What's So Special about Planet Earth?

Wells of Knowledge Science

by Robert E. Wells

Move to another planet? Sounds interesting! In our imaginary spaceship, let's check out the planets in our solar system. Mercury is closest, but it has no air, and it's either sizzling hot or bitterly cold. The atmosphere on Venus is poisonous; plus, human beings would cook there. Mars might work, but you'd always have to be in a protective shelter. And if you got to the outer planets, you couldn't even land as they are mostly made of gas! Our home planet is looking good. Why is Earth so comfortable for plants, animals, and people? As Robert E. Wells explains, it's because of our just-right position form the sun, marvelous atmosphere, and abundant water. Our planet is very special and perfect for us, and that's why we must do all we can to keep Earth healthy.

Genres: Science, Nonfiction, Picture Books, Astronomy, Space, Childrens

32 pages, Paperback

First published September 1, 2009

About the author

About Robert Wells
Robert E. Wells is the author and illustrator of many intriguing and award-winning science books for children. He lives with his wife in Wenatchee, Washington.


Welcome Robert E. Wells’s books into your classroom, and you’ll find most of
your science curriculum covered. The twelve volumes – engaging and informative,
educational and inviting – provide second through fifth graders with lessons in
science and math from astronomy to weather; from biology to measurement.
Beyond the solid information that is the core of each book, Wells also introduces
concepts that offer students deeper understanding of the subjects at hand. His
conversational tone and thought-provoking questions will lead children to questions
of their own. And that is the beginning of all scientific learning.

Reviews

[CanadianReader · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is a children's informational picture book that bridges two subject areas: astronomy and environmental science. The author outlines why Earth, unlike the other seven planets (which the reader is imaginatively invited to visit in the pages of the book), is ideally suited to life. Wells then proceeds to explain the water cycle in simple terms and concludes with a discussion of humans' responsibility for ensuring clean water and the environment in general. Recommendations for conservation are provided--among them: riding a bike, instead of driving in a car; using fabric bags for shopping, rather than plastic, and so on. Some may like the fact that Wells has attempted to do so much. In my opinion, a little too much has been crammed in for the young reader. Also, as a Canadian reader, I would have liked distances bracketed in kilometers. Only miles are provided.

[Tiffany May Ross · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a wonderful and fun introduction to the dolor system! We take a quick look at the size and make up of each planet, discussing whether we could land a space ship on any of the other planets in our solar system! My five year old is really into space right now so this was such a great book to find! We have been taking it slowly, only one planet a night because when I tried reading it to her like a bedtime book, it was too much at her age.

Highly recommend to anyone looking to pique a kids interest in planetary science- probably good for a wide range of kids aged 5 to 12.

[Misslakerria · Rating 4 out of 5]

Taking the students on an imagery journey through the solar system in a spaceship to answer the question of what’s so special about planet earth is Robert E. Wells’ main objective when explaining why people are able to better sustain life on the Earth versus other planets. What’s So Special About Planet Earth is one of nine intriguing science books for elementary students. In this informational book, readers begin with a clear definition of the solar system, a vivid illustration of the solar system and provides a list of the eight planets that orbit the sun from the closes in proximity to the least closest.
The question of “what would it be like to live on another planet instead of Earth? If you’re thinking about moving, you’d want to visit first, to see if the planet is right for you” is posed for readers to begin thinking about what they already know about each planet in our solar system as well as allow new information into their minds. When touring each planet, specific information is given to readers such as the proximity of the planet to the sun, temperature, if the planet has gases that prevent individuals from living there, like carbon dioxide etc.
I absolutely enjoyed reading this book because of illustrations and the amount of information that was provided. Although this book had a hint of fiction (with the imaginary spaceship), I found this book to be very interesting because this book allowed the reader to creatively use their minds (to imagine) and travel to another planet, even if that planet wasn’t safe for individuals to remain on. I thought that this book would most definitely be helpful in teaching science for students in upper elementary (3rd, 4th and 5th) grades as they are currently learning about the solar system. This book can be incorporated in to a lesson plan as a teaching tool for teachers by:
(1) using this book as an attention grabber to introduce a new lesson on solar systems in which teachers could read aloud to the student
(2) teacher could have students write what they learned from the story

Or this book could be an independent read for students were interested in travel, and the solar system. The readability of the text is on an upper elementary (4th through 5th grade) reading level because of words like “gravity”.

[Marilyn · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a really good intro to the solar system and why our planet is so precious to us. I didn't know until recently that only the 4 closest planets to the sun are terrestrial. The others are mostly gas--there's nothing to land on if you wanted to. Amazing.

[Ashlee · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book takes a different spin on space by imagining life on every other planet. I liked the narrative instead of just reading random facts from a book.

[Hameet · Rating 5 out of 5]

it was a nice interesting funny book i loved it even though they are children's book lol

[Melissa · Rating 5 out of 5]

This series is an absolute favorite in our home. Robert Wells makes topics so understandable for kids and presents them in a fun way.

[Kelly · Rating 2 out of 5]

The content was ok but my 3.5 year old wasn't very interested in it. He has done better with some other planet and Earth books.

[Aubrey]

The our solar system is a magical place. There are so many things to learn about our planets and earth.