New Releases by Sally M. Walker

Bits of rock, plants, and living creatures—what are they all ingredients for? An award-winning nonfiction author offers the youngest explorers a closer look at nature’s wonders in action. Rocks crumble, battered by ice, wind, and water. Plants wilt, trees fall, and old bones, fins, and feathers break apart. What then? Step by step, Sally M. Walker’s simple narration lets the youngest soil scientists learn how dirt is created, becoming home to animals as well as conduits for nutrients that help to continue the life-giving cycle. Kim Smith’s inviting landscapes capture a range of forest flora and fauna, from mushrooms to pinecones, foxes to chipmunks, birds to snails. A note to parents suggests bringing the learning to life by encouraging questions and observations of the natural world.

River flowing, where’s it going? In the launch of her first board-book series, an award-winning nonfiction author brings the youngest explorers close to nature’s wonders in action. Water springs from the ground, creeks gurgle downhill, snow and rain make streams bigger, and then you have a river. But where does that river go? Step by step, Sally M. Walker’s simple, scientifically accurate narration lets the youngest hydrologists follow water’s movement from high land to the ocean, changing from a trickle to a torrent along the way. At each juncture comes the refrain: where’s it going? Kim Smith’s lush landscapes capture the water in motion and fauna nearby, from wading moose to leaping fish. A note to parents suggests bringing the learning to life by encouraging questions and observations of the natural world.

Rolling boulders here and there . . . In the launch of her first board-book series, an award-winning nonfiction author brings the youngest explorers close to nature’s wonders in action. Mighty mountains reach up high, until craggy cliffs tumble and boulders settle everywhere. But how do big, jagged rocks turn into the soft sand we love at the beach? Step by step, Sally M. Walker’s simple, scientifically accurate narration lets the youngest geologists learn how rocks weather over time, transforming from cobbles to pebbles to the tiniest grains of sand. Kim Smith’s lush landscapes capture a wide range of fauna over geologic time, from dinosaurs and mammoths to bunnies and gulls. A note to parents suggests bringing the learning to life by encouraging questions and observations of the natural world.

This companion to Earth Verse: Haiku from the Ground Up soars into space with a perfect fusion of poetry and science, accompanied by breathtaking illustrations. one minuscule speck grows into the universe a mind-boggling birth This stunning meeting of poetic form and luminous artwork transports us out of the bounds of Earth, past a lunar eclipse, beyond the orbiting planets, and into glowing galaxies and twinkling constellations. Sally M. Walker uses her award-winning skill as a writer of nonfiction to explore space through clever haiku, accompanied by narrative explanations of wonders that are out of this world. Illustrator Matthew Trueman imagines the explosive Big Bang and awe-inspiring meteor showers in spectacular views that no telescope could offer. Comprehensive, well-researched back matter further explores such topics as constellations and astronomers, the birth of the universe, stars, the solar system, moons and eclipses, asteroids, meteors, and comets, as well as a glossary of terms, a bibliography, and online resources for readers with an eye to what lies beyond Earth.

Rocks can be made of many different minerals. By looking at rocks closely, we can tell where they were formed and what conditions they were created in. How do we know these things? And how do we tell different types of rocks apart? Learn about ways to research rocks and what they can teach us about our world.

Audisee® eBooks with Audio combine professional narration and text highlighting for an engaging read aloud experience! The sun, lightbulbs, and flickering fires all bring light to our world. But have you ever watched light rays moving? Or seen how light rays reflect off objects? Now you can! Explore light with the fun experiments you''ll find in this book. As part of the Searchlight BooksTM collection, this series sheds light on a key science question―How Does Energy Work? Hands-on experiments, interesting photos, and useful diagrams will help you find the answer!

Solids, liquids, and gases are the three states of matter. But have you ever made matter change from one state to another? Or seen how even invisible matter takes up space? Now you can! Explore matter with the fun experiments you''ll find in this book. As part of the Searchlight BooksTM collection, this series sheds light on a key science question―How Does Energy Work? Hands-on experiments, interesting photos, and useful diagrams will help you find the answer!

Audisee® eBooks with Audio combine professional narration and text highlighting for an engaging read aloud experience! The sun, furnaces, and ovens all make heat. But have you ever watched matter expand when it is heated? Or seen how different kinds of matter conduct heat? Now you can! Explore heat with the fun experiments you''ll find in this book. As part of the Searchlight BooksTM collection, this series sheds light on a key science question―How Does Energy Work? Hands-on experiments, interesting photos, and useful diagrams will help you find the answer!

Audisee® eBooks with Audio combine professional narration and text highlighting for an engaging read aloud experience! What do hammers, wheelbarrows, and brooms have in common? All of them are levers! Levers are simple machines. They help us to do jobs more easily. But don''t take our word for it. Put levers to the test with the fun experiments you''ll find in this book. As part of the Searchlight BooksTM collection, this series sheds light on a key science question―How Do Simple Machines Work? Hands-on experiments, interesting photos, and useful diagrams will help you find the answer!

Audisee® eBooks with Audio combine professional narration and text highlighting for an engaging read aloud experience! You know that magnets hold pictures on a refrigerator. But have you ever found a magnet''s north pole? Or turned an ordinary paper clip into a magnet? Now you can! Explore magnetism with the fun experiments you''ll find in this book. As part of the Searchlight BooksTM collection, this series sheds light on a key science question―How Does Energy Work? Hands-on experiments, interesting photos, and useful diagrams will help you find the answer!

The true story of the real bear who inspired Winnie-the-Pooh

YALSA Excellence in Nonfiction for Young Adults Finalist One of the Best Books of the Year: Chicago Public Library, School Library Journal, Science Books & Films Bright white teeth. Straight leg bones. Awkwardly contorted arm bones. On a hot summer day in 2005, Dr. Douglas Owsley of the Smithsonian Institution peered into an excavated grave, carefully examining the fragile skeleton that had been buried there for four hundred years. "He was about fifteen years old when he died. And he was European," Owsley concluded. But how did he know? Just as forensic scientists use their knowledge of human remains to help solve crimes, they use similar skills to solve the mysteries of the long-ago past. Join author Sally M. Walker as she works alongside the scientists investigating colonial-era graves near Jamestown, Virginia, as well as other sites in Maryland. As you follow their investigations, she''ll introduce you to what scientists believe are the lives of a teenage boy, a ship''s captain, an indentured servant, a colonial official and his family, and an enslaved African girl. All are reaching beyond the grave to tell us their stories, which are written in bone.

Did witches always ride brooms? No! In fact, long, long ago, witches crept about on tiptoe. On Halloween, they would scare children and cast spells . . . but always from the ground. No witch ever thought of flying—no witch until Druscilla. Druscilla was an old witch with the loudest, creakiest knees anyone had ever heard. But she was determined not to let anything spoil her element of surprise. One Halloween, after many failed attempts at sneaking up on unsuspecting villagers, Druscilla made a discovery that changed the course of witch history.

Fossils give us a window to the past. Water, sediments, and pressure work together over time to preserve the shape of things that lived long ago. Studying these ancient plants and animals tells us more about our own existence. Have you ever searched for fossils? Unearth some in this book.

On July 28, 1996, two young men stumbled upon human bones in the shallow water along the shore of the Columbia River near Kennewick, Washington. Was this an unsolved murder? The remnants of some settler''s or Native American''s unmarked grave? What was the story behind this skeleton? Within weeks, scientific testing yielded astonishing news: the bones were more than 9,000 years old! The skeleton instantly escalated from interesting to extraordinary. He was an individual who could provide firsthand evidence about the arrival of humans in North America. The bones found scattered in the mud acquired a name: Kennewick Man. Authors Sally M. Walker and Douglas W. Owsley take you through the painstaking process of how scientists determined who Kennewick Man was and what his life was like. New research, never-before-seen photos of Kennewick Man''s remains, and a lifelike facial reconstruction will introduce you to one of North America''s earliest residents. But the story doesn''t end there. Walker and Owsley also introduce you to a handful of other Paleoamerican skeletons, exploring their commonalities with Kennewick Man. Together, their voices form a chorus to tell the complex tale of how humans came to North America—if we will only listen.

Recounts the story from World War I in which two towns were leveled and almost two thousand people killed following the collison of two warships in Halifax Harbour and a blizzard that dumped over a foot of snow in the area.

People, animals, machines, and wind all make sounds. But have you ever seen how sound waves move? Or made a sound wave bounce?

What do bicycles, doorknobs, and screwdrivers have in common? All of them use wheels and axles to perform work!

What do staircases, dump truck beds, and ramps have in common? All of them are inclined planes!

What do flagpoles and some window blinds have in common? They use pulleys to perform work!

When British troops near their farm, Letty Wright and her family must escape and leave all their possessions behind including Letty''s pet goose Solomon, and Letty hastily writes a note imploring the soldier''s to spare Solomon''s life. Reprint.

What is matter and where can it be found? Everything in the world is made of matter, whether it is a solid, a liquid, or a gas. Important ideas about matter such as volume, mass, and how matter changes state are conveyed through a series of easy-to-do experiments.

Meet an unusual family with some very special children: Alan, Ellen, Iris, Otto, and Ursula. Sometimes they''re visited by their very special aunt, Cyndy. As each child is born, the family becomes more complete—and each additional Vowel also makes the text easier to read! Because if you can imagine life without the Vowels, tlkng wld b vr hrd. Rdng wld b pzzlng. Are you ready to play the Vowel game?

Describes William Hammer''s discovery of the first dinosaur remains--190-million-year-old fossils--found atop a mountain in Antarctica. Reprint.

Focusing on simple machines and how they help us do work in our daily lives, this fun, illustrated and informative text introduces young readers to several basic concepts of physics.

In this Early Bird title, readers learn about the physical characteristics, habitat, and behavior of the opossum.

Discusses the physical characteristics, behavior, and habitat of the jaguar, and describes the efforts to protect this endangered species.

Discusses the physical characteristics, behavior, and habitat of the common and pygmy hippopotamus, and describes efforts to protect these animals from poachers and other threats.

What causes sound? How does sound travel? Sound begins when matter vibrates. Without this vibration sound could not move and nothing would make any noise. Starting with tiny molecules, this book explains the main concepts of sound and furthers understanding through a series of easy-to-do experiments that will appeal to readers of all ages.