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9781432940324

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Camouflage and habitats are seen in a different and exciting way through this new series. Each book has large font and minimal text with a large color photograph on each page. The series' unique perspective uses photographs of an animal in hiding. The next page then shows the same picture with the camouflaged animal highlighted so the reader can see it. Each title also covers several animals that stand out instead of needing to blend in with their surroundings. Younger students will love these books, not only for the interesting facts and the way they are presented, but for the I-Spy-like photographs. These books are a fun way to learn about the creatures who use camouflage to survive; perfect for animal projects and the study of animal habitats. A simple contents page make this a winner for an introductory lesson for younger students. Glossary. Index. - Maureen Mooney, Library Media Specialist, Caroline St. School, Saratoga Springs, New York Library Media Connection January/February 2011-- Library Media Connection This book provides information on adaptations that go beyond mere camouflage. As part of a series of primary leveled readers, it's a valuable resource to teach the concepts. Each of the eight books in this series highlights a different ecosystem and the animals adapted to thrive in it. Because all the books in the series use the same format, navigating is easy. In this volume, early readers recognize how camouflage helps a mountain animal, which animals live in mountain regions, and the characteristics of mountains. The mountain ecosystem requires diverse adaptations because of climates and varying topography. Animals have adapted to live near the rocky top of a mountain, in a mountainous forest, and in a mountain stream. These are global ecosystems, and animals from all over the world are depicted, from mountain lions to panda bears. The photos depict animals that students find interesting. A rattlesnake is poised to shake its rattle, a snow leopard is ready to pounce, and the monarch butterfly glides in to winter in the mountains. There are animals with unusual adaptations, such as the three horns on top of the jackson chameleon and the 5-foot-long giant Japanese salamander slithering in a mountain stream. This book is no substitute for taking young learners outside into their local environment to look for adaptations of animals and plants. It will, however, help students understand that animals all over the world must adapt to survive in their ecosystems. Strategies are used to help young students read and understand the book, and teachers will find help too. Each page has one to three sentences in a large, black print appropriate for primary students. There is a contrasting explanation box overlapping each photo. Page numbers are highly visible for use with groups of students. Science terms that may challenge a student's reading level are accompanied by phonetic spelling. Highlighted glossary terms are limited, which will help younger students stay focused on those that are relevant. Camouflaged animals are expertly hidden in photos and uniquely revealed. An identical photo is on the next page depicting the animal against a contrasting gray-and-white background. This will help even the youngest students to distinguish the physical characteristics of the animal. Giving students enough time to examine the photographs may tempt them to turn the page to find the animal revealed. Each book in this series explains one unique ecosystem and highlights animals that have adapted to that environment. The entire series helps students to understand the importance of adaptation to an animal's survival in diverse ecosystems. http: //www.nsta.org/recommends/ViewProduct.aspx?ProductID=20315-- NSTA Recommends Using a bit of photo-magic to help viewers understand how camouflage works, each volume features eight paired views of an animal-one in saturated but close to natural color, the other (seen with a turn of the page) showing it as before but with all the surrounding vegetation or ground converted to neutral shades. The trick doesn't work well in some of the shots in Polar Regions (snow is snow, after all), and many the photos are so close-up that the animals aren't all that hidden-but it's still a neat idea. Sandwiched between introductory capsule descriptions of each habitat and the adaptations that natural residents have made, and closing spreads on wildlife with coloration that's intended to stand out rather than conceal, the picture galleries provide unusual support for a range of natural-science interests. -John Peters, formerly at New York Public Library School Library Journal November 2010-- School Library Journal

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