In the Sea

Yes, the book provides a lot of opportunity for children to develop their basic process skills such as, observing the illustrations, classifying the sea life, and making inferences on what they read in the poem to the coordinating illustrations.

• Author: David Elliot
• Illustrator: Holly Meade
• Year Published: 2012
• ISBN: 9780763644987

Science Topics

• Earth Science

Minimum Suggested Grade Level

• 2nd Grade

Maximum Suggested Grade Level

• 4th Grade

Evaluation

• Appropriateness: High
• Authority: High
• Accuracy: High
• Liteary Artistry: High
• Appearance: High

Questions

Does the book foster development of processes?

Yes, the book provides a lot of opportunity for children to develop their basic process skills such as, observing the illustrations, classifying the sea life, and making inferences on what they read in the poem to the coordinating illustrations.

Does the book provide an opportunity for children to ask and answer their own questions?

The clever poems provide a stepping-stone for children to ask questions and ignite their curiosities. However, the poems are short rhymes on different sea animals and plants and so children, for the most part, are unable to answer questions and curiosities that they formed while reading the book.

Does the book encourage children to think for themselves?

Yes, the poems and whimsical illustrations allows for the minds of children’s to question and explore. The vocabulary ignites creativity and leads them to think in a guided yet abstract way. As the author creates poems on sea life that most students have never heard of before, his uses descriptive adjective that pull in the reader and leads them to imagine and create the image on their own.

Is the science topic addressed in ways that are appropriate to the lesson?

Yes, the book touches on several forms of sea life such as fish, eels, whales, and plants. The author does a good job of hitting on subjects that are well known as well as not as well known by students. The poems are fun and enthralling but they teach the students general knowledge about the behaviors of each sea creature.

Is the content based on sound scientific principles? Is it accurate?

Yes, the author uses sound and accurate descriptions to teach children about sea life. The descriptive adjectives, metaphors, and rhymes are used to further enhance the students understanding of the mannerisms and behaviors of sea life.

Does the book distinguish between fact and fiction?

The short poems include facts and factual information about the sea animals and plants but the author uses a lot of metaphors to describe the behaviors of the sea life. For instance, he compares the moray eel to “a sword without its sheath, a dragon in its cave.” This is could result in confusion by the reader but the author uses these comparisons more to explain the behaviors and characteristics of sea life.

Are the illustrations clear and accurate?

The illustrator Holly Meade is an amazing illustrator that captured the heart of each poem and made it come to life in her illustrations. Her illustrations are colorful, whimsical, and captivating. They are accurate depictions but the lack of precise detail allows for the reader to further imagine and explore.

Is the book written at the level of your students?

This book could be read to any age group. I really enjoyed reading the book and even learned a few things from it. The target age for this book would be 1^st to 4^th. It is a fun, yet informative book that captivates any reader.

Is there a multicultural component? Is it free from stereotyping?

There is not a multicultural component because it is only based on the ocean and what type of fish and plants are in the ocean. This book could be beneficial to read to ELL’s because it is full of rich vocabulary that correlates with the pictures. I believe this book is free from stereotyping. Although not everyone has been to the beach, this book provides scientific information that is beneficial for everyone’s general knowledge.

Is the book free from gender bias?

Yes, I believe this book to be free from gender bias. It does refer to some of the animals as a he or she but I do not know what exactly constitutes as gender bias. Overall, this book is about the ocean and does not relate to gender.

Does the book show the close association between science and other disciplines?

As a teacher, you could find ways to incorporate science or other disciplines into the book. This is a broad book that could feed into other topics. For example, you could talk about ecosystems, poetry, rhyming, and art.

Does the book present a positive attitude toward science and technology?

Although there is no mention of technology in the book, an argument could be made that there is a positive correlation between this book and technology. It is because of technology that we are able to further explore these animals and plants and learn more about them.