Gift Your Middle Grade Student's Teacher with "Fairy Tale Science," a Fun New Hands-On Experiments Book That Combines Science, History and Fairy Tales! (Review)

 Disclosure: I was sent a review copy from the publisher in exchange for an honest review. All views shared are mine and mine alone.

Buy now for only $18.99

I was super excited when I first learned about "Fairy Tale Science" back in August.  After reading about the book and learning more about the author Sarah Albee, who is a well-seasoned author found on the New York Times Bestseller list. She has written a number of educational books for young readers, and her new book, "FAIRY TALE SCIENCE" "aims to teach students how to think about science (and history!) from a fairy tale lens."  With Sarah's book, students will be able to use their critical thinking and problem solving skills, formulate hypotheses, and stage their own experiments based on classic fairy tales.  Being a educator and homeschooling parent, I am always looking for books like this that can be incorporated into my lesson plans and shared in a classroom or after-school enrichment setting.  

--

More about this book:

"Explore the laws of physics, principles of chemistry, and wonders of biology in this collection of classic stories with a hands-on STEM twist.

From Snow White to Chicken Little to Ali Baba and the Forty Thieves—read each story like a scientist!

• Determine if a glass slipper can withstand an evening of ballroom dancing.
• Explore the buoyancy of a magical frog.
• Test the power of blowing air on a house.

And so much more!"

--

When I first received an advance copy of this book, I couldn't help but get giddy with excitement as I flipped through the pages of this book, skimming over the 25 different experiments for kids to perform.  I really liked how Sarah laid out the fairy tale and its tale origin, before moving on to explore the science behind the theme/story idea.  

From there she lays out a fun hands on experiment for kids to do that goes along with the story they just read about.  

Using critical thinking skills and problem solving skills it is up to the students conduct the experiment, record their observations and then be able to explain what is going on with the experiment.  

By incorporating timeless fairy tales we all love and have read time and time again as kids, middle age students can apply science concepts they are learning about and see if these tales actually have a happily ever after, or rule out if certain events in a particular tale could have actually happened by conducting fun experiments. 

I shared this book with my two girls as part of our homeschooling, as well as brought it into a classroom setting and taught it to a group of middle school students, before trying it out on high school students. I was surprised at how excited the older kids got when I told them we would be studying fairy tales, but with a science spin.  After the first experiment was demoed to them, they were ready to go, and couldn't wait to test out their favorite childhood fairy tales.  I am so hoping this author comes out with more books like this that can be used in the classroom to get middle-grade students excited about learning, as this is really a difficult group to keep engaged and excited about learning, without just pushing papers around or having them read books.  Kids love hands on learning, and this book is chock full of experiments they will love performing.

With the holidays fast approaching, why not consider sending a copy of this book in with your child to surprise their teacher with, along with maybe a coffee gift card or small gift to say "Thank You," for educating your child, especially during the past couple crazy years trying to juggle teaching with Covid.  Once they start flipping through the book, they will be all smiles and be grateful for this thoughtful gift.  It is one book they will keep on their bookshelf in their classroom to use year after year with their students, and one that will become a favorite to pass around to other teachers who may be looking to switch things up and add some fun hands on teaching elements to their lessons.

You can learn more about Fairy Tale Science available from Macmillan Children's Publishing Group by visiting https://us.macmillan.com/books/9781250257611.  And, to learn more about this author, you can find Sarah on Twitter, or check out her website.

 Disclosure: I was sent a review copy from the publisher in exchange for an honest review. All views shared are mine and mine alone.