Series Made Simple

• Staying Fit, Staying Safe
  Reviewed by Joanna Fabicon, Los Angeles Public Library - 11/01/2009
  Health & Safety - 500 Developing good safety habits, eating the right foods, and staying fit always have relevance to the lives of young people, and with healthcare and child safety issues a constant presence in the media, there is definitely a sense of timeliness to these books. While none of these resources overtly addresses political issues, parents and teachers may still be attracted t... More
• Faiths Near and Far
  Reviewed by Jennifer Prince, Fairview Public Library, NC - 11/01/2009
  Religion - 200 For many, religion is a deeply personal issue, one that is knit to a person’s intrinsic beliefs about life, death, personal conduct, and what is sacred. While the stories that make the news tend to showcase what is vitriolic and divisive about religions, these series keep the focus on elemental beliefs that encourage faith, peace, and a desire to do good in the world. More
• Green Teens
  Reviewed by Lindsay Cesari, Baldwinsville School District, NY - 11/01/2009
  Environment - 300 Environmental issues are currently some of the most publicized aspects of contemporary science. This fall, publishers have responded to the public's interest in green topics, and a slew of new series are available on the topic. Many of these titles will serve as excellent resources for students as they include research projects with environmental themes. More
• The Youngest Activists
  Reviewed by Richard J. Snyder, Inglewood Junior High School, Sammamish, WA - 11/01/2009
  Environment - 300 Green living comes alive in these series for eco-minded students. Books with recycling pigs, hybrid vehicles, and geothermal heat will help kids learn about and advocate for a greener, cleaner world. While many topics will be familiar, some contain newer information (such as coverage of green-scrapers and how to purchase “fair trade” food) that may be harder to fi... More
• Mountains of Information
  Reviewed by Henrietta Thornton-Verma, School Library Journal - 11/01/2009
  Earth Science - 500 There’s more to earth science than earthquakes and volcanoes. The best books on the topic strike a balance between exciting descriptions of natural disasters and other news-making phenomena while covering the more mundane basics in a way that gives students a solid grasp of the workings of the world around them. More
• Difficult Debates
  Reviewed by Melissa Rabey, Frederick County Public Libraries, MD - 11/01/2009
  Current Issues - 300 The issues that dominate the nightly news and the blogosphere can be confusing for adults, but for children and teens, they can be overwhelming. Therefore, books on current events for this audience must strive to be clear and accessible. The series reviewed here cover debates that include science, technology, politics, and ethics. More
• Follow Your Dreams
  Reviewed by Amy Rowland, Guggenheim Elementary School, NY - 11/01/2009
  Careers - 300 From kindergarten to high school, “what I want to be when I grow up” is a topic continually worth exploring, especially in an era when many people are likely to embark on multiple careers in their lifetimes. The following series have something for almost everyone: those interested in traditional as well as cutting-edge careers, elementary through upper-level readers, ... More
• Greats of Past and Present
  Reviewed by Jody Kopple, Shady Hill School, Cambridge, MA - 11/01/2009
  Biography From ancient Greece to last month's headlines, this selection of biographies and collective biographies covers a huge span in time and distance. Looking for browsable, up-to-the-minute choices on tween stars? Check. How about substantive information on important historical figures? That's here, too. More
• Gluesticks and Greasepaint
  Reviewed by Paula Willey, Baltimore County Public Library, Towson, MD - 11/01/2009
  Art - 700 When a kid runs up to you excitedly demanding seven clothespins, two yards of elastic cord, a funnel, tempera paint, and a clean, empty jar, you know she has gotten her hands on a quality craft book. The following craft and performance titles have been field-tested on a small, captive audience on rainy days this summer, and, luckily for those kids, most of the books are winners in th... More
• From Fluffy to Fearsome
  Reviewed by Kara Schaff Dean, Walpole Public Library, MA - 11/01/2009
  Animals - 500 Every continent on this planet has lost species and is in danger of losing more. While not each one of these series is specifically focused on saving endangered animals—the dinosaurs are clearly lost already—the books share a recurring theme of misunderstanding and sometimes mismanagement when it comes to humans’ relationship with animals. More
• Times and Places
  Reviewed by Mary Mueller, Rolla Junior High School, MO - 11/01/2009
  American History - 900 One of the traditional goals of education has been for students to develop a solid understanding of the past. What is often missing, however, from both their textbooks and library books, are reasoned discussions of place and time. Far too many of those books either ignore or minimize discussions of how geography, natural resources, and economic development affect the his... More
• Making Series Nonfiction a Must-Read
  Diane R. Chen, Library Information Specialist, John F. Kennedy Middle School, Nashville, TN - 11/01/2009
  Gather a group of librarians and ask them what they’re reading for fun. My experience shows that 90 per cent of the answers will be fiction titles. Does this show that school librarians view fiction as fun, while seeing nonfiction titles as simply for curricular support? Are librarians overly concerned with stories instead of with the act of reading to accumulate knowledge and facts? Libr... More
• School Library Journal's Series Made Simple
  Henrietta Thornton-Verma - 04/01/2009
  Welcome to Series Made Simple. Published in April and November, it features articles comparing that season's series nonfiction, subject by subject. The articles below appear in the order in which they were published, with broad Dewey numbers noted. We hope that Series Made Simple will make your life easier. More
• 700s: From Street to Stadium: Series Nonfiction on Sports
  Reviewed by Blair Christolon, Prince William Public Library System, Manassas, VA - 04/01/2009
  Several of this season’s sports series are inventive offerings that emphasize a unique angle to a sport or an athlete, rather than the standard how-to-play-the-game approach. Bright photographs and colorful pages enhance narrative texts that discuss various topics from the latest in sports technologies to the off-the-field lives of well-known heroes. More
• 700s: Sticks, Stones, and Steel: Series Nonfiction on Super Structures
  Reviewed by Alana Joli Abbott, James Blackstone Memorial Library, Branford, CT - 04/01/2009
  Architecture of the past, from ancient and mysterious ruins to the landmarks that helped form this country, captures the imaginations of students. Studying these structures not only helps them learn about how buildings of yore were made, but also about the people who created them. From national monuments to cities and ruins that archaeologists are still hoping to explain, the subjects of these ... More
• 500s: Backyard to Big Bang: Series Nonfiction on Science
  Reviewed by Ragan O’Malley, Saint Ann’s School, Brooklyn, NY - 04/01/2009
  From the soil they walk on to the stars in the sky, children are surrounded by science. It seems that there is a never-ending supply of science-oriented books that try to capture the wonder of the world they live in. The following series strive to come up with the correct mix of age-appropriate material, graphics, and key concepts that will reach today’s students, appeal to their sense of... More
• 800s: Research, Writing, and Arithmetic: Series Nonfiction on the New Three R’s
  Reviewed by Grace Oliff, Ann Blanche Smith Elementary School, Hillsdale, NJ - 04/01/2009
  Without a fundamental knowledge of language and mathematics, higher-level thinking skills are impossible. Many of the titles listed below can help support the efforts to make our children readers, writers, and, most importantly, thinkers. More
• 900s: A Trip in Time: Series Nonfiction on History
  Reviewed by Jennifer Prince, Fairview Public Library, NC - 04/01/2009
  Children’s history books of a generation ago are like analog TV. The picture is adequate, but sometimes it is grainy, and the entire setup is rather dull and uninspired. Today’s titles, on the other hand, resemble crystal clear, inviting HDTV with a variety of interesting, child-friendly channels. More
• 300s: Green Actions, Green Activists: Series Nonfiction on the Environment
  Reviewed by Kathy Piehl, Minnesota State University, Mankato, MN - 04/01/2009
  New national policies and programs to promote conservation measures and the development of alternative energy sources keep environmental issues in the news. The series below introduce past and present champions of such causes, remind students what they can do right now to conserve, and offer thorough discussions of resources that might help meet the growing global demand for energy. More
• 300s: The Big Questions: Series Nonfiction on Current Issues
  Reviewed by Melissa Rabey, Frederick County Public Libraries, MD - 04/01/2009
  As science advances, its intersection with humanity takes on ever-greater importance. These series provide the information needed to understand new technological advances while offering a context for how science impacts society’s traditions and beliefs. The wide range of discoveries and challenges discussed will be a boon to students. More
• « Previous   Next »