Polar Bear, Why Is Your World Melting?

by Robert E. Wells, Robert E. Wells (Illustrator)

Overview

Recommended Book to Teach Children about Climate Change, Time Magazine

In the Arctic, the summer ice is melting, making it hard for polar bears and their cubs to survive. Why is the world getting warmer? The heat of the sun is trapped by the "greenhouse" gases that surround Earth—carbon dioxide, methane, nitrous oxide, and water vapor. If there is just the right amount of these trapped gases, the air is warm enough for plants, animals, and people to thrive. But now there is too much greenhouse gas, especially carbon dioxide. Polar bears, and all of us, are in trouble. Robert E. Wells shows why so much carbon dioxide is going into the air and what we can do to help keep Earth cool.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780807566008
Publisher:	Whitman, Albert & Company
Publication date:	09/01/2008
Series:	Wells of Knowledge Science Series
Sold by:	Barnes & Noble
Format:	eBook
Pages:	32
Lexile:	AD920L (what's this?)
File size:	10 MB
Age Range:	7 - 10 Years

About the Author

Robert E. Wells is the author and illustrator of many award-winning science books for children, including Can You Count to a Googol? and Why Do Elephants Need the Sun?. He lives with his wife in Washington.

Editorial Reviews

Gr 1-4

Two children sail in a red research vessel through the pages of this clear and simple explanation of global warming. Colorful, cartoon drawings show the youngsters rescuing a mother polar bear and her two cubs by hauling them onto their boat. Then, beginning with an explanation of the sun's effect on the Earth's atmosphere, they pursue the reasons that the Arctic ice is melting. Without oversimplifying, Wells makes the large concepts of the Greenhouse Effect and the sources of CO2 understandable for young children. He doesn't shy away from the frightening possible effects of warming: floods, drought, and an increase in storm intensity, but he ends with a reassuring list of behaviors that readers can do on their own or discuss with adults. An excellent introduction to the topic for primary-grade children.-Ellen Heath, Easton Area Public Library, Easton, PA

School Library Journal

A worthy title that uses polar bears and the melting of the Arctic ice as a springboard for an explanation of global warming pitched well to preschool audiences. Simple language and vivid imagery serve to communicate a difficult subject, effectively making the connection between the burning of fossil fuels and the warming of the atmosphere. Wells's text flows evenly through his explanations back to the reason why the Arctic ice matters to all of us, not just polar bears. How can readers help? A list of child-accessible solutions concludes the presentation. Clear diagrams and illustrations, with a trio of personable polar bears (a mother and two cubs) accompanying two children around the world, move the text along nicely. Some pack quite a punch: A stack of the 700 million cars in the world, three to a layer, stretches from Earth to the moon. A fine addition to early science collections. (Informational picture book. 6-9)

Kirkus Reviews

Recommended Book to Teach Children about Climate Change, Time Magazine

From the Publisher