Books in Penguin Core Concepts series

The Story About Ping covers the concepts Family and Problem Solving. This classic children’s book was first published in 1933 and is still as delightful and relevant as ever. Ping’s owner takes him and his siblings to the river for dinner. When it’s time to go, Ping is the last duck in the water and, as such, will receive a spanking. To avoid punishment, he hides—only to be captured the next morning by a young boy for his family’s dinner. Finally Ping is set free, and when he sees his master’s boat, the last thing he fears is a spanking—he’s just thankful to be home!

Go for a spin up a hill—when the story of a bike ride becomes an inspirational journey.Albert Einstein once said, "Life is like riding a bicycle. To keep your balance you must keep moving." Ride along up and down the hills and valleys of this bike ride. Featuring lyrical text and vivid artwork, Spin shows that any mountain can be climbed. By pushing forward and pedaling around and around, anyone can spin onwards.

Hummingbirds are some of the most beautiful, tiniest birds in nature. They are the only creatures that can fly forward, backward, sideways—even upside down! Their hearts beat anywhere from 500 to 1200 times every minute; their wings flap as many as 52 times per second; and they breathe up to 600 times per minute. This fact-and-photo-filled nonfiction 8x8 will leave readers astounded by the smallest bird in America!

Exposing children to a diverse range of literary and informational texts, the Core Concepts program helps develop important literacy and cognitive skills necessary to meet many of the Common Core State Standards. Did you know that every year hundreds of thousands of monarch butterflies migrate 2,500 miles to Mexico for the winter? It takes four generations of butterflies to make the trip, and only the fourth generation lives longer than three weeks. Follow a beautiful butterfly as she makes her journey down to Mexico!Fly, Butterfly covers the concepts Animals and Seasons.

Have you ever ridden a Ferris wheel? You go up, up, up and can see for miles! But when the inventor of the Ferris wheel, George Ferris, first pitched the idea, everyone thought he was crazy. A 250-foot bicycle wheel that goes around and around and carries people in train cars? Can't be done, they said. But George proved them wrong. Read about how George's hard work, courage, and imagination created one of the most famous fair rides today.George Ferris, What a Wheel covers the concepts Imagination and Problem Solving.

Bizz and Buzz are two bees who want to make honey buns. So, they ask their friend Bear for his recipe. Although the directions seem simple, Bizz and Buzz make mistake after mistake, like finding a little flower instead of adding a little flour. What will bee-come of the honey buns?Bizz and Buzz Make Honey Buns covers the concepts Friendship and Problem Solving.

Blast off and explore the star of our solar system—the Sun!Billions of stars fill the universe. But for humans, the most important star is the one closest to Earth—the Sun. From vitamin D to solar energy, the Sun provides the power necessary to sustain life on our planet. And as the center of our solar system, the strong gravitational pull from this ball of burning gas keeps all the planets in orbit. Discover the significance of the Sun and its brilliant blaze in this fascinating book!