Time

Children's Literature

The vast concept of time can be difficult for students to grasp. Benchmark's "Science Experiments" series volume, Time, does an excellent job of conveying principles and measures of time in an easy-to-read format with an abundance of color photographs, illustrations, charts and diagrams. One sidebar brings the history of time into focus for readers and reveals how looking into space is like looking at the history of time. Readers will discover how and why the day is divided and read about solar time. A hands-on activity demonstrates how a sun clock can be made from paper, pen and protractor. Readers will also learn about one of the most famous clocks in the world, Big Ben in London, England, and how it has kept perfect time since 1854. Pendulum clocks and how they work are introduced. A small tidbit of information on the Mayans of Central America presents how these ancient people established an accurate 365-day based calendar over 5000 years ago. Standard time, atomic clocks, time zones and the date line are concepts presented in a clear and concise manner. Life times, time and space, and time travel finish the concepts. Included in the endnotes are a glossary and a trouble-shooting guide for experiments that do not work. This is a useful reference book for the intermediate and middle school classroom or library. 2003, Marshall Cavendish Corporation,
— Sue Reichard