Reviews+

Gr 4–6—À la Edgar Lee Masters's Spoon River Anthology (1915), this set present history from a variety of viewpoints...

Gr 7 Up—This series objectively examines some of the most important decisions of the last 100 years...

Gr 3–6—Kids won't be able to resist these exciting collections of ghostly tales-even if they do have to sleep with the lights on...

K-Gr 3—The lives of eight wild canines-from birth to adulthood-are introduced in these accessible titles...

Gr 7–10—Written in a clear, straightforward style, this series assumes readers have no prior knowledge of the featured vocations...

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.