Books Read
From Here to There: Inventions that Changed the Way the World Moves
by Vivian Kirkfield and Gilbert Ford
This book highlights some of the key inventions that changed how people and things move around the world. Rather than explaining the science of these inventions, it contains mini-biographies about the inventors who created these ground-breaking devices. I learned a lot about how and when different modes of transportation came about, in addition to learning about the people who made them happen.
Since I didn’t have easy access to many of the books on this month’s list, I chose to read some other books that also fit into this theme. These “bonus” books are:
Great Train Designs (Engineering Wonders of the 21st Century)
by Sophie Washburne
I’m a big fan of trains, so I was really interested to learn more about them. Great Train Designs focuses on the science and innovations that have improved train travel over the years. It also explores some of the issues surrounding train travel and takes a brief peak into what the future of train travel might include.
Vehicle & Transportation Tech (Marvels of Technology)
by Anita Loughley and Alex Woolf
Like the first book, this one highlights many different types of transportation. Unlike From Here to There, Vehicle & Transportation Tech takes a closer look at the science and technology behind the different transportation achievements rather than the people who made them.
Whichever books you choose to read, here are some activities you can pair with them.
Explore Transportation Science and Engineering
Pick a type of transportation that interests you. Now think of a specific mechanism or idea that it uses. Find an experiment to conduct or activity to do that explores this topic. Here are a few you might want to try.
- How do train wheels stay on train tracks? Conduct this experiment from Science Buddies: https://www.sciencebuddies.org/stem-activities/train-wheel-science
- Investigate the science around floating boats with Buoyant Boats from Teach Engineering. https://www.teachengineering.org/activities/view/duk_boat_mary_act
- Explore airplanes using Paper Airplanes (Teach Engineering): https://www.teachengineering.org/activities/view/cub_airplanes_lesson06_activity1
- Explore Drag and Aircraft Design (NASA): https://www.nasa.gov/stem-content/drag-and-aircraft-design
- Make a hovercraft (NASA JPL): https://www.jpl.nasa.gov/edu/resources/project/make-a-hovercraft
- Build a bubble-powered rocket – activity from NASA’s SpacePlace: https://spaceplace.nasa.gov/pop-rocket/en
- Or Make a Straw Rocket (NASA): https://www.nasa.gov/stem-content/make-a-straw-rocket
- Or make a stomp rocket (Exploratorium): https://www.exploratorium.edu/snacks/bottle-blast-off
- Design tires that would move well on Mars in Gaining Traction on Mars Activity (NASA): https://www.nasa.gov/stem-content/gaining-traction-on-mars-hands-on-activity
- Or explore when you can use square wheels (Exploratorium): https://www.exploratorium.edu/snacks/square-wheels
Here are some other collections of activities to explore:
- University of Minnesota Center for Transportation: https://www.cts.umn.edu/education/k-12/lessons
- Institute of Transportation Engineers (ITE): https://www.ite.org/technical-resources/transportation-science-technology-engineering-math-stem-resources/curated-resources/prek-12-stem-activities
- National Network for the Transportation Workforce (NNTW): https://www.nntw.org/lesson-plans
- Vermont Tech transportation-related activities: https://cewd.vtc.edu/vtrans-career-exploration/lesson-plans
- Discover Engineering: https://discovere.org/engineering-activities
- NASCAR topics on NSTA: https://www.nsta.org/nascar-kids
Create a Timeline
Did you notice the dates that different inventions were made? Did any of them surprise you? Create a timeline to track when different transportation innovations came about.
Decide if you want to focus on one type of transportation (like automobiles/cars) or if you want to include all different types of transportation on one timeline.
Think about how you can make the timeline easier to understand. Perhaps all car events are shown in red, boat in blue, and plane in green. If you’re focusing on one type of transportation, maybe safety items are red, movement (including engines and tires/tracks) is blue, and comfort is yellow.
You could break up into teams, with each team focusing on one type of transportation or area within that transportation.
Create a giant timeline that goes around the room. Include images and brief text to highlight each point on the timeline.
Once everyone has completed their part of the timeline, present it. Decide who is going to present each item and how much time they have.
Alternatively, create a video that walks viewers through your timeline.
Research Current News
Do some research to see what’s happening in transportation science and technology these days. There are a few sites that are dedicated to reporting on science news. You may want to start there.
Try different search words and parameters to find transportation-related news stories. You may want to focus on a specific type of transportation that interests you. Report on what you have found.
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Janet Slingerland has written over 2 dozen books for young readers, including Superfast Motorcycle Racing. To learn more about Janet and her books, go to janetsbooks.com
Kim: Absolutely! It wasn’t until March 2025 (MARCH 2025!!!) that scientists captured the very first image of a colossal squid in its natural habitat! And it was such a baby! I can’t wait for pics of a full-size colossal squid. There is so much more of the ocean to explore. We haven’t scratched the surface. For land animals, drones make it so much easier to explore hard-to-reach places. And as airborne DNA collection advances, we’ll be able to identify species without even seeing them. That’s huge. Right now, so much is based on eyesight and catching a glimpse, but environmental DNA and airborne DNA open the door to discover where super secretive animals may be hiding.
says they saw a dog running down the street, there’s no reason to question their opinion. But if someone says they saw a 6-foot bird screeching at them, our eyebrows raise. So, if we assume the person saw something, let’s take a look at what factors might be affecting their opinion, and then we can get into the traditional wildlife science of habitat and what technologies can help figure out what that something is.
Kim: When I was a kid, I loved animals and science and the only job I heard about was a veterinarian, which didn’t interest me. I want kids to know that there are tons of fields related to wildlife research, and not all jobs require higher education. Perhaps a kid who’s into computers never thought wildlife coding or programming was an option and will be thrilled to discover that these opportunities exist.
