The story of a mirror

Yes, this book foster a development of processes. This book shows the characteristics of reflection and it can be related to how light travels in a straight line. It starts with reflection of people, then it moves on to different reflections mirrors can have, and the purpose of mirror develops throughout the story.

Author: Ali Bahrampour
Illustrator: Ali Bahrampour
Year Published: 2003
ISBN: 0-374-27078-3

Summary

This book is about this mirror named otto working at a hat shop. One day, he escaped the hat shop and ran around the city. By picked up by a bird, getting dumped on the boat, he also traveled around the ocean. Then, he met another mirror in a small island.

Evaluation

Appropriateness: High
Authority: High
Accuracy: Low
Liteary Artistry: Medium
Appearance: Medium

Questions

Does the book foster development of processes?

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

I think throughout this book, there are few parts where students might ask how? questions. However, I don't think there are a lot of opportunities for children to ask and answer their own questions.

Does the book encourage children to think for themselves?

Yes, this book leads children to think about how the mirror works and what makes a mirror a mirror. Because mirrors have specific properties, it can be confusing for people to pretend to be a mirror and it is shown in the book. I think it really encourages children to think about how mirror works and how we look when we see ourselves in the mirror.

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

There are lots of different science topics mentioned in this book. Reflection is the main concept, but this book can also lead to different topics such as night and day, weather, constellations and angles. All the science topics that is mentioned in this book is very appropriate to the lesson.

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

Yes. There are different types of mirrors. Some mirrors are straight, some mirrors are bent. Based on the angle that the light is being reflected, when we look ourselves in the mirror, we are going to look different. The beginning of the book basically shows the scientific principles of mirrors, angles and reflections.

Does the book distinguish between fact and fiction?

The book is mainly fictional because it is based on a thinking mirror who can walk. Most of the story is fictional as well, such as a bird picking up a 5 ft mirror and flying across the ocean, or a bird laying the mirror down on the small boat which happens to be floating around in the middle of the ocean. However, there are facts as well, which is basically all the principles of mirrors.

Are the illustrations clear and accurate?

The illustrations aren't very accurate and they are very fictional. In the beginning, the mirror bends it's body to change the shape of the reflection. However, the illustration is not very scientific. Though, it helps the audience to understand what is going on with the stories.

Is the book written at the level of your students?

Yes, I think this book is written very appropriate for the level of my students. There are lots of different scientific topics that we can explore and discover based on this book.

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

I didn't really find specific stereotypes from the book, but the book does show different races. Though the main character and majority of the character is caucasian males, the book still showed other skin colors. I can't really find multicultural components throughout the book since it is mainly about the mirror.

Is the book free from gender bias?

The book is very male dominated, and barely any woman present throughout the book. Even though, I don't think the book is completely from gender biases because of the reason stated before, the book doesn't really have specific gender biases components to it.

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

The book connects with language arts. This book ends with a guy mirror meeting a girl mirror and starting a journey together. This can tie into a romance novel and different types of texts.

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

Yes, the book shows the endless reflections two mirrors can get from each other and a lot of the facts that the book showed is based on scientific principle. I think this book definitely showed a positive attitude toward science.

Science Topics

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