What Makes Day and Night? (Let's-Read-and-Find-Out Science) (1961)

REVIEW: This book talks about sunrises and sunsets as the earth spins and carries us in and out of the sun's light. This book explains in a clear and easy way and with a simple experiment to demonstrate, what makes day and night.
SOURCE: Pierce College Library
AGE: 4-6

This is an interactive science book that could be used with young children to help explain what creates day and night. Most young children have misconceptions about the sun moving up and down to create day and night, when really it is the Earth that spins. This book explains this with interesting images, diagrams, and some short experiments you could do at home! ( )

Reason for Reading: Ds read aloud to me as his non-fiction reader.

This book is still in print but has been completely revised and is not the same as the old edition we have here. A simple, easy-to-read introduction to the earth's shape and how it revolves to create night and day, sunsets and sunrises. An experiment with a lamp is used to further illustrate the process. This book was fairly easy for ds to read and gave him a chance to practice reading using a conversational voice. He also knew the information and it caused him to initiate dialogue to expand upon the basic observations and impart his own knowledge. I love this series of books; they are excellent easy readers in the science field and Branley is a good, interesting writer of non-fiction material. Branley was the originator of the series. ( )

This nicely illustrated Read Aloud book is excellent for the early elementary grades. It is a wonderful way to teach students about the world we live in. Reading about the Earth's rotation around our sun will stoke interest in the Earth Sciences. Student's prior knowledge of the setting and rising sun they experience on a daily basis will serve to invoke many question as well as inferences from the students. ( )

I think this book definitely has some great educational value. However, I also know that segments of it can be confusing since I used this previously for a sort of guided reading with a student. As a result, I'm not completely sold on the idea of having this in my classroom. I suppose if I was teaching a class higher than 1st grade I'd consider having this book in my repertoire. ( )