Explore Predators and Prey!

December 1, 2016
Grades 4-7 This title in the Explore series focuses on predators and their prey, encompassing everything from mammals to insects to plants. The upbeat, direct-address prose is aided by colorful layouts and cartoon drawings, jokes, facts, and activities. An introductory chapter overviews the predator-prey relationship and the scientific method (including a worksheet example) and provides a journal-making project. Subsequent chapters discuss diverse ways various predators and prey hunt and survive, like using venom, camouflage, or traveling in groups, and touch on ecological issues. Potentially squirm-inducing elements abound, and while the interspersed activities are often innocuouslike making pom-pom batsadults will likely balk at Scavenger Hunt, which involves searching the neighborhood for dead animals (with an important warning not to touch them). Still, with broad-ranging, intriguing information, accessibly conveyed scientific concepts, and plenty of key vocabulary terms, this is useful resource for educators. Plenty of questions sprinkled throughout the text invite engagement as well. In addition to the usual back matter, further reading resources include websites, many of which are accessible via QR codes.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2016, American Library Association.)