Have You Thanked an Inventor Today?
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- $5.99
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- $5.99
Publisher Description
Have You Thanked an Inventor Today is an Amazon Best Seller and is recognized by Microsoft as a book that informs and inspires STEM. It takes its reader on a unique journey into the often overlooked contributions of African-American inventors, and highlights their lasting impact on our daily lives. This book follows the day of a little boy, demonstrating with each page, how African-American minds have greatly enriched our nation's landscape.
Have You Thanked an Inventor Today comes complete with brief biographies about each inventor, as well as fun activities that help encourage reading comprehension and retention. It's also aligned with Common Core and STEM standards. This book is an essential addition to any home or classroom library.
Have You Thanked an Inventor Today is perfect for readers of all ages who are looking to learn and be inspired.
LEXILE MEASUREMENT 810L
PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
McLaurin encourages children to appreciate everyday inventions that make their lives easier while acknowledging the contributions of African-American inventors. It's a worthy goal, but the project is let down by oversimplifications or mischaracterizations of what these men and women accomplished. Addressing readers directly, McLaurin uses the frame of a child's day to highlight recognizable inventions: "And when you're on your way to school... you have to thank Garrett Morgan for the traffic light, otherwise none of our streets would be safe to cross!" Wang's chipper digital illustrations show a brown-skinned boy making his way through the community, and small portraits of the inventors appear throughout. But some of the credited inventions are based in legend rather than fact (peanut butter for George Washington Carver, potato chips for George Crum), and while Robert Fleming and Sarah Boone may hold patents for versions of the guitar and ironing board, these were not first of their kind; other claims are similarly iffy. Activities and additional biographical details appear at the end, but McLaurin doesn't include source notes, forcing readers to take the book's questionable assertions at face value. Ages 5 12. (BookLife)