Scien-Trickery: Riddles in Science [Paperback]

J. Patrick Lewis (Author), Frank Remkiewicz (Illustrator)

Book Description

Publication Date: April 1, 2007 | Age Level: 6 and up | Grade Level: 1 and up

These clever riddle-rhymes cover everything from dinosaurs to gravity. The illustrations incorporate clues about the riddles, and the answers themselves are subtly included for anyone who needs a little extra help.
     Endnotes expand on Albert Einstein, the solar system, and other fascinating scientific topics.

Editorial Reviews

From School Library Journal

Grade 1-3-These amusing rhyming-verse riddles touch on a variety of science topics and concepts. The jokes are lively, entertaining, and moderately challenging, with answers provided on the bottoms of the pages. Lewis includes a page of notes for readers who are driven to find more information about the topics. The colorful and detailed cartoon illustrations call to mind the work of Michael Martchenko. The riddles are printed on what is designed to look like loose-leaf sheets that are then incorporated into the larger pictures. The text and illustrations reinforce the atmosphere of learning while having fun, and the book works well as a read-aloud and for independent reading.-Corrina Austin, Locke's Public School, St. Thomas, Ontario, Canada
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved. --This text refers to the Hardcover edition.

From Booklist

Gr. 1-4. Lewis, author of Arithme-Tickle (2002), offers a new collection of 18 riddles in verse, all inspired by science. Remkiewicz adds energetic art with zippy colors and accessible wit. The large, colorful illustrations often suggest the riddles' answers. Indeed, some of the verses would be difficult to solve without the visual hints. The rhyme "I begin with N-E, / and I'm one of nine / I end with N-E, / and I'm eighth in line" becomes meaningful when accompanied by a picture of children, a dog, and a cat costumed as the nine planets. Most of the pictures give good, accurate clues to what is going on in the text. A few of the rhymes require real thought and a little knowledge to solve, but many are easy. Though mostly for fun, this attractive book has a place in classrooms where the study of science involves imagination and deduction as well as rote learning. Carolyn Phelan
Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved --This text refers to the Hardcover edition.

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Reading level: Ages 6 and up
  
• Paperback: 32 pages
• Publisher: Sandpiper (April 1, 2007)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0152058494
• ISBN-13: 978-0152058494
• Product Dimensions: 9.7 x 7.5 x 0.1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 4.8 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (1 customer review)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #990,016 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
  • #58 in Books > 4-for-3 Books > Children's Books > Sports & Activities > Games > Questions & Answers
  • #91 in Books > 4-for-3 Books > Children's Books > Sports & Activities > Humor > Jokes & Riddles

More About the Author

After nearly three decades as a professor of economics, J. Patrick Lewis turned to poetry. He is the author of more than 75 children's books including A Hippopotamusn't (1990), BoshBlobberBosh (1998), Please Bury Me in the Library (2004), First Dog (2009), Spot the Plot (2009), and The House (2009).

He has recently been named the third U.S. Children's Poet Laureate (2011-2013) by the Poetry Foundation.

His books have been published by Creative Editions, Knopf, Atheneum, Dial, Harcourt, Little, Brown, National Geographic, Chronicle Books, Scholastic, Candlewick, Schwartz & Wade, Holiday House, Sleeping Bear Press, Wordsong/Boyds Mills Press, Dawn Publications, and others. Gulls Hold Up the Sky, his first book of adult poems, was published by Laughing Fire Press (2010).

Pat's children's poems have also appeared in CRICKET (26 times), SPIDER, LADYBUG, CICADA, ODYSSEY, RANGER RICK, HIGHLIGHTS FOR CHILDREN, Ms. Magazine, YOUR BIG BACKYARD, CREATIVE CLASSROOM, STORYTIME, STORYWORKS, CHICKADEE, AHOY, LANGUAGE ARTS, JOURNAL OF CHILDREN'S LITERATURE, BOOKBIRD, READING TODAY and over 100 anthologies. He wrote the 1992 National Children's Book Week poem, printed on one million bookmarks and distributed nationally.

Lewis has received numerous awards from the American Library Association, the Society of Children's Book Writers and Illustrators, and others. He was the recipient of the 2010-11 National Council of Teachers of English (NCTE) Excellence in Children's Poetry Award, presented every two years.

WHERE I'LL BE NEXT--Schools, Bookstores, Conferences

October 14-16, 2011 Poetry Foundation--TED Lecture Chicago, Illiniois
October 23-25, 2011 NY State Reading Assn. Rye Brook, New York
October 28-31, 2011 Keystone State Reading Assn. Lancaster, Pennsylvania
November 5, 2011 Buckeye Book Fair Wooster, Ohio
November 8, 2011 Ashland University Ashland, Ohio
November 15-16, 2011 St. Joseph's College Rensselaer, Indiana
November 17-20, 2011 NCTE Convention Chicago, Illinois
December 1, 2010 Hillview Elementary Newark, Ohio
December 8, 2011 West Chester University (Dan Darigan) West Chester, PA
January 18, 2012 Richard Avenue Elementary Grove City, Ohio
January 24, 2012 Fouse Elementary Westerville, Ohio
March 1-3, 2012 Charlotte Huck Ch. Lit. Conference Redlands, California
April 3-5, 2012 Holland Hall Primary Tulsa, Oklahoma
April 12, 2012 Washington-Centerville Public Library Centerville, Ohio
April 13, 2012 Stingley Elementary Centerville, Ohio
April 17-25, 2012 Anglo-American School Moscow, Russia
April 29-May 2, 2012 IRA Convention Chicago, Illinois
May 10, 2012 Wynford Elementary Bucyrus, Ohio
March 22, 2013 OCTELA Conference Columbus, Ohio

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

5.0 out of 5 stars excellant picture book making learning fun!, February 20, 2010

By 

MomofTwo (TX) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Scien-Trickery: Riddles in Science (Hardcover)

While some of the ideas/rhymes were a bit to advanced for my toddler she and I quite enjoyed most of the rhymes in this book, each rhyme describes something related to science, guess from the clues, with the answer upside down at the bottom of each poem. It covers teachings on: the Galapagos Islands, laser beams, germs, Albert Einstein, magnets, oxygen, gravity, electricity, planets, maps, humidity, numbers,constellations, decibels, oceans, dinosaurs, properties of rust and the moon. None of the text is wordy or complicated. Each poem rhymes and some only span a few words, making it an easy read for children of all ages. The very last page of the book has more facts covering each of the topics in the rhymes. A cute read and a good one to have.