Hi STEM Sparkers! I know it's been a long time; since June! There was a lot going on (our 1 year old dog Panda got diagnosed with hip hip dysplasia, I had a sinus infection all of August, and Jack went back to school, plus the normal day to day things), so I took a break from the blog. I'm back today, but I might not be posting weekly as I continue to take care of other things. I do really look forward to doing some STEM or STEAM Halloween projects, so hopefully I get those up in the coming month.
Alright on with this post. Over 6 months ago (6 months!!!), I received a copy of an awesome book titled Capturing Cow Farts and Burps from a STEM Spark favorite author Erin Twamley. This science based, level reader is a book lots of kids will enjoy reading and giggling over-- farts and burps after all, are favorite subjects by most elementary schoolers.
Will your kids like it and/or will you hate it?
Jack loves Capturing Cow Farts and Burps! He's read it multiple times now, and smiles so much every time he reads it. Since it does discuss how cows fart and burp methane, the discussion of farts and burps may annoy some adults. I personally think the burps and farts are approached very scientifically in this book, and it's cool how Twamley talks about the different solutions farmers, scientists and engineers are coming up with to reduce methane gas from cows.
How long will it keep them entertained?
It's a well written kids book, with fun illustration-- I want to squeeze the cute cows-- that will keep the intended audience's attention throughout the whole book. Jack has asked repeatedly for this book, which shows me it's one to keep kids ages 4-8 entertained (younger and older may enjoy it too, depending on your specific kiddo's reading level).
Are they a good value?
Currently the price of Capturing Cow Farts and Burps is $6.99 on Amazon and comes in paper back format (or Kindle). I'm not sure if the book is available through educational resources, but I definitely think this book is a great one for school libraries or classes to have. I tried to find similar science education level reader books on Amazon, probably the closest I found was NatGeo for Kids books, which run about $4.99 in paper back format, so I don't think the price of Capturing Cow Farts is too far from what is standard pricing in the level reader book market.
Ninja-like STEM Skills
Of course Capturing Cow Farts and Burps has some awesome ninja STEM skills in it! So many fun and interesting science facts-- one of my favorites is that farmers are looking at different diets for cows to see which diet reduces methane gas the most. I loved learning this new information about cows and methane gas, and you and the kids in your life will too.
So overall, this book gets a 5 out 5 stars from me and Jack, and I recommend requesting it at your local library or if you are an educator, asking your school to purchase.
Now for a fun giveaway. Since it's back to school time, I though why not give away a copy of Capturing Cow Farts and Burps, but some of our other, current STEM and STEAM reads: Brilliant Baby Does Math, Annie Aardvark: Mathematician, Layla and the Bot: Happy Paws, and CatStronauts: Mission Moon. So a 5 book giveaway! Use the Rafflecopter below (or click here), and US residents only please. Thanks! And Happy STEM-ing everyone!