Nonfiction Picture Book Challenge 2015 is a weekly celebration of imaginative children’s nonfiction materials hosted by Kid Lit Frenzy.
Title: Lifetime: The Amazing Numbers in Animal Lives
Author: Lola M. Schaefer
Illustrator: Christoper Silas Neal
Publisher: Chronicle Books LLC
Publication Date: 2013
Genre/Format: Nonfiction/Picture Book
Publisher’s Summary: In one lifetime, a caribou will shed 10 sets of antlers, a woodpecker will drill 30 roosting holes, a giraffe will wear 200 spots, a seahorse will birth 1,000 babies.Count each one and many more while learning about the wondrous things that can happen in just one lifetime. This extraordinary book collects animal information not available anywhere else—and shows all 30 roosting holes, all 200 spots, and, yes!, all 1,000 baby seahorses in eye-catching illustrations. A book about picturing numbers and considering the endlessly fascinating lives all around us, Lifetime is sure to delight young nature lovers.
My Two Cents: This isn’t your average counting book! Combining unusual facts, fun illustrations and an extensive factual section at the back of the book, Lifetime is a engaging look both at the wonders of the animal kingdom and the world of mathematics. Likely to elicit a few wow!s and I didn’t know that!s from readers, this engaging book can be incorporated into both biology and math activities – it even boasts a section titled I Love Math, which includes several word problems for readers to solve. This is a fun, fascinating nonfiction picture book that helps make math accessible and engaging.
So, what nonfiction kids books have been catching your eye lately? Let me know in the comments, I’d love to hear about them!
I was really impressed with the word problems. Make sure to check out Kate Messner’s Tree of Wonder. It’ll make a great companion.
Ooh, thanks for the suggestion! I’ll have to check it out. I was pretty impressed by the math in this book, too – it nicely illustrates how math exists all around us.
I have this one, Jane, agree that it’s fabulous, one to own!
Isn’t it? I love books that show kids that math doesn’t have to be scary – it can actually be really cool, and show up in the most unexpected places.
This is a sneaky book. It doesn’t look like it has so many fascinating facts in it and then BOOM, the reader learns something. :->
HA! That’s just the way I like it! I rub my hands together with glee when I see kids reading a nonfiction book and saying “wow!” or “coooool!”, without realizing that they are actually learning. As soon as you tell kids that a book is “educational”, a little switch in their brains turns off, but if they think a book is just cool or fun, you can sneak in those facts. 😉
I do love Neal’s outdoor nature illustrations, there’s something so “woodsy” about them!
They’ve got a lovely rustic quality to them, don’t they? Most of the kids in my library are urbanites who might never go camping or visit a forest, so it’s nice to bring a bit of nature to them.
Teachers always are surprised and then in love when I share this one with them. Thanks for featuring it.
Yay, I’m glad you share this one, it’s definitely a good one.