Age-appropriate joke books for upper elementary school readers

Geared toward the language arts curriculum and part of Enslow's spring 2013 list, Funnier Bone Jokes is a series of 48 page titles, with each title corresponding to a different holiday. All six titles in this series are available in library and paperback editions, as well as a multi-user eBook and as a library/eBook combo.

Each title defines the words joke, limerick, and tongue twister, and includes fun facts geared toward that particular title's subject. Readers also get helpful hints for designing their own cards. Other holidays featured in this series are April Fool's Day, Thanksgiving, Valentine's Day, Christmas, and Halloween. This series continues in the same fun way that Enslow's Funny Bone Jokes were written. That series was published in 2011.

These titles are available through your preferred vendor, your local independent bookstore, Amazon, and Barnes and Noble.

Enslow Book Is Awarded

Congratulations to Enslow author, Ana Maria Rodriguez whose book Leatherback Turtles, Giant Squids and Other Mysterious Animals of the Deepest Seas from our Extreme Animals in Extreme Environments series was awarded Honorable Mention in the Children's Books category in the 2013 Green Book Festival's annual competition. According to their web site, their annual competition honors books that "contribute to greater understanding, respect for and positive action on the changing worldwide environment."

For a complete list of winners click here.

Library Edition ISBN: 978-0-7660-3696-3
Paperback ISBN: 978-1-4644-0019-3
For Grades 5–9
48 pages

About the Book:
The ocean is one of the most extreme environments on Earth. The deepest ocean zones challenge animal survival in unique ways. When light and warmth totally disappear, when pressure can crush most bodies, and when food is extremely rare, how do deep-sea animals cope? Scientists have sent remotely operated vehicles to the sea floor to capture images and videos of these amazing creatures in hopes of answering these questions. Their expeditions have revealed amazing information about extreme deep-sea animals!

Sunday is Cinco de Mayo – How are you celebrating?

Enslow would like to share two great Cinco de Mayo titles:

Cinco de Mayo–Count and Celebrate!
Students in grades 3–4 can read about the history, customs and practices of Cinco de Mayo with this 48-page book that is available in library binding, paperback, and as an eBook.

Celebrating Cinco de Mayo
How many main colors are there on the Mexican flag? Can you count to ten in Spanish? Learn more in Cinco de Mayo—Count and Celebrate! Students in Grades 1–3 can count people, symbols, and more as you explore and learn about this fascinating holiday.This book is available in library binding.

These books and others in their series can be purchased from Enslow, Barnes and Noble, Amazon,your favorite bookstore, or your preferred vendor.

What part will DNA play in the Boston Marathon bombing investigation?

Female DNA was found on a piece of at least one of the explosive devices used in April 15's Boston Marathon bombing. However, police have not yet determined whether or not the DNA discovery indicates a woman's involvement in the attack.

What is DNA? DNA, or deoxyribonucleic acid, is a molecule that carries a set of instructions. These instructions tell our cells what to do, which determines physical traits such as eye color or height. The information encoded on the DNA molecule is what makes a person unique.

Available in paperback and library binding

The DNA in the blood can narrow down a list of suspects–clearing the innocent or helping send the guilty to prison. In our book, DNA and Blood: Dead People Do Tell Tales from our True Forensic Crime Stories series, discover how blood pattern analysis and DNA fingerprinting began, how they are used now for crimes like the Boston Marathon bombing, and how they have solved decades-old mysteries.

This book and others in the series are available from Enslow, Barnes and Noble, Amazon, your favorite independent bookstore or your preferred vendor.

Will you be in New Orleans?

The New Orleans Jazz and Hertitage Festival starts today and runs through May 5. Many great artists will be appearing. But do you know the history of jazz? What about Louis Armstrong, Duke Ellington, Ella Fitzgerald, Dizzy Gillespie, Charlie Parker, Miles Davis, John Coltrane, and Herbie Hancock? What do they all have in common?  The answer is, they are all great jazz artists. 

Enslow's Incredible African-American Jazz Musicians from our African-American Collective Biographies series highlights how each of these musicians got started and what gifts they brought to the world of music.

Each of these musicians had their own voice, sound, or style of playing. Miles Davis played trumpet in a muted whisper. Charlie Parker's saxophone solos displayed phenomenal speed and variety. 

Library Edition ISBN: 978-1-59845-137-5
Paperback ISBN: 978-1-4644-0036-0

The earliest jazz originated in New Orleans. It's musical elements were derived from African-American brass marching bands and ragtime music from the saloons. Known as Dixieland, it was characterized by several musicians simultaneously playing their improvisations based on the melody and chord pattern of the tune. The tune would most likely have been a popular song of the day or a blues that the musicians did not compose. Many of these early jazz musicians could not read music. But through improvisation they created exciting, joyful music that bore little resemblance to the original tune.

You can read more about the history of jazz and these eight great jazz musicians in our book, Incredible African American Jazz Musicians by Stephen Feinstein.

Available from Enslow, Barnes and Noble, Amazon, your favorite independent bookstore or your preferred vendor.

  

Do you have a little chef in your home?

From party food...

to pizza and pasta...

to tasty desserts...

and even yummy snacks...

young chefs will find the simple steps accompanied by illustrations easy to follow.

Enslow's Little Chef series that will be available June 1 is already receiving great advance reviews.

Available for preorder from Enslow, Barnes and Noble, Amazon, your favorite independent bookstore, or your preferred vendor. Reserve your copies today!

Give Book Spine Poetry a Try. Here's Ours...

In honor of National Poetry Month we assembled a few of the books from our shelves to create some book spine poetry. It's lots of fun to see what you can create. Give it try!

What is St Patrick's Day?

Are you ready to answer this question? If not, there's still time to order any of these titles from our
St. Patrick's Day collection in time for March 17.

PreK–Grade 1 students will learn the meaning of St. Patrick's Day with our book, St Patrick's Day, that uses sight words and simple sentences with large, readable text for these early readers.

Readers in grades 1–2 will enjoy What is St. Patrick's Day? This book introduces young readers to cultures and holiday traditions surrounding St. Patrick's Day.

Elementary students in grades 3–4 can explore the origin, along with the traditions and customs of St. Patrick's Day with more advanced text in our St. Patrick's Day, Revised and Updated book.

Celebrating St. Patrick's Day,  written by Elaine Landau, explores the history of the holiday and how it is celebrated in the United States in a simple way that elementary students are able to understand. A St. Patrick's Day activity is also included.

Paper Crafts for St. Patrick's Day is a great book to use in support of the lessons about the holiday. With a short introduction to the holiday, step-by-step instructions are included for making unique paper-cutting crafts. Perfect for the classroom!

Library bound and paperback versions of these titles are available from Enslow, Amazon, Barnes and Noble, and of course, from your favorite vendor!

Why Is It Winter? Experiment

We're not counting on the world ending today and neither is NASA. What we can count on is another winter solstice. Why is winter weather cold? What happens to plants in the winter? Where do animals go in the winter? What is hibernation? This book answers these questions and many more. There's even a simple experiment related to winter that will engage young readers and create a fun learning environment.

Experiment
You will need:

• 2 ice cubes
• 2 bowls or cups
• salt
• clock or watch

1. Put one ice cube in each bowl.

2. Pour some salt over one ice cube. Add nothing to the second ice cube.

3. Check the ice cubes every ten minutes. Which ice cube melts fastest? Can you guess why people put salt  

    on the streets and sidewalks in the winter?

Why Is It Winter? is from our Why Do We Have Winter? series for grades 1–2 is available from Enslow, Amazon, Barnes and Noble, or your preferred vendor.

Available with library binding and in paperback

E-books available for purchase

Over the next few days we hope to introduce you to some of our new e-books. We will be adding more to the retailers sites as they are ready.

The Holocaust Through Primary Sources series, targeted toward the middle school reader, captures a variety of major events of the Holocaust, using first-person accounts. Through the words of the victims, bystanders, and perpetrators, individual experiences are told in detail. Unknown as well as well-known Holocaust figures are also looked at.

All six titles in this series (Auschwitz, Kristallnacht, Liberation, Rescuing the Danish Jews, Saving Children from the Holocaust, and The Warsaw Ghetto Uprising) are available through Amazon, Barnes & Noble, Apple, and Kobo.

The library and paperback versions of these titles are also available on enslow.com or through your preferred vendor.

Anniversary of the Oklahoma City Bombing

On this day in 1995 a car bomb exploded outside the Alfred P. Murrah Federal Building at Oklahoma City, OK, at 9:02 a.m, killing 168 people, 29 of them children at a day-care center. The blast ripped off the north face of the nine story building.

The question is, are we any safer today? Watch an update from Bob Orr, A Look Back.

Enslow's title, Home Grown Terror: The Oklahoma City Bombing, for Grades 5–9, to be published this fall, will be a great way for reluctant readers to learn about this historic event.