My kids have plastic placemats in an attempt to keep our wooden farmer’s table from getting destroyed. These placemats sometimes have the unfortunate side effect of preventing the kids from eating, so I try to make sure they’re at least learning something while their dinner is getting cold. My second-grader has always had an interest in space, so his placemat has the planets in our solar system on one side and more details about them on the other: inner and outer planets, short descriptions of asteroids, meteroids and comets.
So when I saw Scholastic Book Club’s** Lucky (gr. 2-3) flyer had some books about space, I knew he’d love them. One thing I really like about Scholastic Book Clubs, in addition to the amazing prices, is that the selections are broken down by grade. The smaller flyers are easier to flip through and books are grouped by subject or series.
The first book I selected was from National Geographic Kids so I wasn’t at all surprised by how impressive 13 Planets: The Latest View of the Solar System is. If you’re wondering how there are now 13 planets, in 2005 astronomers created a new class of planets, called dwarf planets. Pluto was demoted from planet to dwarf planet and 4 other dwarf planets have been discovered in the last 6 years or so. 13 Planets describes our solar system in amazing detail. Each planet and dwarf planet gets a page or two of pictures, easy to understand facts and even the planet’s place in mythology. This isn’t a book to be quickly skimmed, but to be slowly devoured.
My other selection was a Scholastic publication so also a wonderful book. Glow-In-the-Dark Stars and Constellations focuses on the “really huge balls of hot glowing gas” that make up our night sky. It describes the birth, life and death of a star, the different types of stars and their groupings, and what exists in space where there are no stars. It’s length allows for reading by a child with a shorter attention span or who isn’t interested in as much detail.
If you have a stargazer in your family then these books from Scholastic fit the bill.
**5 Minutes for Books is pleased to be partnering with Scholastic to review books available in their bookclubs each month. Other than receiving a couple of books that we select, we have not been compensated in any way. As always our opinions are our own.
Nancy can pick out a handful of constellations including her favorite, Orion. She writes about her 2 boys and life in Colorado at Life With My Boys.
Jennifer says
Those sound like something Kyle would like.
I had to laugh about the placemats distracting from dinner, because that might happen here too!!