Reviews+

Gr 2–4—Max Axiom, super scientist and Laurence Fishburne lookalike, returns to explain more modern-tech wonders in this fresh set of graphic novel-style episodes...

Gr 1–3—There's just enough information in these titles to satisfy the curiosity of young readers, while carefully controlled vocabulary, sentence structure, and page layout keep everything at an accessible level...

Gr 3–5—Inside this attractive set, readers will find well-organized overviews of outdoor activities...

Gr 3–6—Although information about people of importance is indeed provided, the books have insurmountable problems in terms of format and content...

Gr 7 Up—This information-rich series profiles women of cultural importance in a clear and engaging manner...

In these books, educators will find solid choices to support some aspect of the Common Core State Standards. Most of the publishers have made a noticeable effort to address the standards and relate math to everyday experiences, giving readers connections that help them engage with the texts.

One thing is certainly clear about this spring’s new nonfiction series: publishers are focused on helping educators understand and deliver on the Common Core State Standards (CCSS).

The fall of 2012 was a strong season for new series in American history and geography. In comparison, the spring of 2013 has a small turnout. However, that does not mean that these books are also-rans. Quite the contrary is true.

Ever responsive to changing fads in educational theory, nonfiction publishers are, with varying success, already tweaking their new titles to conform to the Common Core science standards. These efforts range from inserting a few vague ideas for activities or demonstrations into otherwise conventional surveys of well-traveled informational territory to festooning texts with review questions, primary-source documents, photos and graphics, and suggestions for ongoing projects or lines of thought.