Alright folks, we have just a couple days left of Summer Learning! Make sure to log your reading in Beanstack to be eligible for prizes. With August just around the corner you may be feeling like summer is coming to an end, or you may be tired of the long days and ready to start back in with the whirlwind the end of summer always seems to bring. Whether you're on team "Endless Summer" or team "End This Summer" we have some great books that will help you keep busy as we wrap up another season. The summer heat may bring to mind images of the beach and some cool, refreshing water, chase that feeling with the Take A Dip! booklist highlighting books about the ocean, swimming, and all things H20. Starting to feel the mid-summer boredom setting in? Get busy with some projects and crafts in the Arts & Crafts for Summer Fun booklist, featuring crafty ideas for all ages. Worried about losing some of your skills or just a curious innovator wanting to learn more? The Fabulous Facts or STEAM Titles booklists showcase great non-fiction books about science, technology, engineering, art, and math sure enough to quench the thirst of any knowledge seeker. Here are a some of our favorites from these lists...
Take A Dip!
Billie and Bean at the Beach by Julia Hansson. For Pre-Readers & Readers. With encouragement from her energetic dog, a hesitant child tries swimming at the beach in her own time and discovers a colorful world beneath the surface in this beautifully illustrated picture book.
Aquicorn Cove by K. O'Neill. For Readers. When Lana and her father return home to clean up after a big storm, Lana rescues an injured small magical sea horse-like creature.
Jelly by Clare Rees. For Teens. After the sea levels rise and the world ends, Martha and other survivors are stuck on a giant killer jellyfish, drifting off shore--if boredom does not kill them, maybe their escape attempts will.
Find more great books on the Take A Dip! Booklist.
Arts & Crafts for Summer Fun
100 Backyard Activities That Are the Dirtiest, Coolest, Creepy-crawliest Ever! by Colleen Kessler. For Pre-Readers & Readers. Become An Expert on Bugs, Beetles, Worms, Frogs, Snakes, Birds, Plants and More. Provides instructions for simple science experiments and nature activities that can be performed in the backyard.
Stitch Camp: 18 Crafty Projects for Kids & Tweens by Nicole Blum and Catherine Newman. For Pre-Teens and Teens. Provides step-by-step instructions for completing six textile crafts, offering three projects for each task, including an art pillow, phone sweater, cord-slung backpack, and beaded key fob or necklace.
The Organic Painter by Carne Griffiths. For Adults. Learn to Paint With Tea, Coffee, Embroidery, Flame, and More : Explore Unusual Materials and Playful Techniques to Expand Your Creative Practice.
Find more great books on the Arts & Crafts for Summer Fun booklist.
Fabulous Facts
What in the Wow?! 250 Bonkerball Facts by Mindy Thomas. For Readers. Covering topics such as animals, architecture, inventions, food, space, and dinosaurs, a book from the hosts of the popular children's podcast Wow in the World presents 250 of the most astounding, gross, and all-around weird scientific facts on Earth.
The Museum of Odd Body Leftovers by Rachel Poliquin. For Readers. A Tour of Your Useless Parts, Flaws, and Other Weird Bits- this tour guides readers through a wacky museum dedicated to vestigial structures: body parts that were essential to our ancestors but are no longer useful to us--even though they're still hanging around.
How the World Works by Clive Gifford. For Readers. This essential title provides children with all the information they need to know how the world works! Trustworthy and easy-to-follow text written by Clive Gifford is complemented by vibrant design and illustrations and explains how and why things happen.
Find more great books on the Fabulous Facts booklist.
STEAM Titles
Germy Science by Edward Kay. For Pre-Readers & Readers. This hilarious, thoroughly researched book explains exactly how the microorganisms we know as germs are responsible for so much grossness. Kids will learn all about what germs (a general term for four specific microorganisms) actually are, how we get sick, how the human immune system works, and the best ways to stay healthy.
Inner Workings by Peter Hinckley. For Pre-Readers & Readers. The Extraordinary Insides of Ordinary Things, cross-sections show what is inside of a golf ball, a toliet, a merry-go-round, and other objects.
Tech Lab: Brilliant Builds for Super Makers by Jack Challoner. For Readers & Pre-Teens. Are you a budding scientist, engineer, or inventor? Tech lab unlocks your inner maker through 18 amazing step-by-step projects, from an automatic night-light to your own remote-control snake!
Find more great books on the STEAM Titles booklist.
Don't forget, you can still sign up for Summer Learning and log those books on Beanstack to be eligible for prizes, and drop us a comment if you found a new title that you love!
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