Posts Tagged writing tips

STEM Tuesday — Ecosystem Recovery– Writing Tips & Resources

By on August 16, 2022   /   Ecosystems, STEM Tuesday  

STEM Tuesday – Ecosystem Recovery

Visual information is everywhere we look. Think about the bright red, octagonal stop sign the traffic guard holds. Everyone knows at a glance that means stop! Or, look at a set of assembly instructions for a desk or a LEGO set. They rely on pictures and few if any words to explain how to put things together.

Graphics are an important part of informational writing. Sometimes a graphic (a picture only or a combination of words and pictures) is a better choice than words alone.

This month, we’ll focus on reading, understanding, and creating info graphics, using mentor texts from this month’s book list. As they say, sometimes a picture is worth a thousand words.

Comparisons

graphic of a burmese python's diet

First, let’s look at the Burmese Python Diet info graphic from Kate Messner’s TRACKING PYTHONS. The graphic itself uses hardly any words. Yet you can immediately see the devastating effect this non-native animal has on native species in Florida. Just look at all that it eats! That’s one hungry python.

Now imagine if Messner had chosen instead to convey this information using only words: 72 mice, 30 cotton rats, 15 rabbits, etc. It doesn’t have nearly the impact. Plus, it’s boring to read. In situations like these, graphics are a great choice.

Step-by-Step Processes

Trying to explain ocean acidification? What about how telemetry works? You can use graphics to break down complicated step-by-step processes. We have two great examples from this month’s book list: an ocean acidification graphic from Patricia Newman’s PLANET OCEAN and the telemetry graphic from Messner’s PYTHONS.

Ocean acidification graphic

This is an image of how telemetry works

Unlike the previous, wordless graphic, these use a combination of words and pictures to help us understand what’s going on.

To understand the impact of the pictures, cover them up, and look only at the words. Or you could even try typing them out into a document. How well do you understand what’s going on? Now uncover the pictures and “read” them. How do the images aid your understanding?

If you are explaining a step-by-step process in your writing, consider whether a graphic could help.

Descriptions/Labeled Diagrams

Like the step-by-step graphics above, labeled diagrams combine text and images. Let’s study this adorable otter graphic from Patricia Newman’s SEA OTTER HEROES.

This is a labeled graphic of a sea otter.What information do the text boxes provide on their own? Imagine if there was no picture of the otter at all, and this information was conveyed in writing only. Would it work? How does the image of the otter add to your understanding of how the otter is built to hunt?

If a reader isn’t familiar with an otter, it would be difficult for them to call to mind what an otter’s ears or whiskers look like. And even if they had seen an otter, their memory might be inaccurate. A picture ensures the reader gets all the information they need, both what the otter’s features look like and how they are used to hunt.

Your Turn

Now it’s time to put what we’ve learned into practice. Have students read through a piece of their own informational writing and identify an area where a graphic might help their audience gain a better understanding. It might be a comparison, a step-by-step process, a description like the otter, or something else.

Next, have them create the infographic. They can draw something by hand or use online tools like Google Slides to arrange photos, clip art, arrows, text boxes, or more.

Finally, have students inert their graphic, and then revise their text accordingly.

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headshot of Kirsten W. LarsonKirsten W. Larson used to work with rocket scientists at NASA and now writes about women in science and much more. Her books include the WOOD, WIRE, WINGS: Emma Lilian Todd Invents an Airplane, illus. Tracy Subisak and A TRUE WONDER: The Comic Book Hero Who Changed Everything, illus. Katy Wu. Learn more at kirsten-w-larson.com.

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STEM Tuesday — Ecosystem Recovery– In the Classroom

By on August 9, 2022   /   Ecosystems, STEM Tuesday  

What is ecosystem recovery? The Society for Ecological Restoration defines it as “the process of assisting the recovery of an ecosystem that has been degraded, damaged, or destroyed.” This fascinating work is happening all over the globe. Many amazing books have been written to help students grasp the enormity and importance of ecosystem recovery. These books can be used as a springboard for classroom discussions and activities.

 

Bringing Back the Wolves: How a Predator Restored an Ecosystem by Jude Isabella and Kim Smith

After a seventy year absence, gray wolves were reintroduced to Yellowstone National Park. The absence of these apex predators directly and indirectly affected many other living things. By bringing the wolves back, the ecosystem in Yellowstone was transformed.

Classroom Activity: In classic literature and movies, wolves are often portrayed as the villains. They are evil, something to be feared. In reality,  however, they are an incredibly important species. Citing examples from this text, have students write a letter, make a poster, or create a Google Slide presentation to persuade others that wolves are actually “good.” Have students highlight the positive effects they have on their ecosystems. Then, invite other students and staff to come into the classroom and listen to your students present their work.

 

The Brilliant Deep: Rebuilding the World’s Coral Reefs by Kate Messner and Matthew Forsythe

As a child, Ken Nedimyer was fascinated by the ocean and the coral reefs of the Florida Keys. But as an adult, he saw that his beloved reefs were dying. Using grafts of newly grown coral, Ken planted new coral colonies. His work has helped save and rebuild coral reefs all over the world.

Classroom Activity: Take students’ understanding to the next level by bringing them on a virtual field trip to the Dominican Republic. They will learn more about coral reefs and what scientists are doing to protect them. Then, have students create their own coral reefs using clay and paint. Click here for detailed directions.

 

Rise of the Lioness: Restoring a Habitat and its Pride on the Liuwa Plains by Bradley Hague

This beautiful book is both the story of Lady, the last lioness in the Liuwa Plains after the collapse of its ecosystem, and the story of what scientists did to restore that ecosystem.

Classroom Activity: Have students research the area where they live (or where their school is located). What plants and animals live there? What is the landscape like? How do both the geography and living organisms shape the ecosystem? Then, have students choose one local animal or plant. How would the ecosystem change if that animal or plant was removed? What effect would that have on the other living things? On the landscape? Would that effect be immediate or gradual?

 

 

Hopefully, these books and activities will help students think critically about the relationships between all living species and how the absence or introduction of one can have a big impact.

 

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Jenna Grodziki

 

Jenna Grodzicki is the author of more than twenty fiction and nonfiction children’s books. Her books include Wild Style: Amazing Animal Adornments (Millbrook Press 2020) and I See Sea Food: Sea Creatures That Look Like Food (Millbrook Press 2019), the winner of the 2020 Connecticut Book Award in the Young Readers Nonfiction Category. Jenna lives near the beach with her husband and two children. In addition to being a writer, she is also a library media specialist at a K-4 school. To learn more, visit her website at www.jennagrodzicki.com.

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STEM Tuesday — Fungi — Author Interview with Sue Heavenrich & Alisha Gabriel

By on July 26, 2022   /   Fungi, STEM Tuesday  

Welcome to STEM Tuesday: Author Interview, a repeating feature for the last Tuesday of every month. Go Science-Tech-Engineering-Math!

Today, Andi Diehn interviews Sue Heavenrich and Alisha Gabriel, authors of Funki Fungi: 30 Activities for Exploring Molds, Mushrooms, Lichens, and More! Sue is a writer and educator who also hosts a book review blog at Archimedes Notebook. Alisha is an elementary music teacher and writer of fiction and nonfiction elementary through middle grade. They teamed up to bring the wonder and magic of fungi to kids through lots of hands-on STEM projects!

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AD: What inspired you to write about fungi?

Alisha: I’ve always found mushrooms and fungi fascinating! There are so many shapes and colors, and new varieties being discovered each year. Every time I turn around there’s something more to learn about fungi.  Funky Fungi book cover

Sue: My interest was piqued when I interviewed mycologist Kathie Hodge about an insect-infecting fungus for an article in a local newspaper. She took me on a fungus-looking walk, and showed me her workspace at her lab. That article never got published, but it made me think about fungi in a different way. A couple years later I met Alisha at a Highlights Foundation workshop on nonfiction writing. While out on a nature walk, we stopped to look at some interesting fungi and got to talking about potential book ideas. I ended up shelving my idea, so when Alisha asked if I wanted to collaborate on a book I said “sure.”

 

AD: There’s such a huge variety of fungi out there! How did you decide what information to include in your book and what had to be left out?

Alisha Gabriel examines fungi

Alisha finds some funky fungi!

Alisha: When the editor liked our pitch and asked to see a proposal, Sue and I jumped into the research feet first. First, we determined how to break up the chapters by topic. There are certain types of fungi that had to be included in each chapter and simply couldn’t be left out of the book! After that, it became much more difficult to narrow down.

 

AD: What do hands-on projects add to the reader’s experience of your book?

Alisha: This book is part of the Young Naturalists series from Chicago Review Press and all of the titles include 30 activities. The activities are important to help readers extend their learning, and to gain even more enjoyment, as they discover more about fungi!

Sue Heavenrich examines fungi

Sue gets hands-on with fungi!

Sue: As a science teacher and, later, homeschooling parent, I know that many kids learn best by doing. That’s what this book addresses. By design, it incorporates activities throughout the chapters as an integral part of exploring the topic. I mean, how can you read about mushrooms and not want to cut one open to see inside?

 

AD: Some of the projects focus on an art or language activity – why is the A in STEAM so important?

Alisha: Everyone learns in different ways. In education, there’s a huge push for STEM topics, but the artistic aspect of learning isn’t always valued as highly. Sketching a mushroom, or even creating their own, will help readers focus on the minute details. And writing a poem about a mushroom can help a young reader utilize vocabulary and scientific terms, while accurately describing it and its surroundings.

Sue: Art and language are part of science. Scientists in the field often make sketches in their field journals alongside their notes – whether it’s fossils or insects. I feel that drawing a mushroom or other fungus helps develop observation skills. So does writing haiku and poetry. I think there’s a lot in science that inspires art, and art that inspires science.

 

AD: You mention a lot of different people who work with fungi or have made discoveries about fungi. Why did you include these brief biographies in your book?

Sue: Science is a human endeavor. When I was a kid, I loved reading the stories about people who discovered things: Fleming and penicillin, Jenner and the smallpox vaccine. We want to show readers that people are still discovering things about fungi – and maybe some of those readers will see that they could be scientists, too.

 

AD: There are fungi that do beneficial work and fungi that do detrimental work. Why is it crucial to our understanding of fungi to learn about all aspects of the fungal world, not just the ones that help humans?

Alisha: It’s true that some fungi attack our crops or cause human diseases, but other kinds of fungi are used to counteract them. All types of fungi play a role in the environment, even those that are yet to be discovered.  It’s important to show readers the great diversity of fungi because we never know how or when new discoveries will be made. Alisha Gabriel photographs fungi

 

AD: If you could choose a state fungus, what would it be?

Alisha: In an interesting twist, I live in Texas, which is the most recent state to adopt a state fungus! It’s Chorioactis geaster, often called the Texas Star Mushroom, because it’s only found in some parts of Texas and Japan. At first this mushroom resembles a small cigar, but when the spores mature, they burst forth with a popping sound and the sides crack open into a star shape.

Sue: I personally like the Stinky Squid fungus – it looks like an orange squid or chicken claws reaching up through the soil. Its stinky smell attracts flies that will spread the spores. But there is actually a bill in the New York State legislature to name Peck’s milk-cap (Lactarius peckii) as our state mushroom. It’s a pretty orange gilled mushroom and not stinky in the least. And it is named for Charles Horton Peck, New York State botanist from 1867 to 1915, who described and named more than 2,700 species of fungi in North America.

Want more fun with fungi? Check out Funky Fungus Friday photo posts at Sue’s Facebook page!

And Alisha’s #FungiFriday posts on Twitter!

 

Sue Heavenrich writes about science for children and their families, from space to backyard ecology. Bees, flies, squirrel behavior—things she observes in her backyard and around her neighborhood—inspire her writing.

Alisha Gabriel is an elementary music teacher and adjunct professor who has written several fiction and nonfiction books for children, from preschool to middle graders.

Today’s host, And Diehn, is an editor and marketer at Nomad Press and has published 11 nonfiction books.

 

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