Disappearing Acts

Beginning readers will enjoy scoping out the camouflaged animals in this attractive nonfiction series. Eye-catching photographs show how even unlikely animals, such as tiger sharks and toco toucans, can hide in plain sight to avoid predators and capture their next meal. In addition to explaining why and how the featured animal stays camouflaged, each title describes the animal’s environment with an accompanying map, its diet, and its method of movement. Considerable attention is also given to the birth, parental care, and development of these camouflaged animals. A concluding “More Disappearing Acts” introduces other creatures that blend in with their surroundings. All six titles offer a picture glossary, bibliography, index, and Internet links. The dazzling photographs will grab students’ attention, while the simple yet engaging text will keep them reading. Recommended.

Basic facts such as the subjects’ habitats, life cycles, anatomies, and survival techniques are explained… The glossy photos are the most appealing element of the series.

The six books in this series by various authors introduce young readers to fascinating animals. Each has a reading level of grade 2 and an interest level for grades K–3. They are 24 pages in length, printed in full color, have reinforced library bindings, and are printed on recycled paper.The text is well organized into sections with support from a table of contents, a photo glossary, an index, additional information to “Read More” and “Learn Online,” and biographical notes about the author. The online resources included activities and links to organizations. Readers are encouraged to develop the science process skills of observation, measurement, classification, and so forth, and to integrate science content with other subject areas like social studies (map reading), ELA (writing), and math (calculating). Lots of compare-and-contrast questions encourage dialogue.I decided to “field test” one book by reading it to my preschool granddaughter before bedtime, and over the next few days of her visit she insisted that that we read the remaining five—in all cases more than once, and because of a genuine interest, not to delay bedtime. Many questions were generated about the fascinating animals as we read! An early reader could develop an appreciation of the printed word from these well-done volumes.

The six books in this series by various authors introduce young readers to fascinating animals. Each has a reading level of grade 2 and an interest level for grades K–3. They are 24 pages in length, printed in full color, have reinforced library bindings, and are printed on recycled paper.The text is well organized into sections with support from a table of contents, a photo glossary, an index, additional information to “Read More” and “Learn Online,” and biographical notes about the author. The online resources included activities and links to organizations. Readers are encouraged to develop the science process skills of observation, measurement, classification, and so forth, and to integrate science content with other subject areas like social studies (map reading), ELA (writing), and math (calculating). Lots of compare-and-contrast questions encourage dialogue.I decided to “field test” one book by reading it to my preschool granddaughter before bedtime, and over the next few days of her visit she insisted that that we read the remaining five—in all cases more than once, and because of a genuine interest, not to delay bedtime. Many questions were generated about the fascinating animals as we read! An early reader could develop an appreciation of the printed word from these well-done volumes.