Word Wednesday: DK’s ‘Do You Know About Science’

This week’s word is “Science.”

Following on from last week’s Night Sky, I have another science education book from DK books. This time the more general Do You Know About Science? by Emily Dodd. The book is a science primer aimed at children around 8 and upwards. As ever, it’s bright, vibrant, and filled with pictures.

What is Do You Know About Science? 

The book is 144 pages in length and broken down into 6 sections. The section titles don’t mention traditional discipline names, such as Chemistry, Physics, and Biology. This is not a textbook, it’s a guidebook for inquisitive minds.

The section headings are:

• The Living World.
• Human body.
• The Material World.
• Energy.
• Forces and Movement.
• Our Planet.

Each double page spread poses a question that pertains to the section it’s in. In the Living World section, the book asks things like, “What do living things need to survive?” or “How big are bacteria?” In the material world section we find out “What is everything made of?” and “Why is lemon juice sour?” (We do not find out what happens if you have a paper cut and squeeze lemon juice into it.) There is usually another deeper question posed on each page too, such as “What other things are microscopic?” and “What happens when you split an atom?” Overall, the book promises to answer over 200 questions and the answers it offers are excellent, with just the right level of detail for its target audience.

Regular readers of my column will understand that I’m saddened to find there is no “What is the Periodic Table?” page, but this gives an indication of the age range of this book. Do You Know About Science? is an elementary science book, that explains basic concepts in simple easy to understand language. Each double page has a large picture at its centre with text and text boxes arranged around it. If you want to explain why chocolate melts or how blood moves around the body, in simple terms, it’s in here.

One text box on every page has a True or False? (or sometimes a “quick quiz”) section that invites further thought and investigation. You’ll need to go outside the confines of the book to discover the full answers to the statements offered. That said, there is a quick answer section at the back of the book to check against your discoveries. True or False statements include “The glue on sticky notes was discovered by accident,” “When you bake a cake a chemical reaction takes place,” and “Earth is the only planet with an atmosphere.”

Why read “Do You Know About Science?”

Once again, DK has produced an excellent book to explain to inquisitive children how the world works. Every page has something of interest on it. I could list every question posed in the book, and you’d find yourself thinking each of them more than worthy of answering. Whether you want to explain why the planet is blue, how hurricanes occur, what makes things speed up, or how plastic is made, it’s in this book.

As is usual for DK, the book’s text is clear and informative, backed up by vibrant, engaging pictures and well-conceived diagrams. If you have a budding scientist on your house, I highly recommend checking out Do You Know About Science?

You can by Do You Know About Science?, here in the US, and here in the UK.

If you enjoyed this post, do check out my other Word Wednesday columns, here

Disclaimer: I was sent a copy of this book to review.