Ninja Plants : Survival and Adaptation in the Plant World by Wiley Blevins

With stories of ballistic explosions,  plant hormones,  plant fakery,  and Alnwick’s Poison Garden,  author Blevins engages curious readers in the danger and wonder of the plant world in his book Ninja Plants.  

Although his anthropomorphic comparisons are sometimes a bit thin,  Blevins never fails to show readers the fascinating aspects of plants’  survival mechanisms.  

Written on an 8th - 9th grade level,  the text supports Living Environment instruction through developing the reader’s schema around plant reproduction,  characteristics of living organisms,  and an introduction to concepts like thigonasty,  mimicry and horizontal gene transfer.   Recommended for science educators looking for trade books to supplement curriculum.  -- Jessica Fenster-Sparber 

Hercules: The Twelve Labors: A Greek Myth by Paul Storrie, illustrated by Steve Kurth

Fans of Percy Jackson and the Lightning Thief series may enjoy this Paul Storrie full-color graphic novel about the twelve labors of Hercules.  The strength of this version on Sora is the Lerner’s Audisee format  that gives the reader the option to hear the novel read aloud,  while simultaneously in the text each sentence is highlighted in red.  This feature helps make Hercules accessible to anyone who finds names like “Erytheus” and “Hippolyta” tricky to pronounce.  

Renderings of the monsters that Hercules encounters are highlights of the illustrator’s otherwise serviceable  art.  Yet ELA teachers may wish to assign this text because of its accessibility,  and both ENL students and developing readers could benefit from the audio support.--Jessica Fenster-Sparber

Bioluminescence: Nature and Science at Work by Marc Zimmer

For students with an interest in what makes things glow,  Bioluminescence will shed a light on what scientists know about how living things light up!

In 7 concise chapters and 72 pages,  Zimmer lures the reader in with an excellent selection of intriguing and well-captioned photographs.  The text builds the readert’s knowledge of how bioluminescence works as it roots the reader in scientific terminology and an explanation of how light functions.  

Author Zimmer balances the science with references to famous historical figures like the scientist Benjamin Franklin  and the historian Pliny the Elder,  as well as telling  intriguing stories of experiments with  animals that use  fluorescence.   The reader will learn that scientists are using this knowledge to seek treatments for cancer, malaria, chagas, dengue fever and other dread diseases. 

Recommended for students who are confident readers,  those interested in science, as well as those intrigued by The Deep.  Science teachers may wish to assign selections of the text as students study cells and learn about scientific research past and present.  

Backmatter includes a glossary,  index,  photo credits,  source notes,  and links and books for further information.--Jessica Fenster-Sparber

Zimmer, Marc.  Bioluminescence: Nature and Science at Work.  Twenty First Century/Lerner, 2015.  Ebook accessed via Sora.

Digital Library Resources: Sora, Passages’ New Digital Library Platform!

Today Passages launches its digital library platform available through Overdrive’s Sora.  Sora makes it possible for our detained and incarcerated students to read library ebooks safely and return them efficiently.  We understand that not all of our students are currently connected to Google Classrooms, but those who are now accessing distance learning are doing so on individual chromebooks

Passages teachers can access these materials as well, of course.  We would like to thank Mr. Garvey, our school’s tech specialist, for all of his work setting this up during this difficult time.  In the days ahead we will publish reviews of the collection we build and highlight some of Sora’s most exciting features .  --Jamila Abdulrashid, Claudio Leon, and Jessica Fenster-Sparber