5th graders interested in science

[music]

I've got a crew of ~4 kids going into 5th grade, and like many kids they're extremely interested in science. I went shopping on amazon for books for them but I felt that the books I found there were likely to be too childish for them - I don't them to feel like I'm "treating them like kids." I'll guess they could handle books written at a 7th grade level.

 

Anyway, based on their interests, I'd especially like to find books at a middle school level about disease and immunity, poisons, and the brain. However, I will not reject any good books about science in general. (My own interests turn more toward evolution and astronomy, but I want to let the kids explore things that they love.)

 

Also, I'd like them to think about their ideas about chance and coincidence and their intuitive statistics. As in, "I almost died because I was on a plane that went to San Francisco and I sat in the back and the people who died on the Asiana flight were sitting in the back. If I'd been on an Asiana flight...."

 

Anyway, any suggestions about great science or math books for middle schoolers are welcome!

[EdEarl]

I do not have books to recommend, but khanacademy.org is a good place for them to learn several subjects, and it does a good job of making a game of learning. Lessons range from kinder to university levels. The site teaches math ,chemistry, physics, and biology, among others. It also has tools for teachers/mentors that show each students progress.

 

There is a TED Talk on the khan academy page in which Bill Gates introduces khan academy. It is free and very good. There are other free online learning sites, too.

[CramBoom]

You could check out my youtube channel as well, I post weekly science videos. I make my videos so almost anyone can understand them, and sometimes I throw in some equations and terminology for advanced viewers.

 

http://youtube.com/cramboom

 

Sorry if that was straight up advertising, but I think they will understand and like the kind of science videos I make.

Edited August 16, 2013 by CramBoom

[Tridimity]

Hm, how about a Science encyclopedia? Also a Science 'fact-finder' - to introduce scientific concepts (and constants) concisely. The advantage with these types of reference books is that they explain each concept with clarity and in sufficient depth while also allowing for great breadth. They also tend to focus on the essential and timeless key points of Science, that will always be useful to know.

 

E.g. Chambers Science Fact Finder

 

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Chambers-Science-Factfinder-Factfinders-ed/dp/0550101489

[CharonY]

At that age I feel that facts and factoids are only of limited value in biology as in many cases the context is not presented sufficiently to be useful in many cases (I could write a long essay about the issues with teaching bio, but that is another matter). Instead, I prefer to make kids curious about biology and have them start asking questions, rather than having them learn answers (which we often only partially provide). As such these are the books that I read around that age and which left quite an impression on me (they could be slightly advanced in some cases, though).

 

 

- The man who mistook his wife for a hat (Oliver Sacks): I distinctly remember that this was one of the books that challenged our notion of how we perceive things

- Various books from Konrad Lorenz and Desmond Morris (including "Here am I- Where are you") Though often outdated by now and more in the area of behavioral sciences (rather than topics outlined in OP) they were still wonderful reads (and probably no less accurate than many high-school text books).

 

There are definitely more but I would have to think a bit more to remember those, and they may be even more off-topic.

Among more recent books that I think could be appropriate include:

Alex and Me (Irene Pepperberg); It is light on science but quite enjoyable

Animal Wise (Virginia Morell); Gives nice overview over some of the ethological works in an accessible manner and is certainly thought-provoking

Animal Architects (Gould and Gould); Well written but on the brink of being too technical maybe

 

I apologize that it is heavy on behavioral sciences, but I think these are more accessible for kids. In contrast good science books about diseases or toxins could be quite advanced as the processes (as far as they are known) tend to be quite technical and dry and do not easily lead to fun narratives.

Edited September 1, 2013 by CharonY

[Tridimity]

At that age I feel that facts and factoids are only of limited value in biology as in many cases the context is not presented sufficiently to be useful in many cases (I could write a long essay about the issues with teaching bio, but that is another matter). Instead, I prefer to make kids curious about biology and have them start asking questions, rather than having them learn answers (which we often only partially provide)

 

.

Well, yes, a combination of reference and science non-fiction (so-called 'smart thinking') books would be preferable. Still, there has to come a point at which children, if they wish to pursue Science, are brought up to speed on scientific theories and conventions - even those as straightforward as SI units - fact finders are ideal for this purpose. Children are naturally inquisitive and so if you wish them to learn to ask the right kinds of questions about the natural world, and to begin to address those questions using a scientific approach, supervising their hands-on experiments would be very helpful.

In contrast good science books about diseases or toxins could be quite advanced as the processes (as far as they are known) tend to be quite technical and dry and do not easily lead to fun narratives.

 

Depends on the interests of the children - in this case, according to the OP, the children are interested in diseases.

[unearthscience]

Hello,

I know you said that you're looking for book recommendations, but if you are interested I have an earth science blog which sounds ideal. I draw upon fun and fascinating aspects of earth science in order to teach people basic science, as well as aiming to heighten their interest in the sciences. If you want to check it out, the address is (url removed by moderator)

Enjoy.

Edited June 2, 2014 by CaptainPanic
This post is under review for removal