BOOKS FOR CHILDREN, EDUCATION, AND HOMESCHOOLING
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24/7 Science Behind the Scenes

This high interest series from Franklin Watts is aimed at grades 8-12 with a reading level of grades 5-7.
I have spent this evening reading a few of the books and was very impressed with both format and content. Even the Table of Contents is filled with colorful, attention-grabbing photos! This is followed by a one-page "hook" in large print to generate interest.
Next are a couple of facing pages that define terms (with pronunciation guides) that will be used in the book.  These have colorful speech balloons with the words used in sentences to put them in the proper context. By the time students get into the actual book content, they will have seen the words defined and seen them used.

Next the characters, key players, or key tools or facts are introduced, always with visual impact. Sometimes this is followed by a brief multiple choice self quiz to show readers how much they already do or don't know. And in some series sets which depend a lot on scientific methods and experiments, readers are introduced to the a three-step scientific method:
1. Identify two main questions.
2. Gather and analyze evidence.
3. Reach a conclusion.

The bulk of each book deals with three specific cases histories or files that show spies, police, or other scientists at work. By the time you get to these forensic, spy, or mystery files, you have already been introduced to the science behind them and to the specific vocabulary necessary to understand them. Other interesting tidbits follow the case histories that relate to them: news stories, key dates in the history of the particular science involved, tools and equipment the scientist uses, etc.

The last part of each book contains an interview with someone who plays an important part in that science -- a DVA Forensic Scientist, a Forensic Firearms Examiner, a Forensic Anthropologist, or such. This gives readers an idea of what such work involves. This is followed by a "Do you have what is takes?" quiz of a few questions for readers to see if they might be a good match for such an occupation. A page follows that on how to prepare for such a career. This is followed by resources, including web sites, a dictionary, and and index. Books are 64 pages long.

24/7: Forensic Files Series

Bullet Proof!: The Evidence That Guns Leave Behind by Jaime Joyce. 2007. This books explains how a single bullet from a gun can lead police to a criminal through the hard work of forensic firearms experts. BTH-4407. $7.16-D

Have You Seen This Face? The Work of Forensic Artists by Danielle Denega. 2007. Readers will learn how a forensic artist can reproduce a face she or she has never seen by listening to eyewitness descriptions, looking at old photos, or even studying a skull. BTH-4408. $7.16-D

Guilty by a Hair! Real-life DNA Matches by Anna Prokos, 2007. This book reveals how DNA scientists can solve crimes or help free innocent people with the right equipment and a small sample of spit, blood, skin, hair or some other substance from a person's body. It explains DNA and how it can be isolated and used as evidence to match people with a crime scene. BTH-4409. $7.16-D

  Killer at Large: Criminal Profilers and the Cases They Solve by D. B. Beres, 2007. When there's a serial killer on the loose and there don't seem to be any clues, how to police find out who it is? What if a crime is committed and there isn't much evidence? How to the police begin to find a suspect? Criminal profilers help to narrow down the search. This book explains how they do it. BTH-4410. $7.16-D

  Skulls and Skeletons: True-life Stories of Bone Detectives by Danielle Denega, 2007. In this book you'll learn how forensic anthropologists can determine a victim's gender, race, and age from a few bones. You'll see how these scientists help police identify the victims of earthquakes, floods, murder cases, plane crashes, and fires. They can also help determine how the victims died. BTH-4411. $7.16-D

24/7: Spy Files

  Bioterror: Deadly Invisible Weapons by Lisa Jo Rudy, 2008. In this book you will discover how microbiologists find the violent illness that caused a  dozen or more people from an office building  be rushed to the hospital. If they find out a biological or chemical weapon is behind that illness, they will call in the bioterror experts. Readers will also learn about four deadly bioweapons and some actual cases bioterror experts have been asked to solve. BTH-4412. $7.16-D

 Killer Lipstick and Other Spy Gadgets by Don Fauf, 2008. This book explains how spies gather intelligence for their governments and military to use. Learn about the various gadgets that are the tools of their trade, how a spy who sold U.S. secrets for 17 years was caught, and whether you have what it takes to be a special agent. BTH-4413. $7.16-D

  Micro Spies: Spy Planes the Size of Birds by Lisa Jo Rudy, 2008. This book describes the Unmanned Aerial Vehicles or UAVs -- high tech military tools that can be as big as jets or small enough to fit into a pocket. Readers will find out about the Predator, the Global Hawk, the Dragon Eye, the six-foot SkySeer used by the Los Angeles Police Department, and the ornithopters that fly like birds but have not been perfected yet, and more. BTH-4414. $7.16-D

  You Have Mail: True Stories of Cybercrime by Matthew Newman, 2008. In this book readers will learn how the police, computer geniuses, and counterspies are fighting the war against crooks, terrorists, and spies who use the Internet for illegal activities. You will also learn how to protect yourself and your computer against cyber criminals and whether you have what it takes to be a computer security specialist. BTH-4415. $7.16-D

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