The presentation of information in Teeth by Sneed B. Collard III (2008) is uniquely formatted. Each page spread has a short sentence or sentence fragment in large font, and a specific animal is used to illustrate the statement. For example, one spread begins with "Over time, teeth wear away" and continues with a paragraph profiling the Tuatara, a New Zealand reptile with one set of teeth. The opposite page states, "Some get replaced." On this page, the Cuban crocodile is depicted with an inset showing how a new tooth is ready to replace an exposed tooth. The text explains how the new teeth move into the crocodile's mouth. Other pages describe how teeth help animals eat and where they are located (sometimes on tongues and throats!). Watercolor illustrations fill most of each page, showing some animals in action as they approach their prey and others alone in their habitats. The back page lists resources (books and websites) and also has a glossary, and you can visit Sneed's website to learn more about his background research for books.Continuing with teeth, let's move on to a toothy animal that is portrayed in most movies as a deadly beast striking fear in the heart of all swimmers and surfers: the shark. Are they really that deadly to humans? According to National Geographic, data from 1996 indicates that people were nearly 3000 times more likely to be injured by a toilet than a shark. I guess you have to just use your imagination about how those injuries occurred because there are no additional details. Clearly, however, sharks get a bad rap because of those high-profile cases in which they actually do injure someone.
National Geographic's Face to Face series of books includes Sharks by David Doubilet and Jennifer Hayes (2009). As with any production associated with NG, the photographs in this book are amazing. Written in first person by Jennifer, the text reads like a narrative of sea adventures and embeds scientific information about this fascinating species. The brief chapters of this 32-page book include "Meet the Shark" and "Conservation." On some pages, additional sidebar information extends the text with bulleted facts. At the end of the book, several pages are devoted to fast facts, suggested resources, suggested activities to become involved in shark conservation, a glossary, and additional resources. There is also a brief column about how the photographs were taken, which would be of interested to any budding photojournalist.Consider using these and other books in conjunction with the American Dental Association's free dental health resources. In the meantime, brush and floss, and be grateful for modern dentistry!
What a great topic- my students are always asking questions about teeth especially when they loose one! This is one a topic that kids are so naturally curious about and also have some first hand experience with. I've seen some great science projects on how different types of drinks effect a tooth in color, shape, and density. I would love to use a book to guide instruction about teeth and give students a resource to answer some of their questions.
ReplyDeleteI think it is great that in the book "Teeth" it has short phrases that will catch students attention wanting to learn more and see what is on the next page. This will be a familiar topic as elementary aged students will start losing their "baby" teeth and growing in their "adult" teeth. I think it is also important for students to understand how teeth grow in human's and animals' mouth and the many uses for teeth.
ReplyDeleteThe Sharks book would be great for students to understand how conservation works while reading short and manageable chapters with bullet points. Students learn that important information is often bulleted. Having National Geographic as a source for this book is also great, as students are able to explore through other books published by them, and also on their website. I think it is also important to search for associations like the American Dental Association that can supply information and tools to make learning more meaningful.
I'm Stacey Bunch and I am in Dr. Rearden's online science class. I really enjoyed this blog post. It reminded me of when I was in elementary school and some people came to talk to us about dental hygiene. They discussed with us the proper brushing and flossing techniques and gave us some free samples. I think these books would have complemented their presentation very nicely. Additionally, I think the two books discussed in this post complement each other well too. I think the contrast between the illustrations would be good for kids to see. The book by National Geographic has actual photos while Teeth has watercolor illustrations. I also think it would be an inherently engaging lesson because children like to examine the similarities and differences between themselves and different animals.
ReplyDeleteI think the topic of teeth is an excellent one that can be used to begin multiple science explorations. The first thought that came to my mind was to utilize this book to introduce a personal health lesson in kindergarten. Kindergarteners are beginning to lose teeth and need to be introduced to the concept of brushing and flossing, if they have not been already at home. This book could begin a lesson, in which the teacher uses eggs to demonstrate how Coke can affect your teeth. The students can make predictions about what will happen to the eggs that are left to soak in the Coke overnight. Then, the students will see how much the eggs have changed color compared to a new, white egg. The students will then get a chance to predict whether brushing will help the egg get back to its original color. They will have the opportunity to brush their eggs with a toothbrush and toothpaste, but probably won't get them completely white again. This will allow them to witness the effects of colored beverages on teeth and why it is important to brush. This is simply one example of an activity that could be done because the ideas are plentiful! You could even use this to begin a research project with older children. They could research various animals and classify them based on their teeth, etc. I am a proponent for utilizing books to introduce lessons, so I think the books listed could be amazing resources!
ReplyDeleteTeeth!! One of the girls I babysit lost a tooth last week and when we were cleaning it off and looking at it, she was really curious about what makes up teeth. Working with first graders next year, I know there will be a lot of questions about teeth. This topic is great to address in the science classroom because everyone has teeth and when you are inquiring about something personal or relatable, then information sticks a little easier. Also, sharks are by far my favorite animal. I would love to get my hands on this book. It could be used in a lesson where the book is read aloud, and because of the first person narrative style, students could write a story based on the perspective of another sea animal. They could first do a little research on the Web about the animal they choose to write about.
ReplyDeleteThe topic of teeth could take many different avenues in the science classroom! My first thought was to bring in a dentist to talk with the kids about hygiene and how to take care of their teeth. I think students would enjoy hearing from a specialist and this would make the topic quite authentic. The book entitled "Teeth" sparked my imagination for an inquiry activity to do with my students. I could bring into the classroom different types of teeth from different species (humans included). I used to collect sharks' teeth when I was younger at the beach so I have some of these on hand! If unable to obtain actual teeth, pictures would work too. I would have the students examine the teeth and discuss what type of animal they believe each tooth might belong to. To incorporate life cycles, we can explore and make predictions as to what kinds of things these species eat, whether it be plants or animals and thus whether the species is an herbivore, carnivore, etc. This can be predicted based on the shape of the teeth because the shape might determine its function. I also like the inclusion of "National Geographic" in this blog because I think it is an amazing resource for children. I remember looking at the National Geographic magazines when I was in elementary school and the pictures especially were extremely captivating. I did not know there were books too, but such a resource can really draw students in and engage them on any topic.
ReplyDeleteThis would be a great lesson to introduce animal adaptaions (e.x. the difference between a carnivores teeth and a herbivores teeth). You could also take it into the realm of math and health by having students research and calculate the increased ware caused by acidic and sugary foods. I may actually do this with my 7th graders this year as we will be discussing ratios and proportional relationships. For example: For every x amount of sugar you consume a day, what is the increase in probability of tooth decay?
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