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  • It's Snowing!

It's Snowing!

Author
Publication Date
June 20, 2012
Genre / Grade Band
Non-fiction /  4th − 5th
Language
English
It's Snowing!
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Description
What is snow and just how does it form? Included in this introduction to one of winter's wonders is information about different types of snowstorms, regions where snow falls most, and how to prepare when a snowstorm is approaching.
Publication date
June 20, 2012
Genre
Non-fiction
ISBN-13
9780823425457
Lexile Measure
790
Publisher
Holiday House
BISAC categories
JNF037080 - Juvenile Nonfiction | Science & Nature | Earth Sciences - Weather

ALA/Booklist

Snowstorms, snowflakes, snowmen, and everything you didn’t know about snow is all here in 32 frolic-filled pages. In her typical illustrative style, Gibbons blankets the pages with information from crystallization to how to prepare for a storm. The device of painting the factual pages in blues and grays and contrasting them with full-color scenes of how weather impacts people is surprisingly effective. For example, the explanation of how snowflakes are formed is followed by a picture of a family bundled in winter clothing catching snowflakes. The factual stuff includes a map of where snow falls (on all seven continents), definitions of a winter storm watch and warning, and record snowfalls (6 feet 4 inches in one day in Silver Lake, CO, on April 14, 1921). Other tidbits are advice on how to stay warm outside and directions on how to see snowflakes close up. For families and classrooms, this is a crystal-clear introduction that illustrates how snow can be dangerous, but plenty of fun, too.

— Julie Cummins 

Kirkus

The prolific Gibbons’ latest is a utilitarian, beginner’s look at snow.

Opening with explaining how ice crystals form and merge together within clouds to create snowflakes, the text then touches on the fact that snow falls on every continent (though least on Antarctica). Next, Gibbons examines the different ways snow can fall—flurries, sleet, snowstorm and blizzard—and how people can know when snow is headed their way: “A blizzard happens when lots and lots of snow falls. The wind is howling. The snow is drifting. There can be whiteouts.” Briefly touching on snow clean up, outdoor activities and how snow benefits plants and wildlife, the text concludes with some ways to be prepared, a few Web resources and a list of fascinating facts, including some records—the largest snowflake (15 inches wide!) and biggest snowfall in one day (6’4”). There are also instructions for collecting and closely observing snowflakes, just as Wilson “Snowflake” Bentley did. Asides within the softly colored watercolor illustrations help define vocabulary: snowdrift, whiteout, evaporation, meteorologist. This, combined with short, simple sentences, make the book easily accessible for both young children and beginning readers.

Though it lacks the flair and depth of others, the breadth and ease of the text make this a good introduction. (Informational picture book. 4-8)

School Library Journal

PreS-Gr 3--Written in the style of Gibbons's Hurricanes! and Tornadoes! (both Holiday House, 2009), this book grabs the intended audience with stylized bright drawings and short blocks of text. It addresses what happens when it snows and covers cloud formation, ice crystals, and snowflakes; a simplified map illustrates worldwide snowfall regions. Ways in which snow falls to the ground, such as sleet, flurries, and a storm, are also discussed. Pictures show children playing, building snowmen, and making snow angels. There are tips about staying warm and preparing for a snowstorm, and a simple project on viewing a snowflake close up. Back matter mentions Wilson "Snowflake" Bentley, the first person believed to have taken a picture of a snowflake, and the Great Blizzard of 1888. Libraries will want this as a general purchase for weather units.--Melissa Smith, Royal Oak Public Library, MI

Copyright 2011 School Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.
Gail Gibbons
Gail Gibbons has written more than 140 books and has been called a "master of picture book nonfiction" by Booklist. The Washington Post has said "Gail Gibbons has taught more preschoolers and early readers about the world than any other children's writer-illustrator." In recognition of her "distinguished contribution to children's literature," Gail was awarded the Regina Medal Award. She is also the recipient of the Children's Book Guild of Washington, DC Nonfiction Book Award. Gail's informational books cover a vast range of topics and have received innumerable awards and honors that range from American Library Association Notable Children's Books to National Science Teachers Association - Children's Book Council Outstanding Science Trade Books for Children to International Reading Association - Children's Book Council (IRA-CBC) Children's Choice Books, beloved by young readers across the country. She divides her time between Vermont and Matinicus Island, Maine.
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