Briggs Martin, J (1998). Snowflake Bentley. New York, NY: Houghton Mifflin Company.
Summary: This is the true story of the life of Willie Bentley, who was always fascinated with snowflakes. In his late teens, his parents purchased a microscope with a camera for him. His persistence and toil took his fascination to the next level, perfecting his craft at photographing snowflakes, as well as spider webs, insects, and more, dedicating his life to preserving works of nature. He published a book of his collection of snowflakes and after his death, a museum was opened to honor his contributions.
Reading Level:
CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RL.4.1, 2, 4, 5
CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RI.4.1, 2, 3, 7
CCSS.ELA-Literacy.W.4.2, 4, 9
Next Generation Science Standards
4-ESS2-1
Curriculum Suggestions:
Related Links:Awards:
Tags: contemporary, elementary, picture books, historical, nonfiction, STEM
Summary: This is the true story of the life of Willie Bentley, who was always fascinated with snowflakes. In his late teens, his parents purchased a microscope with a camera for him. His persistence and toil took his fascination to the next level, perfecting his craft at photographing snowflakes, as well as spider webs, insects, and more, dedicating his life to preserving works of nature. He published a book of his collection of snowflakes and after his death, a museum was opened to honor his contributions.
Reading Level:
- Quantitative: Lexile 830
- Qualitative: Grade 4 / High. This biography varies from slightly to very complex because of the vocabulary, sentence structure, text features, and subject matter knowledge. There are sometimes two text sections on a page - the main section tells more of a narrative, while the side margin is more specific to science, such as, It's microscope could magnify a tiny crystal from 64 to 3,600 times its actual size. The least complex are the illustrations, which are colorful and easy to understand, carrying the heavyweight science vocabulary and making it more manageable (i.e. negative, crystals, experiments, blizzard).
- Content Area: Language Arts, Science
CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RL.4.1, 2, 4, 5
CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RI.4.1, 2, 3, 7
CCSS.ELA-Literacy.W.4.2, 4, 9
Next Generation Science Standards
4-ESS2-1
Curriculum Suggestions:
- Photograph an object up close. Describe the picture and how it looks differently from this perspective
- Compare and contrast snowfall in Vermont to your hometown
Related Links:Awards:
- Caldecott Medal, 1999
Tags: contemporary, elementary, picture books, historical, nonfiction, STEM