the twentieth century and ingeniously revived by tools like the Khan Academy, could offer the best opportunity to level the playing field, and to give all of our children a world-class education now.More than just a solution, THE ONE WORLD SCHOOLHOUSE serves as a call for free, universal, global education, and an explanation of how Khan's simple yet revolutionary thinking can help achieve this inspiring goal.

Asimov on Numbers


Isaac Asimov - 1978
    From man's first act of counting to higher mathematics, from the smallest living creature to the dazzling reaches of outer space, Asimov is a master at "explaining complex material better than any other living person." (The New York Times) You'll learn: HOW to make a trillion seem small; WHY imaginary numbers are real; THE real size of the universe - in photons; WHY the zero isn't "good for nothing;" AND many other marvelous discoveries, in ASIMOV ON NUMBERS.

Apple Fractions


Jerry Pallotta - 2003
    Playful elves demonstrate how to divide apples into halves, thirds, fourths, and more. Young readers will also learn about varieties of apples, including Golden and Red Delicious, Granny Smiths, Cortlands, and even Asian Pears.

Smile


Raina Telgemeier - 2009
    But one night after Girl Scouts she trips and falls, severely injuring her two front teeth, and what follows is a long and frustrating journey with on-again, off-again braces, surgery, embarrassing headgear, and even a retainer with fake teeth attached. And on top of all that, there’s still more to deal with: a major earthquake, boy confusion, and friends who turn out to be not so friendly. This coming-of-age true story is sure to resonate with anyone who has ever been in middle school, and especially those who have ever had a bit of their own dental drama.