Ant Attack!

February 1, 2003
K-Gr 3-This series seeks to demonstrate through story that science is an integral part of a child's everyday life. Here, Jenny discovers ants in her secret candy stash. Wishing to keep them out, and to prevent her younger brother from following the ant trail and discovering the candy, she does a little research. In the course of the story, Jenny observes the intrepid ants in action, asks questions about their behavior, and looks for answers through simple experiments. Her problems are solved by story's end when she seals her candy in a plastic bag and diverts the ants with another sweet, with her brother none the wiser. Though the text is bolstered by colorful cartoons, including drawings of a book of nature facts that allow children to read along with Jenny, the story is tedious. It dutifully introduces youngsters to the scientific method without engaging them in a compelling narrative. An end page suggests science-related activities. Chris Van Allsburg's Two Bad Ants (Houghton, 1988) may be more successful at sparking early scientific curiosity about the natural world.-Mary Ann Carcich, Mattituck-Laurel Public Library, Mattituck, NY

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