Science Books & Resources

Disclosure: We were sent these books and kits in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own.

I have been sitting on these books for awhile and the pile keeps growing, so I am getting these reviews done. Are you looking for some fun science (mostly space) resources for STEM activities and lessons this summer? I have a group to share with you. The first book is a middle grade novel. It is the first in a series of novels from National Geographic Kids. It is Explorer Academy: The Nebula Secret by Trudi Trueit. 

Cruz heads off to a special school to train explorers. The school is full of adventure and puzzles, but Cruz discovers there is someone who is out to get him due to something in his family's past. Can he figure it out?

This book gives kids adventure as well puzzles and codes to break. It is active and exciting and a real page turner. The middle grade readers will love it!

Our next three books are about the moon and traveling to it. Talk about resources for lessons!! Let's start with a pop-up book written by Buzz Aldrin with Marianne J. Dyson. It is To the Moon and Back. Bruce Foster was the paper engineer for the book. 

Wow, this book is amazing!! It was written for the 50th anniversary of the Apollo 11 mission. The images literally pop off the page as Buzz Aldrin explains his mission as well as some of the science behind it all as well as some history of space travel. 

This book is a fun way to look at the first walk on the moon as well as learn about space travel and the moon. There is also a page to punch out and create a model of Apollo 11. This book will add to any lesson about space travel or the moon as well as be loved by people fascinated with space itself.

Of course before Apollo 11 could bring man to the moon for a walk, there were other Apollo missions. Our next book shares about one such mission. It is Apollo 8: The Mission That Changed Everything by Martin W. Sandler. 

Apollo 8 was the second manned spaceflight mission in the Apollo program and it was the first the manned mission to leave Earth low orbit, reach the moon and orbit it and return to Earth. With this mission they were preparing for landing on the moon and for Apollo 11. This mission tested communication and other things to prepare to send man to walk on the moon.

This book shares the entire story of Apollo 8 as well as some history from the time. It tells about what was happening with Russia and the Cold War. The details are very informative and there is an understanding provided of space travel. It also shares a bit about the astronauts and their personal lives. It is a great book and definitely worth adding to a space enthusiast's shelf or space travel unit.

Our final book for today is coming out June 11, 2019. It is Luna: The Science and Stories of Our Moon by David A. Aguilar. 

Want to learn about the moon? This book has it all. It includes the science as well a cultural looks at the moon. It shares the various myths and legends about the moon as well as great hoaxes about the moon. It compares our moon with other moons in our Solar System as well the various parts of the moon. It even shares what the astronauts of the Apollo Missions found on the moon. It is all in this book!!

This book is full of information as well as amazing photographs. Do you know how the moon is different from the Earth? It is in here. This book is completely educational and combines science, history and culture. It is very interesting and an amazing resource.

Our final three products to share today are kits. The first is Smithsonian Exploration System: Solar System by Jon Richards.

Inside this kit are a poster, a book, pages of stickers (some to finish the poster), glow-in-the-dark stars, as well as astronaut and space craft toys. This kit will help anyone explore our Solar System and actively play and learn about it and being an astronaut. It is recommended for ages 6 to 8 and that seems very appropriate for it.

I also am sharing another Smithsonian Exploration Station: Human Body by Ruth Strother. 

This kit explores the human body. It is very similar to the human body kit I shared previously. It includes a poster with pages of stickers to put on the poster, a guidebook, fact cards and a skeleton model. The model needs to be put together which can be tricky. This kit is recommended for ages 6 to 8, but I think those ages would struggle greatly with the skeleton. However the rest of the kit is appropriate for those ages. It is a great hands-on activity when study the human body.

Be sure to check out our review of another Smithsonian Exploration Station.

Our final kit is an origami kit. It is Origami Galaxy for Kids Kit by Rita Foelker.

This kit has space travel as well as things like planets, stars an moons. It comes with 48 sheets designed for the projects as well as instruction book and poster. There are 12 projects in the kit. Here is the contents.

I tried two of the projects: the moon and star. I found them very easy to make and the instructions are well written.

This is a fun way to add art to your space lesson or just explore more origami!! 

I hope you liked our quick look at science resources (mostly space and the moon). I hope you will check them all out!!