Nonfiction Monday

 

WHAT’S THE WEATHER? Is the first in the “What, Why, or Where” series of new books offered by Arbordale Publishing. Topics are explored through a collection of open-ended questions that reflect the natural curiosity of young children.

The goal of understanding weather’s causes and changes defines the mission of this book. Readers are given multiple opportunities to heighten their awareness of the various topics. Color blocked text identifies information to be read in a standard manner.  Italicized questions are posed throughout to serve as topics of discussion.   Multiple high-quality photographs on each page create opportunities for conversations and encourage children to employ observational skills. Building on those observations and conversations then enables readers to understand ways in which weather impacts their lives on a daily and seasonal basis and relate it to the world around them.

The book identifies an audience of ages 3-7. Younger readers will enjoy the strong visual impact of the images and benefit from reading with an adult or older sibling. Experienced readers will find the text engaging and will discover more information in the final section titled For Creative Minds. “Easy Weather Observations” provides a bulleted list for ways in which parents and caregivers can create opportunities for youngsters to develop organizational skills. “The Six Parts of Weather” defines basic terms that help weather forecasters describe weather such as atmospheric pressure and precipitation. “Clouds” provides labeled photographs of six cloud types. “Weather, Climate or Seasons?” defines, discusses, and illustrates those three terms that are frequently misunderstood. 

A teaching activity guide is available on Arbordalepublishing.com.

An excellent introductory STEM resource. Recommended for home, school, and library.