Great Science Project Books at the Book Fair!

I was at school library previewing the book fair. There are lots of really great science books, including some fantastic Science Project books and kits. Here are some ones I got to look at:

Last Minute Science Fair Projects by Sudipta Bardhan-Quallen had some wonderful project ideas that do not take too much time. I plan to get a copy of this book myself. Word of warning: Procrastinators of the purest form, who think that "last minute" means the night before, will find that some of the coolest projects in this book take a few days or weeks.

Beetles and Stinkbugs, both by Mary Packard combined readability with a surprising level of depth of information. Carol Schwartz did a good job putting together the illustrations for this book. Each book comes with a set of trading cards and an insect specimen in a plastic box. I think this would be good for a younger student who is interested in creepy-crawlies.

I liked the Rock and Mineral eguide by John Farndon. It had beautiful pictures to describe the different types of minerals, and a good description of the geological processes which formed each type of rock. If your child is interested in rock collecting, this might be a good book.

There were also some good kits. Steve Spangler Science has put out Great Geysers and PH Power. These kits come with all the materials and equipment to perform several experiments. They would be good for a birthday present, or as an emergency last-minute science project.

I also saw a kit with a book about bones and a small model skeleton which could be assembled as a demonstration, a magnet kit, a rocket kit, and a great white shark model. All of these could be demonstration-type science fair projects.

So make sure you stop by the Book Fair in the School Library!