Allcroft, Britt.
Thomas that the Magic Railroad: Little Engines Can Do Big Things.
New York: Random House Children’s Books, 2002.
- Thomas is a popular train engine and appears in many books besides this one. This is an excellent book to use when introducing other engines.
Atkins, Jeannine.
Aani and The Tree Huggers
. New York, NY: Lee & Low Books, 1995.
- Anni is a girl from India who throughout this story learns the importance of trees.
Berenstain, Stan and Jan Berenstain.
The Berenstain Bears’ Big Book of Science and Nature.
NY: Random House, 1997.
- This book centers around the Berenstain Bears as they learn about science and nature.
Berger, M.
Energy From the Sun. Let’s-Read-and-Find-Out Science Books
, NY: Harper and Row, 1976.
- Although the information and vocabulary in this book may be too advanced for kindergarteners, the pictures are good and can offer some research for older students if this unit is adapted for them.
Bingham, Caroline.
The Big Book of Things That Go
. New York, NY: Dorling Kindersley Publishing Inc. 1994.
- There are over 125 color photographs of vehicles that most kindergarteners will find especially stimulating. This book can be used to show how most vehicles have engines.
Bourgeois, Paulette, Catherine Ross & Susan Wallace.
The Amazing Milk Book.
NJ: Pearson Addison Wesley, 1991.
- This book contains activities for teachers and parents to help teach the importance of dairy in our lives. It also explains how milk gets from a cow to our tables.
Bruce, Lisa.
Engines, Engines
. London: Bloomsbury, 2000.
- A colorful counting book that uses trains to teach counting and introduces students to cultural highlights of India. A good book for pre-school to kindergarten students.
Challoner, Jack.
Energy
. New York, NY: Dorling Kindersley Publishing Inc., 2002.
- This book can introduce a second or third grader to many ideas about energy. With adult assistance they can explore and experiment and answer questions such as why matches burn, why recycling makes the most of energy, how waterwheels work, how efficient light bulbs save electricity, and how geothermal energy creates hot water. Pictures and diagrams are good for kindergarten level but more useful if this unit is adapted for higher grades.
Cherry, L.
The Great Kapok Tree.
San Diego, NY, London: Harcourt Brace and Company, 1990.
- This is a story about a man who tries to chop down a tree in the Amazon rainforest. While the man sleeps, animals of the tree and the forest whisper to him the importance of trees in their habitat. This story could be used to teach the students about conservation.
Dineen, Jaqueline.
Energy From Sun, Wind and Tide
. Englewood, Colorado: Teacher Ideas Press, 1996.
- This book teaches about three renewable energy sources with pictures that could be a useful for a teacher to help demonstrate those energy sources. The reading level is above kindergarten but can still be used for it’s pictures.
Dr. Seuss.
The Lorax.
NY: Random House, 1971.
- The Lorax is a story about a factory that comes to town and mass produces Thneeds, at the expense of the environment. This books show what can happen if the environment if it is stripped of it’s natural resources (in a Dr. Seuss kind of way!)
Fardon, John.
What Happens When…
? New York, Ny: Scholastic Inc., 1996.
- Every two pages on this book answers a questions like, “what happens when you mail a letter or order a pizza. This book is included because it contains information about how food is grown, how electricity works and what happens to our garbage.
Gibbons, G.
Recycle! A Handbook for Kids.
Boston, New York, Toronto: Little, Brown and Co, 1996.
- Designed to give children good ideas for recycling and responsibility, this book can also provide good ideas for teachers to create a recycling program with their students.
Hope Fine, Edith.
Under the Lemon Moon.
New York, NY: Lee & Low Books, 1996.
- A Mexican girl learns that someone has been stealing lemons from her lemon tree. While searching for the culprit, she learns that trees provide us with food and that needs to shared with everyone. This is a good book to discuss nutrition, plants, and responsibility with the students.
Lafferty, Peter.
Force and Motion
. New York, NY: Dorling Kindersley Publishing Inc. 2000.
- More textbook like, this book offers many color photographs and diagrams that can appeal to a kindergarten student with the assistance of an adult. A better book for higher grades of the unit is adapted so.
Nikola-Lisa, W.
Summer Sun Risin’
. New York, NY: Lee & Low Books, 2002.
- This book shows a day on a farm as the reader follows an African – American boy throughout his day. This book illustrates the important of the sun and it’s role in everything we do.
McGuire, Richard.
Night Becomes Day.
New York, NY : Penguin USA, 1994.
- This book tells the reader about the cycle of the sun and the moon. It is a good book to show how the sun rotates everyday and is an important presence in our lives.
Parker, Steve.
Brain Surgery for Beginners and Other Major Operations for Minors
. New York, NY: Scholastic Inc, 1993.
- A human anatomy book that has great pictures and illustrations of the functions of the human body and the role the brain plays. The pictures in this book are appropriate for kindergarten, and older students can still be interested in it’s contents.
Piper, Watty.
The Little Engine That Could
. New York, NY: Grosset & Dunlap, 1976.
- A classic story about how perseverance can overcome any obstacle. The Little Engine overcame a big challenge and managed to triumph! This is also another good story to show engines on trains.
Scarry, Richard
Cars and Trucks and Things That Go.
New York, NY: Golden Books. 1974.
- This book can serve as a good vocabulary builder for both English Language Learners and those who are fluent in English. This book has many illustrations that a kindergartener can independently explore.
Strickland, Paul.
All About Special Engines
. North America: Gareth Stevens, 1990.
- This book is another good vocabulary builder as it shows different trucks that serve special function like a cement mixer or a garbage truck.
Walker, Richard (2003)
Human Body Encyclopedia
. Dorling Kindersley Publishing Inc. New York, NY
- This reference book for kindergartners introduces human biology in a way that is accessible to an early reader.
Williams, Brian, and Brenda Williams.
The Random House Book of 1001 Wonders Of Science.
London: Grisewood & Dempsey Ltd. 1990.
- Although this book is written for an older audience, it still has concise and brief paragraphs that teacher can paraphrase or read to the students to clarify ideas or concept student may have about engines, energy or the human body.
