Most people have heard of Thomas Edison, Steve Jobs, and Mark Zuckerberg, but how about Daniel Hale Williams, Mae Jemison, and Mary Anderson? The world owes a lot to the unsung heroes of innovation, people who used their ideas to make the world a better place through advances in health, technology, food science, and discovery! In Innovators: The Stories Behind the People Who Shaped the World, readers ages 9 to 12 learn about many inventions, products, processes, and improvements people have made to create the reality in which we live. For example, in 1938, Ruth Wakefield added bits of chocolate to her cookies and invented Toll House chocolate chip cookies. In 2012, at the age of just 15, Jack Andraka developed a speedy and cheap method to detect pancreatic cancer. Being innovative means thinking creatively and critically to solve problems and find improvements-all it takes is an open mind, curiosity, and a desire to come up with ideas! Hands-on activities use the engineering design process and include creating a homemade version of Silly Putty and figuring out how to make a solar-powered oven. Links to primary sources, videos, and relevant websites offer a digital experience for deeper, independent learning and inspiration. Nomad Press books in the Build It Yourself series integrate content with participation. Common Core State Standards, the Next Generation Science Standards, and STEM Education all place project-based learning as key building blocks in education. Combining content with inquiry-based projects stimulates learning and makes it active and alive. Nomad's unique approach simultaneously grounds kids in factual knowledge while allowing them the space to be curious, creative, and critical thinkers.

That potato chip bag you tossed in your trash can this afternoon-where does it go when it leaves your house? Garbage: Follow the Path of Your Trash with Science Activities for Kids invites middle graders to investigate the world of trash! The average American produces more than four pounds of trash every day-multiply that by 300 million people and you've got a lot of garbage! Where does it go? How does it break down? What are the challenges of dealing with so much waste? What can we do decrease the amount of stuff we are throwing away? Garbage explores questions like these while encouraging kids to think about the choices they make that generate garbage in the first place. In this book, kids discover the science of garbology, the fascinating world of midden excavation, and learn about different rubbish warriors who are determined to save the planet from being overrun with trash. Readers learn ways to reduce, reuse, recycle, and rethink their actions by diving into critical-thinking activities designed to get kids looking at trash as a situation in need of a solution. While we all appreciate our garbage to be out of sight and out of mind, it's crucial to recognize the impact that human behavior has on the planet. Garbage includes hands-on STEM activities and critical thinking exercises to encourage readers to figure out ways to be part of the rubbish revolution. Fun facts, links to online primary sources and other supplemental material, and essential questions take readers on an exploration of the path of trash! Garbage is part of a set of four Build It Environmental Science books that explore the history and science of the planet and all that live on it through hands-on STEM activities and real-life environmental connections. Other titles in this series are Biodiversity, Planet Earth, and Biomes. Nomad Press books integrate content with participation. Common Core State Standards, the Next Generation Science Standards, and STEM Education all place project-based learning as key building blocks in education. Combining content with inquiry-based projects stimulates learning and makes it active and alive. Nomad's unique approach simultaneously grounds kids in factual knowledge while allowing them the space to be curious, creative, and critical thinkers.

What would your life be like if you were a Jewish person living in Nazi Germany in 1940? You might be forced to leave your home with only what you and your family could carry. You might even be killed by members of the Nazi party. The Holocaust is a grim period in human history. More than 11 million people, including 6 million Jewish people, died at the hands of the Nazis. In The Holocaust: Racism and Genocide in World War II, readers ages 12 to 15 learn about the long history of anti-Semitism, the rise of Adolf Hitler and the Nazi party, the increasing persecution of Jewish people and other populations, and the events of "The Final Solution," the attempt to exterminate an entire race of people through industrialized death camps. Projects such as writing letters in the voices of teenagers of different races who lived in the 1930s help infuse the content with realism and the eternal capacity for hope. In-depth investigations of primary sources from the period allow readers to engage in further, independent study of the times. Additional materials include links to online primary sources, a glossary, a list of current reference works, and Internet resources. Nomad Press books in the Inquire & Investigate series integrate content with participation, encouraging older readers to engage in student-directed learning as opposed to teacher-guided instruction. This student-centered approach provides readers with the tools they need to become inquiry-based learners. Common Core State Standards, the Next Generation Science Standards, and STEM Education all place project-based learning as key building blocks in education. Combining content with inquiry-based projects stimulates learning and makes it active and alive. Consistent with our other series, all of the activities in the books in the Inquire & Investigate series are hands-on, challenging readers to develop and test their own hypotheses, ask their own questions, and formulate their own solutions. In the process, readers learn how to analyze, evaluate, and present the data they collect. As informational texts our books provide key ideas and details from which readers can work out their own inferences. Nomad's unique approach simultaneously grounds kids in factual knowledge while allowing them the space to be curious, creative, and critical thinkers. Soon they'll be thinking like scientists by questioning things around them and considering new approaches.

Explorers of the New World: Discover the Golden Age of Exploration offers a fascinating look at the explorers and their voyages during the Age of Exploration and Discovery. Readers ages 9-12 can delve into the expeditions of Vasco da Gama, Christopher Columbus, Ferdinand Magellan, John Cabot, Hernan Cortes, and more. Using common household items and minimal supervision, kids enjoy 22 hands-on activities to help them learn about these legendary explorers and their voyages. This age group will see how the adventures of a few people in the 1400s through the 1600s changed world history. Projects include creating and using a compass, learning to tie a sailor's knot, and baking and eating sea biscuits.
Along with detailed, step-by-step instructions for each project, Explorers of the New World includes biographical sidebars, engaging illustrations, interesting facts, and vocabulary words that allow kids to experience this era in a fun, interactive way.

What's the difference between a desert and a rain forest? A tundra and a coniferous forest? These are all examples of biomes, and they are all home to plants and animals that are uniquely adapted to live in those environments! In Biomes: Discover the Earth's Ecosystems with Science Activities for Kids, middle school kids journey across the planet and visit the world's nine terrestrial and aquatic biomes to learn about the distinctive climates, geologies, resources, and organisms that can be found there. Kids will wander through forests, sizzle in deserts, shiver in the tundra, slog through marshy waters, and plunge beneath the seas to explore coral reefs. Along the way, readers will encounter the flora and fauna adapted for survival in each unique climate zone. They'll learn about gnarly krumholz trees, bioluminescent sea creatures, camouflage, carnivorous plants, and blubbery marine critters. The health and wellbeing of the world's biomes are an essential part of the balance of the planet as a whole. Biomes and their inhabitants around the world are being threatened by climate change and human behavior. In Biomes, kids will learn how to take steps toward positive change and keep the environment healthy and functioning in a way that best supports sustainable life on Earth! Biomes includes hands-on STEM activities and critical thinking exercises to encourage readers to consider threats to the environment and figure out ways to be part of the solution. Fun facts, links to online primary sources and other supplemental material, and essential questions take readers on an exploration of the biomes of Earth. Biomes is part of a set of four Build It Environmental Science books that explore the history and science of the planet and all that live on it through hands-on STEM activities and real-life environmental connections. Other titles in this series are Planet Earth, Garbage, and Biodiversity. Nomad Press books integrate content with participation. Common Core State Standards, the Next Generation Science Standards, and STEM Education all place project-based learning as key building blocks in education. Combining content with inquiry-based projects stimulates learning and makes it active and alive. Nomad's unique approach simultaneously grounds kids in factual knowledge while allowing them the space to be curious, creative, and critical thinkers.

Explorers of the New World: Discover the Golden Age of Exploration offers a fascinating look at the explorers and their voyages during the Age of Exploration and Discovery. Readers ages 9-12 can delve into the expeditions of Vasco da Gama, Christopher Columbus, Ferdinand Magellan, John Cabot, Hernan Cortes, and more. Using common household items and minimal supervision, kids enjoy 22 hands-on activities to help them learn about these legendary explorers and their voyages. This age group will see how the adventures of a few people in the 1400s through the 1600s changed world history. Projects include creating and using a compass, learning to tie a sailor's knot, and baking and eating sea biscuits.
Along with detailed, step-by-step instructions for each project, Explorers of the New World includes biographical sidebars, engaging illustrations, interesting facts, and vocabulary words that allow kids to experience this era in a fun, interactive way.

The environment is all around us, whether you live in a city, suburb, or the country. Sometimes, it's easy to ignore. But forgetting about the environment isn't an option if we want our planet to be healthy! Planet Earth: Finding Balance on the Blue Marble with Environmental Science Activities for Kids introduces middle grade readers to all the parts of the natural world, including the oceans, the atmosphere, the earth, and everything in between. In this book, kids master ecology basics, such as the food web and animal habitats, while also learning about environmental issues such as wind and solar power, endangered species, climate change, and more. Stories about new innovations in fields such as recycling, agriculture, and energy production galvanize readers to turn their creative thinking skills to their own inventions. Planet Earth includes hands-on STEM activities and critical thinking exercises to encourage readers to discover connections among their observations of their immediate environment and the larger world around them. Fun facts, links to online primary sources and other supplemental material, and essential questions encourage readers to ask themselves what they could do differently to make the world a healthier place. Planet Earth is part of a set of four Build It Environmental Science books that explore the history and science of the planet and all that live on it through hands-on STEM activities and real-life environmental connections. Other titles in this series are Biodiversity, Garbage, and Biomes. Nomad Press books integrate content with participation. Common Core State Standards, the Next Generation Science Standards, and STEM Education all place project-based learning as key building blocks in education. Combining content with inquiry-based projects stimulates learning and makes it active and alive. Nomad's unique approach simultaneously grounds kids in factual knowledge while allowing them the space to be curious, creative, and critical thinkers.

What are the forces behind ballistics? Why do rocks and rockets soar through the air in an arch?

The game is on the line. Suddenly, you hear the crack of a bat and the roar of crowd. Where will the ball land? How far will it travel? Is it a home run?

You might think that hitting a home run or nailing a three-pointer is just luck, but there are many forces at work that determine if you’ve made a game-winning shot or the final out. If you’ve ever kicked a ball, thrown a rock, or even played Angry Birds, you’ve experimented with the forces behind ballistics.

In Projectile Science: The Physics Behind Kicking a Field Goal and Launching a Rocket with Science Activities for Kids, kids ages 10 to 15 learn why projectiles follow the paths they do and what factors influence those paths. Readers who are fascinated with potato cannons, slingshots, and rocketry will love taking that next step and applying what they learn about the laws of physics to the science of figuring out where to aim.

Math is the language you use to understand the science of ballistics. In this book, readers will learn about the forces that act on the projectiles and how to calculate those forces to make educated predictions about where their homemade rockets and other projectiles will land. Safe, hands-on STEM activities using materials that are easy to acquire are a terrific way to foster real-life learning about ballistics. Kids will perform Galileo's famous test for gravity, create clinometers to measure height and distance, and build a machine that can throw curve balls.

Essential questions that promote critical examination of the science, primary sources, online videos, and science-minded engineering activities let readers have a blast learning about the physics of ballistics!

When natural disasters happen they grab headlines around the world. People, creatures, and the environment are all impacted when nature gets out of control. Natural disasters can be upsetting to live through, but scientists today better understand their causes and how we can protect ourselves and others. Natural Disasters: Investigate Earth's Most Destructive Forces with 25 Projects teaches readers about some of the natural disasters throughout history, what caused them, their impact on civilizations, and how people today cope with natural disasters. Readers of this book will make their own shake tables, create a cake batter lava flow, invent a wind tunnel, and experiment with avalanches. These hands-on activities engage readers and add depth to the text while ensuring that the learning is made lasting and fun.

That potato chip bag you tossed in your trash can this afternoon-where does it go when it leaves your house? Garbage: Follow the Path of Your Trash with Science Activities for Kids invites middle graders to investigate the world of trash! The average American produces more than four pounds of trash every day-multiply that by 300 million people and you've got a lot of garbage! Where does it go? How does it break down? What are the challenges of dealing with so much waste? What can we do decrease the amount of stuff we are throwing away? Garbage explores questions like these while encouraging kids to think about the choices they make that generate garbage in the first place. In this book, kids discover the science of garbology, the fascinating world of midden excavation, and learn about different rubbish warriors who are determined to save the planet from being overrun with trash. Readers learn ways to reduce, reuse, recycle, and rethink their actions by diving into critical-thinking activities designed to get kids looking at trash as a situation in need of a solution. While we all appreciate our garbage to be out of sight and out of mind, it's crucial to recognize the impact that human behavior has on the planet. Garbage includes hands-on STEM activities and critical thinking exercises to encourage readers to figure out ways to be part of the rubbish revolution. Fun facts, links to online primary sources and other supplemental material, and essential questions take readers on an exploration of the path of trash! Garbage is part of a set of four Build It Environmental Science books that explore the history and science of the planet and all that live on it through hands-on STEM activities and real-life environmental connections. Other titles in this series are Biodiversity, Planet Earth, and Biomes. Nomad Press books integrate content with participation. Common Core State Standards, the Next Generation Science Standards, and STEM Education all place project-based learning as key building blocks in education. Combining content with inquiry-based projects stimulates learning and makes it active and alive. Nomad's unique approach simultaneously grounds kids in factual knowledge while allowing them the space to be curious, creative, and critical thinkers.