North America

Product Description "North America extends from the Arctic regions of Canada and Greenland to the deserts of Mexico and countries of Central America. The landscape of North America ranges from grasslands to deserts. Learn more about this exciting environment in North America. This is an AV2 media enhanced book. A unique book code printed on page 2 unlocks multimedia content. This book comes alive with video, audio, weblinks, slide shows, activities, hands-on experiments, and much more."-- From School Library Journal Gr 4-7-This spin-off from the publisher's "Continents" series (2012) narrows the focus to each geographical area's flora, fauna, and ecosystems. Aside from slight variations in Antarctica and elsewhere, the overall design, order of presentation, and even chapter headings adhere to a rigid template-from opening descriptions of each continent's location and major land and water biomes to closing cautionary spreads on invasive species ("Maintaining Balance") and the need for careful conservation. In between, samplers offer small photos with descriptive notes on a very select handful of distinctive animals and plants, plus sidebars filled with a mix of facts and "factoids" ("A piranha's jaw is so strong that it can crush a human hand within 10 seconds."). Along with a project and quiz, each volume comes with a code that unlocks video and other media on a dedicated website. Though place names and natural features are not labeled on the biome maps and the sections are so programmed that the information and even some of the language are virtually identical from volume to volume, these surveys offer serviceable support for ecosystem studies.Beginning readers will enjoy the bright colors and occasional humor in Jump!'s solid "Senses in My World," and despite their randomly chosen topics (snakes, spiders, and...apples?), the various volumes of Creative Education's "Grow with Me" score high in visual appeal. Powerkids's "Nature's Got Talent" is well designed for assignment and pleasure-driven reading. Powerkids Press's "World of Plants" will strengthen the natural science section in any library or classroom collection serving lower grades. Upper-grade students will find plenty of food for thought as well as rich troves of research material in most of Gareth Stevens's "Tiny Battlefields" titles. Except as noted, the other series are acceptable additional purchases.α(c) Copyright 2014. Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.