Posts Tagged middle-grade nonfiction

STEM Tuesday– Zombies (Real and Otherwise)– Writing Tips & Resources

By on October 21, 2025   /   STEM Tuesday, Zombies  

Welcome back to STEM Tuesday. I’m Stephanie Jackson, and today’s zombies are in the “otherwise” category—less real, and more “otherwise,” drawing on literary theory and cultural studies. If you’re thinking along the lines of Mary Shelley’s 1818 gothic novel Frankenstein, you’re headed the right direction.

So… monster theory… have you heard of it? In the 1990s, Jeffrey Jerome Cohen wrote about monsters as metaphors and how we can decode (or encode) our stories with them. The TLDR of it is that the monsters of any given cultural text—book, film, etc—represent that society’s fears and desires. Through taboos, boundaries, contamination, and other monster lore, writers and readers explore themes of humanity and inhumanity.

First, as readers: Monster theory makes the English classroom fun again, allowing students to read the text against itself, to tease out the textual society’s ideals. While maybe this seems a little lofty for middle-grade readers, it can apply to age-appropriate texts. For fiction, I think of the middle-grade novels Zombie Baseball Beatdown and Better Off Undead.

Exercise #1: Why Monsters?
Identify a favorite story about monsters. Are its monsters likeable or not, and why? Do the monsters fit or break the monster stereotype? In what ways does the monster complicate the story in a way that a non-monster character wouldn’t? What does the monster disrupt or destroy? How does the text’s main characters and society at large treat the monster(s), and what’s the takeaway? Write down your thoughts and prepare to share them with peers.

Teachers and homeschool parents, feel free to tailor this exercise as appropriate for your students. Essay? Slides presentation? How long? You decide. This type of analysis is less about finding a “right” reading of a text, and more about interpretation and engagement. As long as they’re participating, while using textual evidence as guardrails for the discussion, it’s a great opportunity to engage them in critical thinking skills. (Let them choose a story they love, even if it’s a picture book or movie. Child-led learning sparks joy!)

And now, without further ado, exercise two…

Exercise #2: Perspective

  • Part A) Monstrosity—and not merely beauty—is in the eye of the beholder. Select and write down an everyday object. It could be anything that, taken out of context, might seem scary, weird, or inhuman. Slime and scrambled eggs have odd textures… without sight, encountering them might be unsettling. The object could also be something innocuous, like a dandelion or cereal. Describe the object, and think about how the truth of that description might be purposefully distorted. (Remember the marble in It Fell From the Sky? It’s a perfect example of an everyday object for this purpose.)
  • Part B) Next, invent a character or creature that’s scared of that object. How could this object endanger them, their society? In what circumstances might it be mistaken for something much scarier? What evidence might the character have found to support their belief that they’re endangered by it? How could they misinterpret its purposes? (Think of Strange Planet‘s descriptions.)
  • Part C) Gather into groups and discuss your results with peers. What was the most interesting scenario? What makes something monstrous, vs. what makes something human? As a group, present your findings to the class.

That’s it for this week! If you’re looking for some hi-lo Zombie books for your second-to-seventh graders, you might like this one and similar titles by the same publisher. If you missed it, go back and peruse our book list. As always, I’d love it if you stopped by my website StephanieWritesForKids.com for more book recs, writerly tips, and the latest updates on my publishing journey.

Best,

Stephanie

Stephanie Jackson is a mother of four kiddos ages 4-14. Her kidlit work has been published in Cricket magazine, Dirigible Balloon, and elsewhere. She holds an English creative writing degree and writes from her book-glutted home in northern Utah.

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DINOSAURS: Exploring Prehistoric Life and Geological Time – Interview with Rachel Ignotofsky

By on October 20, 2025   /   Articles, Author Interviews  

Today I’m interviewing Rachel Ignotofsky author of Dinosaurs: Exploring Prehistoric Life and Geological Time. And boy oh boy is this a spectacular book of “educational art” (Rachel’s moniker)! Readers are taken on a visual journey through deep time from single-celled organisms to early humans (which happens to also include dinosaurs!)  Fans, like me, of Rachel’s What’s Inside books will be delighted discover that this book is another stunner – in art and information.

And now, let’s blast to the past!

Emily Starr: Kids love dinosaurs! That means there are a lot of dinosaur books. What made you want to create a dinosaur book, and how did you convince editors your book was different? (As if your incredible illustrations and focus on geological time don’t speak for themselves!)

Rachel Ignotofsky: This book is a lot more than just a Dinosaur book. It goes through Earth’s over 4.5-billion-year history! I have never seen a book do that with cartoony illustrations before. Of course, the Mesozoic Era, when the dinosaurs lived, is a real focus in the book, but I also talk about everything that happened before and after as well.

I also wanted the art in this book to really feel alive, pretty and even silly at times, but also make sure it was scientifically accurate. All my art is based on real fossil beds, so everything in scenes together are plants and animals that lived at the same time and place. With each turn of the page, you can see how much our planet has changed.

Emily Starr: I think most children (and adults) will be shocked to learn that “T. rex lived closer in time (by about 16 million years) to the first automobile than to a Stegosaurus, whose bones would be long fossilized by the time T. rex was on the hunt.” What other information from your research surprised you most?

Rachel Ignotofsky: I was amazed by how far technology has come looking at fossils, since I was a kid. For example, Scientists know the colors of certain dinosaurs by looking inside the microscopic cells of fossilized Dino-feathers. This is how they know that Microraptor had shiny black feathers just like today’s crow.

Emily Starr: It can be difficult even for adults to wrap their minds around the length of time represented by billions of years. Do you have any tips for helping children to understand vast timescales?

Rachel Ignotofsky: It is hard to understand deep time! For me, it really hit when I learned that the dinosaurs during the Jurassic Period were already fossils by the time the Cretaceous period, Triceratops walked around. Scientist have come up with a nifty system called the Geological Time Scale that breaks down earth history into Eons, and smaller and smaller units called Eras, Periods and Epochs. This helps you keep track of where you are in time, and I had a lot of fun using that system to create the chapters in my book.

There is also a great video showing all of earth history laid out on football field, where human history only took up 1/8th of an inch. That really helped me understand it as well!

Emily Starr: Illustrating animals that we have only seen fossils of is a unique challenge. How do you decide how to represent features that aren’t revealed though bone structure–like color, body shape and skin features?

Rachel Ignotofsky: Because the art in my book was very stylized, I had a lot of fun with what was unknown! You look at patterns and color combos that you find in nature to make something really cool. I also had my book fact checked by Paleontologist Dr. Thomas R. Holtz, and there were times that the colors of feathered dinosaurs were known for certain. When that is the case, I let facts tell me what to draw.

Emily Starr: What do you hope young readers notice in your illustrations?

Rachel Ignotofsky: There are a lot of little hidden jokes. I hope kids can find all of them!

Emily Starr: In your acknowledgements you mention your husband organized trips to museums and dig sites. What were some of your favorites? Were there specific details you learned during an in-person trip that you didn’t know from previous research?

Rachel Ignotofsky: My all-time favorite was U-dig Fossils. This is a shale quarry out in the middle of nowhere in Utah. You feel like you are on the moon in the desert, and you are surrounded by a giant mound of Trilobite fossils from over 500 million years ago.

I chiseled opened giant slabs of shale to reveal perfectly preserved trilobites that I got to take home with me! And I looked at my little fossils while drawing the Cambrian period creature feature artwork. Digging up my own fossils was so inspiring for making the art in the book.

Emily Starr: One of my favorite features in the book are the “Stories of Discovery.” They really connect young readers to the science of paleontology and spotlight how we know about Earth’s ancient creatures. Were there any interesting fossil sites that didn’t make it into the book? Similarly, are there any additional unbelievable organisms that ended up on the cutting room floor?

Rachel Ignotofsky: I wish I talked more about the La Brea Tar Pits in Los Angeles, which are filled with ice age animals like Giant Ground Sloths. Columbian Mammoths, and Saber-Toothed cats. The tar pits were a naturally occurring death trap that animals would fall into. It was also the perfect conditions to become a fossil. I love visiting the Tar Pit and the museum’s fossil lab is super cool!

One dinosaur that I wish I featured more was Spinosaurus. I did draw a small spot illustration for Spinosaurus, but wish I had the space to give this dino a larger feature. It was a large carnivore found in Africa that lived over 94 million years ago and splashed around swamps. Scientists think it had a large sail on its back that might have been part of an elaborate mating display.

Emily Starr: Do you have upcoming projects you can share with our readers?

Rachel Ignotofsky: I sure do! This March I am publishing a Dinosaurs Coloring Book and a sticker book called Dinosaurs: Stickerology. I am super excited to see what both kids and adults make with these hands on books!

Rachel Ignotofsky is the New York Times bestselling author and illustrator of Women in Science, Women in Sports, Women in Art, The Wondrous Workings of Planet Earth, The History of the Computer, and the What’s Inside picture book series. Rachel’s art has been embraced by the science community and she has spoken at and partnered with institutions like NASA, the San Diego Natural History Museum, The Field Museum, and many more. When she is not drawing, you’ll find her hiking and fossil hunting for fun.

Emily Starr

As a former fourth grade teacher and founder of StarrMatica, a STEM publishing company, Emily Starr has developed award-winning K-5 science curriculum and professional learning materials for 20 years. She is a member of the Iowa State Science Leadership Team, a peer reviewer for the National Science Teaching Association’s journal Science and Children, and a frequent presenter at state and national education conferences. Her debut middle grade nonfiction book will be released in 2026 from the Iowa Ag Literacy Foundation.

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STEM Tuesday– Zombies (Real and Otherwise)– In the Classroom

By on October 14, 2025   /   STEM Tuesday, Zombies  

 

Monsters, zombies, and other scary creatures star in tales throughout the year, but especially near Halloween! These books explore a wide range of creatures, both real and imagined, to get imaginations flowing. They make a great starting point for classroom discussions and activities!

 

Zombie Makers: True Stories of Nature’s Undead

by Rebecca L. Johnson

Zombies are real … but so far, the zombie-makers don’t attack humans. Yet. They do take over the brains and bodies of spiders, ants, flies, snails, and even rats. Not only that, some of these zombies are too small to avoid until it’s too late, like the teeny tiny wasps and fungal spores, and the totally invisible viruses. And then there are the brain worms! A must-read for anyone planning to hunt for zombies in their backyard!

 

Classroom Activity – Nature’s Mind Controllers

How do parasites, fungi, and viruses “take over” animal behavior? Divide students into small groups. Each group should choose a “zombie-maker” to explore. The students should research how their chosen parasite/fungus/virus infects its host and how it changes the host’s behavior. They can create a poster illustrating the life cycle of the zombie-maker, including infection, control, and transmission. They can be creative with labels, arrows, or thought bubbles to show how the host is being controlled. How does this strange behavior help the parasite survive? Each group can present its “zombie story” to the class.

 

Catching Cryptids: The Scientific Search for Mysterious Creatures

by Kim Long

The Loch Ness monster. Kraken. Giant turtles. What some people call monsters, others call cryptids: an animal whose existence is not yet substantiated by science. The emergence of DNA technology, SONAR, bioacoustics, and other advancements has enabled cryptozoologists of every stripe to seek – and sometimes discover – the species behind the monster myth.

 

Classroom Activity – Design Your Own Cryptid

Students can use their imaginations to design a brand-new cryptid, a mysterious creature that people might believe exists but hasn’t been proven by science. Students should describe:

  • What it looks like
  • Where it lives and how it survives
  • Typical diet and behavior
  • How it hides from humans
  • What real animal or adaptation could explain it
  • What scientific tests could be used to prove this creature’s existence

Once students have designed their cryptid, have them draw or create a 3D model of it. Students can also write a short newspaper article or “eyewitness report” about their cryptid discovery.

 

Secrets of the Dead: Mummies and Other Human Remains From Around the World

by Matt Ralphs

In most environments, when someone dies, their flesh decays, leaving only bones. But not mummies. With mummified remains, we can learn about the person and their culture, including the foods they ate and the diseases they suffered from. This book brings nearly 20 mummies to life – so to speak.

 

Classroom Activity – Mummy Lessons

Scientists can learn a lot about the past from mummies, including diet, health, clothing, and burial customs. Have students select one real mummy from the book and create a Mummy Fact Card that summarizes where it was found, how it was preserved, and what scientists learned. Next, it is the students’ turn to become archaeologists. Have them imagine they just discovered a mummy. What clues would they look for to understand its story? Have the students write a diary entry from the archaeologist’s perspective about the discovery.

 

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Carla Mooney loves to explore the world around us and discover the details about how it works. An award-winning author of numerous nonfiction science books for kids and teens, she hopes to spark a healthy curiosity and love of science in today’s young people. She lives in Pennsylvania with her husband, three kids, and dog. Find her at http://www.carlamooney.com, on Facebook @carlamooneyauthor, or on X @carlawrites.

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