Simple Machines

A True Book

by Dana Meachen Rau

A True Book-Physical Science Whether you're an aspiring inventor or an everyday science buff, you've probably created your own experiments to uncover the truth about the forces of physical science. Now you can delve deeper into the topics of electricity, motion, gravity, and more with these titles that are perfect for the budding scientist in you.

Genres: Nonfiction, Science

48 pages, Paperback

First published September 1, 2011

About the author

Dana Meachen Rau is an author, editor, and illustrator of children's books. She has written more than 100 books for children, many of them nonfiction in subjects including astronomy, history, and geography, as well as numerous biographies. She lives in Burlington, Connecticut, with her husband and two children.

Reviews

[Melissa · Rating 5 out of 5]

One of the few readable, clear, comprehensive and fun books on simple machines. One look at the cover tells you all you need to know. The typical simple machine book for early elementary pictures a beige door stop or grey file on the cover. Not exactly enticing. Who wouldn’t want to learn about the simple, yet powerful machines that would enable one to launch, gleefully into the air? Triple bonus points for including glamorous, silk-clad, Korean women on the cover.

[Dolly · Rating 3 out of 5]

We recently attended a science program at our local library and this was one of the books that was featured in the back for people to borrow. I was a little bit surprised that our girls chose this book because it's not a story, but I could see that they were intrigued by the seesaw on the front cover.

The book explains in simple terms what the six different types of simple machines are, how they work, and practical examples of them in everyday life in multicultural settings. The narrative isn't too long, and there are lots of colorful photographs that accompany the text.

The narrative is simple enough for children to understand and provides enough information without being boring.. We enjoyed reading this book together.