Bücher von Rebecca Woodbury Ph. D.

Whales are animals that live only in water. Most whales live in oceans, but a few live in rivers. Whales are mammals, animals that breathe air, feed milk to their babies, and have fur for at least part of their life. Most mammals give birth to live babies. Whales are in a group of mammals called cetaceans. Cetaceans spend all their time in water and take in air through blowholes on top of the head. They must come to the surface frequently to breathe. Whales usually travel in groups called pods and talk to each other with clicks, whistles, squeaks, and squawks. There are two types of whales - those that have teeth and those that do not. Whales that have teeth each fish, squid, crabs, and shrimp. Whales with teeth have one blowhole. Whales without teeth have two blowholes and baleen bristles instead of teeth. A baleen plate is a comb-like structure that hangs down from the top jaw. The whale takes in a mouthful of water and then pushes the water out through the baleen. Food is caught in the baleen and licked off by the whale. The biggest animal on Earth is the blue whale, which is a baleen whale that mainly eats tiny animals called krill. What do you think it is like to live in a part of the world that is so much different from where we live?A pronunciation guide of scientific terms is included. 24 pages filled with engaging, colorful illustrations. Reading Level 1-3, Interest Level 2-5, Word count 327, Lexile measure 520L.

A mammal is an animal that breathes air, feeds milk to its babies, and has fur for at least part of its life. Most mammals give birth to live babies. Only a few lay eggs. Some mammals, like cows and goats, are herbivores and eat only grass and other plants. Others, like cats, are carnivores and eat only meat. Some mammals, like whales, live only in the ocean, and others, like squirrels and bobcats, live only on land. Some mammals, like beavers, spend time both on land and in water. Did you know that you are a mammal? A pronunciation guide of scientific terms is included. 24 pages filled with engaging, colorful illustrations. Reading Level 1-3, Interest Level 2-5, Word count 167, Lexile measure 480L

Birds are found all over the world. Some, like penguins, live in cold places while others, like toucans, live in tropical climates. All birds have wings, which most use for flying. Some birds don't fly but use their wings as flippers for swimming or have strong legs for running. All birds have feathers, lay eggs, and have hollow bones to make them lighter so they can fly. Most birds live on land and some spend most of their time in water. Birds eat seeds, insects, or small animals. It is suggested that kids learn about birds by observing them and recording what they see in a notebook. Examples of different birds are shown.A pronunciation guide of scientific terms is included. 24 pages filled with engaging, colorful illustrations. Reading Level 1-3, Interest Level 2-5.

A platypus has a bill like a duck, lays eggs like a duck, and has webbed feet. It has a flat tail and fur like a beaver. This unusual animal belongs to a group of mammals called monotremes. A mammal is an animal that breathes air, feeds milk to its babies, and has fur for at least part of its life. Most mammals give birth to live babies, with monotremes being the only egg-laying mammals. Platypuses live near lakes and slow-moving rivers. They eat while they are in water, most often at night, with a diet that includes bugs, beetles, shrimps, snails, and worms. The platypus uses its bill to snap up food from the water and to find food on the bottom of lakes and rivers. They sleep in burrows near the water's edge. A female platypus lays 1-3 eggs and cares for the babies when the eggs hatch. The male has a sharp spur on each hind leg that releases poison. The platypus is found only in Australia.A pronunciation guide of scientific terms is included. 24 pages filled with engaging, colorful illustrations. Reading Level 1-3, Interest Level 2-5.

Fish are animals that swim in water and are found in lakes, rivers, streams, and oceans. There are three types of fish: bony fish, cartilage fish, and fish without jaws. Bony fish, such as bass, are the most common and are named for their skeletons which are made of bones. Bony fish have a swim bladder that allows them to adjust their depth in the water by putting more air in the bladder to rise or releasing some air to sink. Cartilage fish, such as sharks, have a skeleton made of cartilage, which is strong, light, and can bend. They don't have a swim bladder. Lampreys are a type of jawless fish that eat with a round mouth lined with lots of teeth. Fish are an important food for people and animals, and most of the fish that are eaten are bony fish, including salmon, tuna, and trout.A pronunciation guide of scientific terms is included. 24 pages filled with engaging, colorful illustrations. Reading Level 1-3, Interest Level 2-5, Word count 226, Lexile measure 570L.

Worms are animals that have long bodies and no legs. They live on land, in the ocean, and sometimes in other animals. There are three groups of worms: segmented worms, roundworms, and flatworms. A roundworm is shaped like a long round tube, while flatworms have flat bodies and are sometimes brightly colored with different patterns. Segmented worms look like they are made of many small pieces. Earthworms eat dead plants and animals and make food for living plants, but worms that live in other animals can make them sick. Worms are important because they change dead plants and animals into nutrients for plants to use and can provide food for other animals.A pronunciation guide of scientific terms is included. 24 pages filled with engaging, colorful illustrations. Reading Level 1-3, Interest Level 2-5, Word count 187, Lexile measure 460L.

A black hole is an object in space that cannot be seen because it sucks in everything near it, including light. It looks like a totally black area in space because no light escapes from it or bounces off it. Astronomers learn about black holes by observing the materials swirling around them and what happens to these materials. A black hole has a huge amount of gravity that pulls materials into it. A black hole can form when a big star reaches the end of its life in a supernova and explodes with the material from the supernova collapsing in on itself and falling into a tiny area. Having such a huge amount of material in such a small space creates a huge amount of gravity strong enough to pull whole stars into the black hole. Astronomers think that anything that gets too near a black hole will undergo a process called spaghettification in which the object is pulled into the black hole and stretched out like a piece of spaghetti until it is pulled apart. It is likely that most galaxies have a black hole at the center with all the stars and other objects circling it. Pronunciation guide included. 24 pages filled with engaging, colorful illustrations. Reading Level 1-3, Interest Level 2-5, Word count 338, Lexile measure 720L.

Bats are a type of mammal and the only mammal that flies. Mammals are animals that breathe air, feed milk to their babies, and have fur for at least part of their life. Most give birth to live babies. During the day, bats sleep upside down in protected places. At night some bats fly around catching bugs to eat. Other bats eat fruit, plant parts, and nectar from flowers. Baby bats are called pups and hold onto their mother as she flies around to get food. Bats can live for 30 or more years. Some bat facts: they are not related to mice, help control insect populations, pollinate plants and spread seeds, may gather in large groups at night, won't get tangled in your hair, won't suck your blood, and are not blind.A pronunciation guide of scientific terms is included. 24 pages filled with engaging, colorful illustrations. Reading Level 1-3, Interest Level 2-5, Word count 198, Lexile measure 460L.

biology; elementary science; life science; home school; Real Science-4-Kids; gastropod; bivalve; cephalopod; mollusk; Mollusca; radulaSnails are a type of mollusk. Mollusks are in the scientific group Mollusca and are soft-bodied animals that live in oceans and lakes and on land. The three types of mollusks are gastropods (snails and slugs), bivalves (clams and oysters), and cephalopods (octopuses and squids). All mollusks have organs and a mantle that covers the organs, one or more feet or arms, and a shell on the inside or outside of the body. A snail has a foot (a large muscle used for moving), eyes on the tips of eyestalks, a toothed tongue called a radula, and a spiral shell. It moves slowly, leaving a trail of slime behind. The slime helps a snail stick to and move along a surface and protects the snail's body from sharp objects. There are many different kinds of snails that live on land and in fresh and salt water. Some people eat snails.A pronunciation guide of scientific terms is included. 24 pages filled with engaging, colorful illustrations. Reading Level 1-3, Interest Level 2-5, Word count 326, Lexile measure 560L.

Earth has different parts that work together to keep Earth in balance. The geosphere is the rocky part of Earth. The atmosphere contains all the air. The biosphere is made of all the living things. The hydrosphere consists of all the liquid water, snow, and ice. The magnetosphere includes the magnetic field surrounding Earth. All of these parts are needed for life to exist. Rain and snow in the hydrosphere give water to plants and animals. Plants take carbon dioxide from the atmosphere and change it into oxygen. Animals breathe in oxygen and breathe out carbon dioxide. The magnetosphere lets just enough of the Sun's energy through to keep plants and animals alive. When all these parts of Earth are in balance, plants and animals can stay alive and healthy. But it is possible for Earth to become unbalanced. If there is too much carbon dioxide in the air and not enough plants to change it to oxygen, weather patterns can change. Too much carbon dioxide also makes oceans become less healthy for fish. If too much ice melts, sea levels can rise, leaving less land for plants and animals to live on. We can help keep Earth in balance by cleaning the air and the water. We can choose to use products that are Earth friendly, use fewer plastics, and recycle. Everyone can help!Pronunciation guide. 24 pages filled with engaging, colorful illustrations. Reading Level 1-3, Interest Level 2-5, Word count 402, Lexile measure 600L.

A star is an object in space made of hydrogen and helium atoms. It makes its own light energy and heat energy when hydrogen atoms combine to make helium. (Atoms are described.) Stars are born inside a huge cloud of gas and dust and die when they run out of the hydrogen they use for fuel. A big star that runs out of fuel ends its life in a huge, very bright explosion called a supernova and leaves behind a cloud of gas and dust called a nebula. A supernova can also leave behind a white dwarf star or a black hole. A supernova explosion blasts the dying star's matter into space, scattering many different kinds of atoms into the universe. All the atoms that make up everything on Earth were once part of stars. You are made from stars too! Pronunciation guide included. 24 pages filled with engaging, colorful illustrations. Reading Level 1-3, Interest Level 2-5, Word count 271, Lexile measure 560L.

Astronomy is the study of stars and other objects in space. Ancient peoples studied the sky and the movement of stars, the Moon, and the Sun and were able to create calendars based on their observations. These early astronomers also named individual stars and groups of stars. Since astronomers can't travel to stars and other distant objects, they use tools to study these objects. The telescope is a tool used to see deep into space. One type of telescope uses lenses to magnify faraway objects. Lenses are pieces of glass or plastic that are shaped in a way that causes them to magnify objects. Space telescopes high above Earth are also used to gather information about objects in space and send it back to astronomers. Astronomy is an exciting and rapidly changing field of study with new discoveries constantly being made. Pronunciation guide included. 24 pages filled with engaging, colorful illustrations. Reading Level 1-3, Interest Level 2-5, Word count 319, Lexile measure 740L.

Astronomers use various types of telescopes to study faraway objects in space. Telescopes are tools that make distant objects look bigger, and space telescopes are in orbit high above Earth. The Hubble Space Telescope has taken over a million photos of objects in space, and some of these are nebulae. A nebula is a huge cloud of gas and dust that swirls to make beautiful cosmic art. Some nebulae are areas in space where new stars are formed. Some nebulae are formed when a dying star explodes and turns into gas and dust. The Helix Nebula is the closest known nebula to Earth. Several other nebulae are pictured. Pronunciation guide. 24 pages filled with engaging, colorful illustrations. Reading Level 1-3, Interest Level 2-5, Word count 248, Lexile measure 600L.

A planet is an object in space that orbits a star, is spherical, and is big enough to have its own gravity. Earth is one of 8 planets that orbit the Sun. There are two different types of planets. Terrestrial planets are Earth-like and made of rock. Mercury, Venus, Earth, and Mars are terrestrial planets and are closest to the Sun. Jovian planets are Jupiter-like and made of gas. Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus, and Neptune are Jovian planets and are farthest from the Sun. A moon is a natural object that orbits a planet. Earth has one moon, Mercury and Venus have no moons, and all the other planets have two or more moons. Each planet moves in its own orbit around the Sun. As far as we know, Earth is the only planet that supports life. Earth is the right distance from the Sun to have liquid water and the right temperatures and has air for living things to use. Pronunciation guide included. 24 pages filled with engaging, colorful illustrations. Reading Level 1-3, Interest Level 2-5, Word count 278, Lexile measure 510L.

A constellation is a group of stars that forms a shape and has been given a name. Different constellations can be seen from the Northern Hemisphere and the Southern Hemisphere. From the equator all the constellations can be seen. The Big Dipper and Cassiopeia are Northern Hemisphere constellations, while the Great Square, Pegasus, and the Southern Cross are seen from the Southern Hemisphere. The Big Dipper points to Polaris, which is also called the North Star because it is always positioned above the northernmost part of Earth. People in the Northern Hemisphere can use the North Star to help them find their way, and people in the Southern Hemisphere can use the Southern Cross. Learning to recognize the constellations is a fun way to spend time outdoors. Pronunciation guide included. 24 pages filled with engaging, colorful illustrations. Reading Level 1-3, Interest Level 2-5.

The Moon is spherical and much smaller than Earth. It is made of rocks and minerals, like Earth, but has very little air and no liquid water but some ice. The Moon doesn't make its own light but rather reflects light from the Sun, and it orbits the Earth, completing one orbit every month. The Moon looks different from day to day as it moves in its orbit around the Sun. It can look completely round, half-round, or crescent-shaped. The light and dark areas that can be seen on the Moon's surface include craters and lava flows from volcanoes. Craters can form around the opening of a volcano or when another object in space hits the Moon. The Moon and Earth both have gravity. Gravity is the force that keeps the Moon in its orbit around Earth, and the Moon's gravity causes ocean tides. Pronunciation guide. 24 pages filled with engaging, colorful illustrations. Reading Level 1-3, Interest Level 2-5, Word count 288, Lexile measure 530L.

Earth is part of a solar system, which is made of a star and the group of planets and other objects that orbit a star. The Sun is a star and is the center of our solar system. A star is an object in space that make its own light and heat energy. Our solar system contains eight planets, an asteroid belt, and moons around the planets. The inner solar system consists of the first four planets orbiting the Sun: Mercury, Venus, Earth, and Mars. The next group of four planets is called the outer solar system and is made of Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus, and Neptune. The Asteroid Belt is located between the inner and outer solar systems. An asteroid is a chunk of rocks and minerals too small to be a planet. Asteroids also exist outside the Asteroid Belt. If one of these enters Earth's atmosphere and burns up, it called a shooting star, or meteor. Comets are also found in the solar system and are objects made of ice, rocks, and dirt. Pronunciation guide included. 24 pages filled with engaging, colorful illustrations. Reading Level 1-3, Interest Level 2-5.

Earth's geosphere is made up of layers: the crust, mantle, and core. The crust is the solid outer layer of Earth and beneath the crust is the mantle, which is solid on top and soft below. The core is at the very center of Earth and made of metals, soft on the outside and solid at the center. Big and small events change the geosphere. Magma from volcanoes creates mountains and other landforms as it cools. Earthquakes cause the crust and upper mantle to shift, creating valleys, waterways, and mountains. Wind blows sand around to create dunes. Erosion of rocks and soil occurs when water, wind, or ice wears them away, changing the geosphere. Glaciers change the landscape when they carry rocks beneath them that grind down the land underneath. Animals change the geosphere by digging holes in the Earth, making trails, and building dams. Resources that we use to power cars and make batteries and to heat our homes come from the geosphere. The history of Earth is revealed by layers of rocks and fossils in the crust.Pronunciation guide. 24 pages filled with engaging, colorful illustrations. Reading Level 1-3, Interest Level 2-5.