Prototyping

Gr 5–8—Those looking to create—whether by reinventing an old T-shirt or designing a webpage—may benefit from this mixed bag of titles. Hacking Fashion and More Web Design offer specific skills and will serve as useful how-to manuals. Prototyping and Design Thinking put readers into an inventor's state of mind. Prototyping informs young people that though school assignments place great value on completion, working on quick, unfinished drafts (or prototypes) is incredibly beneficial to the creative process. Design Thinking takes readers through the journey of an inventor who wants to make it easier for a wheelchair-bound individual to navigate the world. However, though the strategies presented are useful (conducting research, taking measurements), the narrative won't engage students. Both Prototyping and Design Thinking use fictitious, often unrealistic characters to model the journey of an inventor, and the stiff, detached writing of all four books will leave kids feeling removed.