Books with author Jennifer A. Swanson

Getting from one place to another sounds easy if you are on a straight piece of land, but what if you have to get over―or under―a body of water or a deep gorge? Build a bridge! Bridges are the great connectors. They allow us to travel the twists and turns, highs and lows, ins and out of every geographic feature in our world. Bridges! With 25 Science Projects for Kids introduces readers ages 7 to 10 to the concepts and vocabulary of bridge construction through the lenses of history, science, engineering, math, and technology. From the Golden Gate Bridge in San Francisco to the Tower Bridge in London, bridges are a huge part of our life. But how are these amazing structures built? What forces keep it standing? What might cause it to fall down? And who decides which type of bridge to use? In Bridges! With 25 Science Projects for Kids,one of four titles in the Explore Engineering set, readers discover how these extraordinary feats of engineering are created, and apply what they have learned to hands-on, critical-thinking activities that include building different types of bridges, such as truss, cantilever, and suspension bridges, out of different materials and modeling different types of supports. They examine the natural forces that affect structure selection and appearance, and also learn about the types of support required for each. Trivia, cartoon illustrations, links to online videos and other sources, and clear diagrams round out this book and make it fun and interesting for class discussions. Following the guidelines set forth in the NGSS/NSTA engineering and design standards, teachers can feel comfortable using this book as a guide for targeted learning in their classrooms. In the Explore Engineering set, readers ages 7 to 10 develop foundational understanding of the physics that guides the building and maintenance of bridges, canals, dams, tunnels, and skyscrapers. Titles in the Explore Engineering set include Bridges! With 25 Science Projects for Kids;Canals and Dams! With 25 Science Projects for Kids; Tunnels! With 25 Science Projects for Kids; and Skyscrapers! With 25 Science Projects for Kids.Nomad Press books in the Explore Your World series for children ages 7–10 integrate content with participation. Common Core State Standards, the Next Generation Science Standards, and STEM Education all place project-based learning as key building blocks in education. Combining content with inquiry-based projects stimulates learning and makes it active and alive. Nomad’s unique approach simultaneously grounds kids in factual knowledge while allowing them the space to be curious, creative, and critical thinkers.

Everything moves! Kids run around the playground, cars drive on the road, and balls fly through the air. What causes all this motion? Physics! Forces and motion rule the way everything moves through space.In Explore Forces and Motion! With 25 Great Projects, readers ages 7 through 10 discover that the push and pull of every object on the planet and in space depends on how a force acts upon it. Things float because of a force called buoyancy, we stick to the ground because of a force called gravity, and we make footprints in sand because of a force called pressure.Physics becomes accessible and interactive through activities such as a experimenting with a water cup drop, building a bridge, and spotting magnetic field lines. Simple machines such as levers, pulleys, and wedges are used as vehicles for discovery and comprehension of the foundational concepts of physical science. Using a theme familiar to everyone—motion—this book captures the imagination and encourages young readers to push, pull, twist, turn, and spin their way to learning about forces and motion.

YOU are the illustrator of this story! When Miss Mayda enters her library one morning to discover that all the illustrations have disappeared from the books, she frantically calls on the best artists she knows for help: children. Your talents, creativity, and ingenuity are also needed! Help Miss Mayda and the library of Providence Town by being the illustrator of a clever adaptation of the classic tale, Cinderella. Part coloring book, part illustrate-your-own story, The Day the Pictures Disappeared is perfect for both the budding artist and literary enthusiast. NOTE: This book is intended for use with crayons, colored pencils, pastels and other dry media. Wet media such as markers and paint may bleed through the paper. When I was very young, my mom took me to the library. I came home with a book with black and white outlined illustrations. I remember thinking how sad it was that the illustrations had no colors. To me it looked like a coloring book just waiting to be filled in by a talented and advantageous young artist. I decided I was that artist and that I’d do the library and it’s patrons a favor by beautifying the book in full color. I grabbed my crayons and set to work. I remember being happy with how well it turned out. My mother, however, was not happy. Neither was the librarian. My mother was made to purchase the book and, in punishment, it was locked away from my view, never to be seen again. I was fully grown and the experience all but forgotten when I happened upon that book. I anxiously turned the pages and was instantly aghast. The coloring was all done in orange scribbles with no reverence for the lines. I could see why no one had appreciated the job I’d done, and yet, I had to smile at the young girl who’d been so proud of her work. Pablo Picasso said, “Every child is an artist. The trouble is staying an artist when you grow up.” This book is for artists. For, in this story, all are invited to not only color in the illustrations, but to supply them completely from their own imagination when they disappear.

Any parent who's been through the rigors of an infant invasion knows that the real poop, er, scoop, rarely gets recorded in those precious little keepsake books. After all, those books don't cover all the really gross and fascinating stuff that makes parents laugh, scream, and scratch their heads. The Inappropriate Baby Book, however, has the good stuff covered. A real baby book for real parents, The Inappropriate Baby Book offers a unique and hysterical way to commemorate those decidedly non-Kodak moments that compose the better part of the newborn experience. Herein, you'll find room to record such facts as:You were introduced to a rectal thermometer on this day: _______.The first person you peed on was _______.Your mom was embarrassed by breast leakage in the following places: _________.Your first poop happened on this day: _______, and was this color: _________.Now, that's the kind of information that should not be lost to posterity!Sure, babies are cute, but they are also stinky, sticky, soggy, and otherwise inappropriate. So don't sugarcoat the story-let The Inappropriate Baby Book help you tell it like it really is.The book includes an envelope affixed to the last page so that an inappropriate memento can be saved forever. (Or at least until the little angel's prom night!)