Fossils Tell of Long Ago

This science text, Fossils Tell of Long Ago, could be viewed as a guided reading book or picture book, but I would choose to use it as a guided reading book. The beginning of the book has somewhat of a stry element to it, starting off with, "Once upon a time..." but this type of book can make that work because the author is talking about the past and explaining how fossils are made. This book has another really great feature: characters in the book have speech bubbles that add to the story. Students would be encouraged to read all the speech bubbles to fully understand what fossils are. All in all, this book is a great way for students to learn about fossils in an engaging way.

Fossils tell us a lot about the world as it was in the past. This book explains what fossils are and how they form. The book also talks about how amber and coal are formed. Anyone can find a fossil and they might even discover something no one knows about past animals.

I didn’t really like this book. The text was very dry and did not make me want to keep reading. However, it did provide a lot of information on fossils. I liked the illustrations of the children’s dialogue about fossils.

1) Students could create fossils of their hands using clay.
2) The teacher could bring in or show pictures of interesting fossils that have been discovered.

I gave this book a five out of five star rating. Since the book discusses fossils, it begins by telling the story of how a fish from long ago made its way to become a fossil. The story element to the scientific information makes it more interesting to read. The children in this book are also given speech bubbles, each bubble gives a fact or thought related to the subject. The book also provides an activity you can use in the classroom with your students to create fossils of their own! Any student learning about fossils or who has an interest in earth science would enjoy this text.

This is a great informational text that introduces children to fossils. It is an enticing book as it tells a story of how a specific fish once big and alive in the ocean, over thousands of years becomes a fossil due to life, and environmental factors. The illustrations are detailed and exciting to look at. Any child curious about dinosaurs, fossils, and what happens to plant and animals over time will enjoy this book and will be able to learn as they read along.

Non-fiction Science Skill:

In "Fossils Tell of Long Ago" by Aliki a very detailed description of fossils and where they come from is presented. The narrator walks the audience through why fossils are important and significant. Child scientists comment throughout the book in little speech bubbles and thought clouds. This adds a sense of connection to the material presented. The book is made for children in grades 3-5 and is very reader friendly. Although a lot of information is being presented, the material is very accessible and understandable. My favorite part of the book is a hint to an activity that could go along with the reading of this book. This book is very usable for a science lesson! The content is very scientific and seemingly show more correct. This paired with the activity mentioned would make a great science project! show less

Critique:
Genre: This book is very helpful in explaining fossils to children. It is very informative in presenting accurate information in a way that kids will understand fossils and is interesting to them. It makes the information relevant to children in understanding how they could find fossils.
Illustrations: The book contains pictures that help to explain fossils. They contain captions from children to help make the book more relevant to kids. The pictures go with the text and show examples of different types of fossils and what they might look like if someone were to find one.

This is still a little advanced for Madu at 4, but she was able to follow along. I think it would have been clearer if I had prepared some clay so she could make her own 'fossil' as described in the book.