Poetry Friday - Infinity

Hello Friends! Please forgive the silence this week. I have been teaching my brains out (8am-1pm every day). I am exhausted, both physically and mentally, as I am arriving at work around 5:30 am each morning and still teaching my evening class (4-7pm) to boot. However, I am surrounded by a group of amazing teachers and am energized by their enthusiasm.

Since I am teaching a course on improving elementary math, my mind is on numbers this week. Here are a few poems about infinity.

Infinity
by William Blake

To see the world in a grain of sand,
And a heaven in a wild flower;
Hold infinity in the palm of your hand,
And eternity in an hour.


Infinity
by Jacob Bernoulli (a 17th century mathematician)

Even as the finite encloses an infinite series
And in the unlimited limits appear,
So the soul of immensity dwells in minutia
And in narrowest limits no limit in here.
What joy to discern the minute in infinity!
The vast to perceive in the small, what divinity!


Revelation At Midnight
by Piet Hein (a Danish mathematician known for writing gruks)

Infinity's taken
by everyone
as a figure-of-eight
written sideways on.
But all of a sudden
I now comprehend
that eight is infinity
standing on end.

The round up today is over at Farm School. Head on over and check out some great posts. Happy poetry Friday, all!

Champagne Taste

My mother always told me I had champagne taste on a beer budget. This is still pretty much true today, but instead of buying for myself, I spend all my extra pennies on William or on gifts for others. Don't get me wrong, I love this gift giving thing. My Christmas shopping is already half done. (Insert delighted smile here.) When I see something that is just perfect for a friend or family member, I buy it right then and there. The only problem is remembering what I have when the holidays roll around. I'll admit that it's getting harder keeping things under wraps these days. I seem to find reasons to give the gifts, even though I keep promising myself I will hold onto them until the appointed day. However, there is no greater satisfaction than seeing a loved one's face when they receive a gift they truly love. For me, it's not about how much money I spend, but how much time I spend thinking about that perfect gift, because really, there is great pleasure in that knowing smile that says, "You know me so well."

I have dear friend with a birthday coming up and I am purchasing a purse for her made from a book. It's absolutely perfect for her. Here's where the title kicks in. While I rarely make purchases for myself, I'm so besotted by these two beauties I may just splurge. Check out the Wuthering Heights and Pride and Prejudice bags. Someone please buy them first and save me from myself! You can find more of these book bags at Rebound Designs, where Caitlin has taken the gifting of books to a whole new level.

Poetry Friday - Summer Rain

I am in North Carolina and it's raining, but this isn't bad. I love rain in the summer. My poem today is for just such an occasion. It is by Rainer Maria Rilke.

Before Summer Rain
All at once from the green of the park,
one can't quite say, something is taken away;
one feels it coming closer to the windows
and being silent.

Out of a grove, persistent and strong, sounds a plover,
one thinks of a Saint Jerome:
so intensely rises a solitude and fervor
out of this one voice that the downpour

shall listen. The walls of the great hall
with their paintings retreat from us
as if not allowed to hear what we say.

Reflected in the faded tapestries
is the uncertain light of afternoons
in which one as a child was so afraid.

The round up today is over at Shaken & Stirred. Head on over and check it out. Happy poetry Friday, all!

Joyful Education

Here is one more excerpt I need to share. This one comes from the summer edition of Educational Leadership Online.

Most children can't wait to start kindergarten and approach the beginning of school with awe and anticipation. Kindergartners and 1st graders often talk passionately about what they learn and do in school. Unfortunately, the current emphasis on standardized testing and rote learning encroaches upon many students' joy. In their zeal to raise test scores, too many policymakers wrongly assume that students who are laughing, interacting in groups, or being creative with art, music, or dance are not doing real academic work. The result is that some teachers feel pressure to preside over more sedate classrooms with students on the same page in the same book, sitting in straight rows, facing straight ahead.

The truth is that when we scrub joy and comfort from the classroom, we distance our students from effective information processing and long-term memory storage. Instead of taking pleasure from learning, students become bored, anxious, and anything but engaged. They ultimately learn to feel bad about school and lose the joy they once felt.

Read more of the article The Neuroscience of Joyful Education by Judy Willis. She has some great advice for creating a classroom environment that inspires and engages kids.

How Parents' Influence Kids' Academic Interests

Here's some information on a recent University of Michigan study.

In a study she presented recently at a campus meeting, Davis-Kean and colleagues analyzed how parents' values and attitudes affect children's math performance and later interest, and how these attitudes vary by the child's gender. They used data from a longitudinal study of more than 800 children and a large group of their parents that began in 1987 and continued through 2000.

They found that parents provided more math-supportive environments for their sons than for their daughters, including buying more math and science toys for the boys. They also spent more time on math and science activities with their sons than with their daughters.

The article goes on to say that girls' interest in math decreases as their fathers' gender stereotypes increase, whereas boys' interest in math increases as their fathers' gender stereotypes increase.

You can read more here.

I've never been big on the toy aspect of this, though William and I do play a lot of thinking games (Chess, Pente, Checkers, etc.), we play and explore outside in the rain and sunshine, and we READ, READ, READ. There are many good books out there that use math and science concepts as natural (seamless?) parts of the story. This just seems to me what we should be doing with ALL kids, not just boys, and I think Moms can do this just as well as Dads.

The interesting sidebar here for me is that for years I was immersed in studying data from international math and science studies (like TIMSS). The fourth and eighth grade student data I examined included responses on a questionnaire where kids described parental education, support and attitudes. There was a direct correlation between the variables hours of study, attitudes towards subject, academic performance and parental support. Not surprisingly, parents in countries where math and science performance far outscored the US believed that gender and ability were not predictors of success, only effort. My recent trip to China only served to underscore this point. The students we met with all talked about effort being the key to their success, not natural ability.

I encourage parents and teachers alike to think about the message we send to kids regarding their ability to do well in math and science. I work hard to get my preservice teachers to embrace the notion that ALL kids, regardless of race, ethnicity or gender can do well in these subjects, and encourage them to use even the smallest means to encourage their love for them. This can be as simple as changing the name line on a handout to read mathematician or scientist. A lot can be said for the power of a child reading his or her name, day in and day out, next to one of these titles. It also means that we must teach in ways that allow kids to see the beauty of math and science, their connectedness to other areas of the curriculum and the profound value of them in our lives everyday. This may sound like a tall order, but great teachers and parents can make it happen.

Could You Pass Eighth Grade Science?

Well, duh! If I scored anything less I'd be hanging my head in shame. Now go and see how you do.

Memed Again! - The 5 Things Meme

I got tagged last week by LiteracyTeacher at Mentor Texts & More. Since I'm in procrastination mode, here goes.

Five Things I Was Doing Ten Years Ago

(I barely remember what I was doing last week, so this might be a stretch!)

1. Entering the world of grown-up responsibilities by buying a house and taking on a mortgage.
2. Playing second base and batting first on an awesome coed softball team.
3. Learning HTML and embarking on the world of WebQuest construction with my preservice teachers.
4. Repairing my own computer (a Mac, of course)
5. Working with our chemistry department on the use of technology to improve students’ abilities to visualize and understand chemistry concepts.
   

Five Snacks I Enjoy

1. Chips, Chips, Chips (Lots of salt, no flavors)
2. Cashews
3. Dried apricots
4. Olives
5. Cheese and crackers

Five Songs I Know All the Lyrics To
(This could be 50 and there wouldn't be enough room to list them all!)

1. Somewhere Over the Rainbow
2. The Coast Guard Hymn
   
3. 50 Nifty United States (Yes, I've been able to sing the states in alphabetical order since 5th grade!)
4. Embraceable You
   
5. Goodnight Saigon
   

Five Things I Would Do If I Were A Millionaire

1. Fly to see my family as often as I want or am needed.
2. Send all my nieces and nephews to college without student loans.
3. Start my own school, a lot like this one, right here at UR. (However, I would be a teacher, not an administrator.)
   
4. Travel extensively with William so he can learn about the world through more than just books.
   
5. Keep working, because I love what I do.

Five Bad Habits

1. Drinking milk from the gallon when no one is looking.
2. Procrastinating (duh!).
3. Loud music--in the car, the kitchen, my headphones, you name it.

I'll let you know when I come up with 4 and 5!

Five Things I Like To Do

1. Teach
2. Cook
3. Read
4. Play games (Chess, Go, Risk, Cribbage, Pente, etc.)
   
5. Listen to music
   

Five Things I Would Never Wear Again

1. Braces, a retainer and headgear
2. A poncho
3. A uniform
   
4. Clogs
5. A bikini
   

Five Favorite Toys

1. iPod
2. MacBook Pro
3. Six burner gas cooktop and two ovens, baby! (In stainless, of course)
4. Lewis chess set
5. BOOKS, BOOKS, BOOKS! (Can books be toys?)

Book Review - Who Likes the Sun?

The titles in the series Exploring the Elements are fold out question and answer books that address children's questions about natural phenomena. The latest edition in this series, Who Likes the Sun? focuses on the science of sunshine.

The book opens with a child asking who likes the sun? Many children answer, "I do." These children then proceed to share what they like about the sun, and then ask questions related to what they love.

Questions in this volume include:

• I wonder how the sun warms me when it's so far away.
• I wonder how icicles are made.
• I wonder how sunglasses work.
• I wonder where water goes.
• I wonder where dew comes from.
• I wonder why I have a shadow.
• I wonder how grapes turn into raisins.
• I wonder why some flowers have a smell and others don't.
• I wonder why the water sparkles.
• I wonder how the sun makes rainbows.
• I wonder why the sky sometimes turns red.
• I wonder where the sun goes at night.

Based on the title, I was expecting the book to address topics like the formation of shadows, night and day, weather-related phenomena and seasons. I certainly didn't expect the questions related to light, though they do make sense in this context. However, the questions about flowers and raisins just didn't "fit" for me. I found myself wishing that the questions were linked or organized in some way so that the ideas in the text flowed a bit more smoothly. For example, though the bit about grapes didn't work for me, the process described is evaporation. Why not put this question with the one about where water goes, where readers learn about the formation of water vapor? While I'm on this, let me add that while I found the science to be very kid-friendly, I felt it could have been more specific, and should have introduced more of the scientific terminology that elementary school kids learn about. For example, here's an excerpt from the grape page.

Grapes are picked when they are juicy and sweet.

Then they are put on trays to dry in the sun. The heat of the sun makes the water in the grapes go out into the air.

This would have been the perfect place to introduce the term evaporation. The same could be said for the page on where water goes. Here's that excerpt.

When the sun comes out, it heats the water on the grass.

The heated water turns into very tiny drops of water called vapor.

The water vapor becomes part of the air.

I also wish this page had made explicit that the water droplets actually change state from liquid to gas.

The illustrations and diagrams in this book do a nice job of supporting the text. They also show kids engaged in a variety of activities and include a range of diversity not seen in many books today. Some of the answers to questions are extremely well-done and address relatively sophisticated topics, while others lack the same quality.

I wanted to like this book, but just couldn't get past the disjointedness of the questions and the unevenness of the answers. I do like the idea behind the series, so I'm not ready to give up on it entirely. I will be sure to take a look at Who Likes the Wind? and Who Likes the Snow? to see if the concepts are more coherently connected, and the science more consistent.

Book: Who Likes the Sun?
Author: Etta Kaner
Publisher: Kids Can Press
Publication Date: March 10, 2007
Pages: 32
Grades: K-2
ISBN-10: 1553378407
ISBN-13: 978-1553378402
Source of Book: Copy received from Raab Associates, Inc.

Book Review - New Clothes for New Year's Day

May was Asian Pacific Heritage month. I was hoping to have this review posted then, but my trip to China derailed those plans. Upon my return I was delighted to find a signed copy of a poetry book by Janet Wong waiting for me. Many of the poems in this volume are about Korea, so reading them reminded me about this gem of a book by Hyun-Ju Bae.

New Clothes for New Year's Day was published by Kane/Miller in March of this year. Kane/Miller specializes in bringing foreign translated books to the American market. This book represents the best of what Kane/Miller does. It is a lushly illustrated volume that is stunning in its beauty and simplicity. This lovely picture book from South Korea presents the story of a young girl as she prepares to celebrate the start of the Lunar New Year. Readers get to follow along as the girl dresses in the new clothes her mother has made her for the occasion. She carefully dresses in a crimson silk skirt, a rainbow striped jacket, socks embroidered with flowers, a hair ribbon of red and gold, and more. Here is an excerpt:

I could hardly sleep last night.

But today I finally get to wear my wonderful new clothes. Finally!

Stretch up on tiptoes to reach the hanger . . .
"Umph!"

Reading this made me reflect back on all those days of grade school when I waited anxiously to put on my "best" new outfit for that important first day. You can't help but feel the excitement of the young girl as she dresses from head to toe.

The illustrations nicely complement the text, with gorgeous interior scenes and an attention to detail that matches the young girl's dressing with care.

At the end of the book the author has included information explaining the items of clothing and their significance. Also discussed is the importance of New Year's Day in Korean culture.

This is a beautiful book that realistically captures the joy, appreciation and excitement of a young girl as she prepares for this important holiday. This is a welcome addition to the body of literature on the Lunar New Year. I highly recommend it.

Book: New Clothes for New Year's Day
Author: Hyun-Ju Bae
Publisher: Kane/Miller
Publication Date: March, 2007
Pages: 32
Grades: K-3
ISBN-10: 1933605294
ISBN-13: 978-1933605296
Source of Book: Copy received from Raab Associates, Inc.

Hooking Young Readers

I am an NPR junkie. This morning I was delighted to hear Librarian Nancy Pearl and host Steve Inskeep taking about great reads for kids this summer. Here's how it began.

Well, summer vacation his here, time for kids to swim and hang with friends and go to the movies--and maybe read.

Even though Pearl had sent a stack of books to Inskeep, he hadn't read any of them, so she decided to convince him to read them by sharing great first lines. These are the books she shared.

Tanglewreck by Jeanette Winterson
At 6:45 one summer morning, a red London bus was crossing Waterloo bridge. . . . The bus and its passengers were never found. It was the first of the time tornadoes.

Millicent Min, Girl Genius by Lisa Yee
I have been accused of being anal retentive, an over-achiever, and a compulsive perfectionist, like those are bad things.
(Nancy even mentions that the next two books tell the same story from different points of view, though she doesn't name them. I will! They are Stanford Wong Flunks Big-Time and So Totally Emily Ebers, both awesome reads!)

Ragweed by Avi
"Ma, a mouse has to do what a mouse has to do."

Feed by M.T. Anderson
"We went to the moon to have fun, but the moon turned out to completely suck."

Wemberly Worried by Kevin Henkes
Wemberly worried about everything.

You can listen to the interview here. Both Steve and Nancy have a lot of fun sharing first lines and talking about these books. For even more information about all kinds of summer reads, check out NPR's Summer Books 2007.

Summer Solstice

Yesterday was officially the first day of summer and the Northern solstice (for any readers Down Under). Today we began the slow march towards winter as the days begin to shorten. Don't believe me? See for yourself.

Here's how Jean Craighead George describes this phenomenon in her terrific book, Dear Rebecca, Winter is Here.

December 21

Dear Rebecca,
I turned on the lights to eat breakfast this morning and put on my coat to go outside.
Winter is here.

It was brought by little hands of darkness. Each little hand is a few minutes long.

In summer they began bringing winter. They pulled the night over the edges of dawn and made the days shorter. One June 21, while you were cooling off under the hose, winter began.

Summer is my least favorite season of the year, so I confess that I've always been secretly thrilled by the passing of the summer solstice and the promise of shorter and cooler days to come.

Poetry Friday - Paul Laurence Dunbar

I've been reading the poetry of Paul Laurence Dunbar lately. Here are two poems I particularly like.

A Starry Night
A cloud fell down from the heavens,
And broke on the mountain's brow;
It scattered the dusky fragments
All over the vale below.

The moon and the stars were anxious
To know what its fate might be;
So they rushed to the azure op'ning,
And all peered down to see.

Longing
If you could sit with me beside the sea to-day,
And whisper with me sweetest dreamings o'er and o'er;
I think I should not find the clouds so dim and gray,
And not so loud the waves complaining at the shore.

If you could sit with me upon the shore to-day,
And hold my hand in yours as in the days of old,
I think I should not mind the chill baptismal spray,
Nor find my hand and heart and all the world so cold.

If you could walk with me upon the strand to-day,
And tell me that my longing love had won your own,
I think all my sad thoughts would then be put away,
And I could give back laughter for the Ocean's moan!

If you liked these, you can read more at the Paul Laurence Dunbar Digital Collection.

The round up this week is over at A Wrung Sponge. Stop by and check out all the great entries. Happy poetry Friday, all!

Book Review - 1607: A New Look at Jamestown

When I was growing up in western New York, studying colonial America was about the Pilgrims and Plymouth Rock. It was not about Jamestown, even though the landing at Jamestown occurred 13 years earlier. I learned a lot about Jamestown upon moving to Virginia, and with the 400th anniversary this year, I've learned even more.

In recent years, finding text resources about Jamestown that present a true picture of colonization, warts and all, has been hard to find. This situation has changed with the publication of Karen Lange's book, 1607: A New Look at Jamestown. Lange, a journalist and writer with National Geographic Magazine, presents a brief history of the settling of Jamestown using new archaeological evidence to tell the story.

The Foreword begins in this fashion:

Many people feel that to discover the past, all you have to do is find a book, open the pages, and read a single story. That couldn't be farther from the truth. History is not static: It is not a single story. Simple discovery may only yield you one layer. To really begin to understand the multi-faceted stories that make up our past, you must dig beyond what we think we know. You must discover and then re-discover.

This volume takes these words to heart as it reveals the recent discoveries at the Jamestown archaeological site. Supported by an extensive bibliography of primary sources, Lange presents the grim reality that was the founding of this American colony. The narrative describes the settlers' struggles through the artifacts left behind. Color photographs of the dig site, found treasures, and historical reenactment scenes give readers a glimpse of what life was like for those who lived inside the Jamestown fort.

Lange does an especially good job of describing how native peoples were living when the settlers arrived, and how their arrival forever changed their way of life. Lange even highlights the response of the Paspahegh (Powhatan) descendants to the planned celebrations to mark the 400th anniversary of Jamestown, noting:

"For the Indians, Jamestown is nothing to celebrate. To them, it meant the end of their ancestors' way of life."

I was completely enthralled by this book and found myself engaged by the remarkable, yet difficult history presented. Believe me, this is not the standard fare served up in history textbooks. Don't miss this amazing book on a bit of American history you only think you know. I highly recommend it.

Book: 1607: A New Look at Jamestown
Author: Karen Lange
Publisher: National Geographic Children's Books
Publication Date: February 13, 2007
Pages: 48
Grades: 4-8
ISBN-10: 1426300123
ISBN-13: 978-1426300127
Source of Book: Copy received from Raab Associates, Inc.

Happiness is a New Book!

I received a wonderful gift in the mail today. Thanks to MotherReader and to Gail Gauthier. William is thrilled to have a book signed by the author. He loves to write his own stories, so he was excited by the inscription to "make up stories and games of your own." Here's my happy kid just before heading off to bed to read his new book.

Connections

I've been rereading Harry Potter (again, again, and again) in preparation for the impending release of Book 7. Lately when I read, I've been noticing thematic connections across seemingly unrelated books. Here's one that has me thinking about truth.

From Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone (J.K. Rowling)
“The truth.” Dumbledore sighed. “It is a beautiful and terrible thing, and should therefore be treated with great caution.”

From The Book Thief (Markus Zusak)
Therein lay the problem. Life had altered in the wildest possible way, but it was imperative that they act as if nothing at all had happened. Imagine smiling after a slap in the face. Then think of doing it twenty-four hours a day.

Answering the Memes

While I was in China I got tagged for a number of memes. I had a few choice words for these folks back then, largely because I'm a sap and can't let a tag go unanswered. I'm finally getting down to it, so here are my responses to the memes. I will not, however, be tagging anyone to keep these going, as most folks have already answered.

Meme 1: Eight Things Meme
MotherReader tagged me for this one. Each player lists eight facts/habits about themselves. Hmmmmm . . . how much to reveal? That is the question!

1. I HATE having my picture taken. Case in point, my China pictures. Unless required to pose, you will not find many pictures of me. I'd rather be behind the camera.
   


2. On a good day I can put Monk to shame. I have been known to get up from reading a book to adjust a pillow that is not "sitting right," straighten a stack of magazines, or fix anything else that is slightly askew. My brother's favorite form of torment when we were kids was to come in my room and move things slightly. Yes, I noticed the minute I walked in!
   


3. I love flowers, especially daisies, tulips and wildflowers. However, in the 17 years I've known my husband, I've received flowers only once--the day I defended my dissertation--and I happen to know his mother bought them! For years I dropped hints about how nice it would be to receive them, but I finally gave up. Now, whenever I see flowers that are too lovely to pass up, I buy them for myself. I no longer stand on ceremony. Life's too short.
   


4. When I was in college I sang the National Anthem for the Hartford Whalers. Sadly, they no longer exist, and neither does that 20-something voice. (In any case, it's really a horrible song to sing.)
   


5. Chips or chocolate? It's a toss up for me. I suppose this is why I like chocolate covered pretzels, with both the salty and sweet thing going on.
   


6. I am a great cook and I love to try new recipes. However, I have a husband who eats NO VEGETABLES. Since I love to cook Moroccan, Lebanese, Greek and Italian, this is a huge problem. I have taken to calling my best friend and reading her the recipes I want to try, but know I won't be able to make! To satisfy my need to make great food, I often make two or three separate meals several days a week.
   


7. I was born in Rochester, NY in 1965 to a young woman (teenager) who had been sent by her family to a home for "wayward" girls. I know nothing about her other than that she was from New England. I was adopted one week later by my absolutely amazing parents.
   


8. Before my son was born, I went skydiving (more than 20 jumps), bungee jumping, whitewater rafting, rappelling and more. I got my motorcycle license on a Ninja 900. Since William came along, life is much more tame. I did, however, get a tattoo while in China. (Hey, I'd had a hep A shot, so why not?) The Chinese characters for faith, hope and love now adorn my backside. Ask me nicely and I may let you see them.
   

Meme 2: Summer Goals Meme

Mentor Texts and More tagged me for this one, which asks for 10-15 professional and/or personal goals that I would like to achieve over the summer. Here they are.

1. Spend quality time with William, doing all sorts of fun things.
2. Send at least three articles out for journal review.
3. Read, read, read! Anything and everything. Including Book 7.
   
4. Start taking yoga lessons.
5. Spend time alone with my Mom and Dad when I go to visit.
6. See my best friend from high school while in NY.
7. Join/start a writing group. (Been looking, can't find one!)
8. Finish the poetry book I've been working on.
9. Complete the self-study we've been working on for national accreditation.
10. Get to the Green Valley Book Fair before school starts.
11. Develop a new syllabus for the secondary curriculum methods class I will teach this fall.
12. Visit my sister in NJ and head into NYC for a day.
    
13. Get to the eastern shore or Assateague and walk on the beach.
14. Go for a motorcycle ride with my brother.
15. Try to be happy every day.
    

Book Review - The Periodic Table

My friends call me a closet nerd. Well, let me just put all my geekiness front and center and admit that I love the periodic table. Yes, I was a biochemistry major in college and had more than a passing acquaintance with this wonderful little organizational tool, but I didn't memorize the first 36 elements and them some until I taught chemistry and middle school science. One of my favorite assignments was a scavenger hunt in which students were required to identify the first 18 elements based on a variety of clues. This was in the days before the Internet, so we used what few books I could find and lots of other materials that I created.

Were I to teach using this activity today, you can bet that The Periodic Table, a quirky little volume by Adrian Dingle, would definitely be a prime resource. Can Mendeleev's baby be cool and fun? Absolutely!

I wrote about the impending release of this book in March, after reading the Publisher's Weekly article Humor Helps Kids Brave the Elements. The article describes the work and its creators this way:

Created by artist and designer Simon Basher, who divides his time between London and Tokyo, this small-format paperback personifies each element with a whimsical image. Accompanying each of Basher's portraits is a description of the element, written in a personal-ad style by Adrian Dingle, a British native who now teaches high-school chemistry in Atlanta.

As a self-confessed lover of chemistry and all things organizational, I found this book undeniably entertaining. Basher's illustrations for each element are creatively telling (with a decidedly Japanese anime kind of flair), and nicely supported by the descriptions written by Dingle. The book opens with the periodic table as conceived by Basher. (There is also a poster of this same table attached to the inside cover of the back of the book.) Some of my favorite images from the table include titanium, copper, Einsteinium, and Mendelevium. Next readers get an introduction to the periodic table and Hydrogen, before the book launches into an overview of the elements based on group membership. Each chapter (group) introduction appears on a double page spread where it highlights the location of the group on the periodic table, provides a short narrative about them, and then shows a snapshot of each Basher image for the elements. In some chapters, a page appears for each of the group's elements, but in others, only a few of the elements receive this in-depth treatment. For example, Group II (the Boron Elements) contains 5 elements, though only the first two, Boron and Aluminum are explored.

The group descriptions are particularly well done and give a nice overview of the ways the elements are related. Here's an example.

This ragtag group of elements is the periodic table's dysfunctional family. They don't gel together--some of them aren't even the same type of substance! Lonely, odd-man-out boron is an unusual powdery nonmetal, while the rest are soft, silvery, and weak metals. At the top of the group, these metals aren't especially metallic, but the farther down the group you go, the more like metals the members get.

Elemental descriptions read like blogger profiles. Here are two of my favorites. See if you can guess the elements.

Quick and deadly, that's me. I put the "mad" in Mad Hatter, and my ability to poison the brain is legendary! A sinister, silver-colored killer, I am a strange and stealthy liquid metal that easily vaporizes into toxic fumes.

Sweetly smiling and dressed in pale yellow, I look as harmless as a lemon tart, but I have a wicked side . . . . I am a fun-loving prankster that loves to unleash bad smells. My most vile whiffs include rotten eggs and foul skunky odors.

In additional to these "self-written" descriptions, the usual facts are also include, such as symbol, atomic number, atomic weight, color, standard state, classification, density, boiling point and melting point.

So yes, I've gushed enough. I read the entire book in one sitting, and then revisited some of my favorites again while writing this review. I can't wait to share this with my students and other science loving friends. This is a great volume for the middle and high school classroom. I recommend it with enthusiasm.

Book: The Periodic Table
Author: Adrian Dingle
Publisher: Kingfisher Publications
Publication Date: May 23, 2007
Pages: 128
Grades: 7 and up
ISBN-10: 0753460858
ISBN-13: 978-0753460856
Source of Book: Copy purchased at Borders

Answers Please! - The two elements described above are Hg and S.

Poetry Friday - Faces

I mentioned in some of my China posts that I was quite taken with the faces of the people I met and saw. Here are a few that moved me, and the poem I wrote about them.

My Face
Look at me.
In my eyes,
smile,
and face,
can you read
my story?
Can you see
that I am loved?
Are my dreams
written in the
lines
and smiles?
How do you read
my furrowed brow,
guilty smile,
toothless grin,
furtive glance?
Do these tears
speak joy
or pain?
Beneath the dirt,
wrinkles,
and years,
can you not see
that we
are all
the same?

Since this is far too serious, please check out My Neighbor -- a smiley face poem. It's by one of my favorite blogging poets, Gregory K. It will make you smile.

The roundup today is at The Simple and the Ordinary. Do stop by and check out all the great posts, and if you haven't read Susan Thomsen's (of Chicken Spaghetti fame) article at the Poetry Foundation about the tradition of Poetry Friday, you'd better get there too. Happy poetry Friday, all!

China Pics - You Know You Want to See Them!

Don't you just hate it when friends pull out photos for you to view? Nah, me neither. If you're so inclined and want to see more of my trip to China, you can head on over to my public gallery. If you are here for the science, check out the nature photos. Enjoy!

In Anticipation of Father's Day - Animal Dads

With Father's Day just around the corner, I thought this would be an appropriate time to celebrate Dads -- animal dads. Yes, believe it or not, there are many animal species where dad takes more than a passing interest in his offspring. Some of these amazing animal dads even show up in books for kids. Here are a few that might interest you.

• Animal Dads written by Sneed B. Collard III, illustrated by Steve Jenkins - Okay, you know I'm a sucker for the work of Steve Jenkins. This book is no exception. The collages are fantastic and help to highlight animal dads that actually take on caregiver responsibilities in the wild. Included you will find the Emperor penguin, gorilla, wolves, Nile crocodile and more.

• Mister Seahorse by Eric Carle - In this tribute to animal dads of the sea, readers meet Mr. Seahorse, who has just taken over the duty of caring for the eggs deposited in his pouch. As he moves through the sea, he meets five other fish fathers, a stickleback, tilapia, Kurtus nurseryfish, pipefish and bullhead catfish, all of whom help with prenatal care.

• Just Us Two: Poems About Animal Dads by Joyce Sidman - I love the poetry of Joyce Sidman. This wonderful volume of appealing poems highlights such animal dads as the poison arrow frog, ostrich, and giant water bug.

• Animal Fathers by Russell Freedman - Okay, my copy is old and worn (published in 1976), but this is a really terrific volume that discusses the child care behavior of fifteen animal fathers including the Downy Woodpecker, House Wren, White-handed Gibbon, Common Marmoset, and others. You may be able to find a copy in your local library.

You can also find some interesting resources for this topic at the following web sites.

• How about a song? Check out Animal Dads by Two of a Kind
• Read A Father's Day Top Ten (Animal Fathers) at National Wildlife Magazine.
• National Geographic did an article a few years back entitled Father's Day Special: All-Star Animal Dads.
  
• Time for Kids did a story on Dads at Work, highlighting animal fathers. From this page you can link to the story, teacher's guide and reproducibles.
• Try out this scavenger hunt focusing on animal dads.