Let's Try It Out in the Water [Hardcover]

Seymour Simon (Author), Nicole Fauteux (Author), Doug Cushman (Illustrator)

Book Description

Series: Let's Try It Out

Why do some things float and others sink?
Does a small, wide container hold more water than a tall, thin one?
How can you make a toy boat that floats sink to the bottom of a bathtub?

Let's Try It Out

Let's Try It Out in the Water contains fun-filled activities that encourage young children to use familiar and safe objects found in their homes or classrooms to make observations about the world around them. Whether guessing how much water fills up a bathtub, or pretending to be searching for sunken treasure, children will be entertained while they begin to learn important and basic science concepts.

In this innovative new series for young children, acclaimed science writer Seymour Simon and Nicole Fauteux encourage children to think about the world around them by engaging kids in fun and simple activities. Each book contains tips for parents and caregivers on how to create positive learning experiences for even the littlest of scientists.

Charming and lively illustrations by New York Times best-selling illustrator, Doug Cushman, ensures that the Let's Try It Out series is as much fun to look at as it is to try out!

Editorial Reviews

From School Library Journal

PreSchool-Grade 2-These series titles offer fun-filled activities to use as introductions to basic scientific principles. Each book contains notes to parents, teachers, and child-care providers about the types of activities incorporated, readily available materials needed, and working with children to help them make observations with their "bodies and senses." Typically, the titles ask readers to imagine a particular scene, such as being at the beach or outside on a windy day. A series of questions then follows along with some clearly written information and suggestions for simple experiments. For instance, Air challenges readers to see how long they can keep a balloon moving by blowing underneath it. In Water, after imagining they are at the ocean and spot a ship, children are encouraged to make a boat out of foil and place objects on it that previously did not float and report their observations. Cheerful drawings of ethnically diverse youngsters complement the texts by effectively illustrating the concepts and activities. These titles for the youngest scientists will work well in conjunction with the "Let's-Read-and-Find-Out Science" series (HarperCollins).
Lisa Gangemi Krapp, Middle Country Public Library, Centereach, NY
Copyright 2001 Reed Business Information, Inc.

From Booklist

Reviewed with Seymour Simon and Nicloe Fauteux's Let's Try It Out in the Air.

Ages 4-9. Why does a small pebble sink in water while a big ship can float? What makes a balloon fly? Why do we smell cookies baking in the oven? How does the stink from a passing garbage truck reach us? The answers are complicated, but these playful picture books do a great job of using hands-on activities in daily life to explain basic science to young children. The book about water is full of splashing fun, teaching the concept of buoyancy by showing kids emptying containers into the sink, sailing boats in a pool, wading in the ocean. The book about air is more difficult, but in both books the writers include helpful information for adults about how to teach the science as an active part of the child's ordinary experience. The exuberant, colorful pictures add to the fun. The same cast of four children appears in both books (with a dog, a mischievous cat, and the occasional adult), exploring their world, asking questions, and then discovering astonishing patterns about how things work. REVWR
Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Hardcover: 32 pages
• Publisher: Simon & Schuster Children's Publishing (November 1, 2001)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0689829191
• ISBN-13: 978-0689829192
• Product Dimensions: 11.3 x 8.8 x 0.5 inches
• Shipping Weight: 14.6 ounces
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,506,143 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Seymour Simon, whom the NY Times called "the dean of [children's science] writers," is the author of more than 250 highly acclaimed science books (many of which have been named Outstanding Science Trade Books for Children by the National Science Teachers Association). His free, educational children's app, SCIENCE FUN TO GO, debuted in the Top 10 of all free children's apps in the Amazon App store, and features in app purchase of original Seymour Simon eBooks, as well as a multitude of free content.

Seymour Simon uses his website, SeymourSimon.com, to provide free downloads of a wealth of materials for educators, homeschoolers and parents to use with his books, including 4-page Teacher Guides for all 26 of his Collins/Smithsonian photo essay books. The site provides multiple resources for kids writing book reports or wanting to explore the online Science Dictionary, and also features the Seymour Science blog highlighting current science news. Educators and families are encouraged to sign up to receive the monthly newsletter from SeymourSimon.com to stay abreast of the latest materials that Seymour Simon is introducing to enrich the reading experience.

He taught science and creative writing in elementary and secondary schools and was chair of the science department at a junior high school in the New York City public school system before leaving to become a full-time writer. "I haven't really given up teaching," he says, "and I suppose I never will, not as long as I keep writing and talking to kids around the country and the world."

Seymour Simon is also a creator and the author of a series of 3D books and a series of Glow-in-the-Dark Books for Scholastic Book Clubs, a series of leveled SEEMORE READERS for Chronicle Books, and the EINSTEIN ANDERSON, SCIENCE DETECTIVE series of fiction books. His books encourage children to enjoy the world around them through learning and discovery, and by making science fun. He has introduced tens of millions of children to a staggering array of subjects; one prominent science education specialist described Simon's books as "extraordinary examples of expository prose."

Seymour Simon has been honored with many awards for his work, including the American Association for the Advancement of Science/Subaru Lifetime Achievement Award for his lasting contribution to children's science literature; the New York State Knickerbocker Award for Juvenile Literature; the Hope S. Dean Memorial Award from the Boston Public Library for his contribution to children's science literature; The Washington Post/Children's Book Guild Award for Non-fiction; the Jeremiah Ludington Award for his outstanding contribution to children's nonfiction; the Empire State Award for excellence in literature for young people; and the Lifetime Achievement Award from the National Forum on Children's Science Books.

In a recent interview Simon was asked if he ever thinks of retiring. "I seem to be working faster and harder than ever. I absolutely don't feel any urge to sit back and look at what I've done. The only things that I'm thinking about are things I'd like to do in the future. I'm planning and doing and continuing to write. It's what I love to do. I remember a story about an anthropologist going to talk to a tribe and he asked them what was their word for "work." Their response was they have no word for work. Everybody does the things that they do in their life. I love that response. I don't differentiate between work and play. Everything I do is something that I enjoy doing - the writing, the research and everything else."

Seymour Simon writes and photographs nature from his hilltop home in Columbia County in upstate New York. You can follow his daily nature walks and see his photographs from the field on Twitter (@seymoursimon) or on his Facebook group page. He also regularly hosts Q&As and sponsors book giveaways on GoodReads.