Turn this Book into a Lever!

 Every now and then I come across a book that is more than a book. This one turns into a catapult - at least part of it does! That makes it a perfect gift for young knights-in-training...

 

 Mighty Models: The Legendary Life Story of the Lever 
by Christine Van Zandt; illus by Lesley Breen 
32 pages; ages 4-8
Union Square Kids, 2025

theme: physics, history, hands-on

 

This is a lever. It doesn’t look like much, but it is one of the world’s mightiest machines.

A lever is basically a rigid beam and a fulcrum. From teeter-totters to robotic arms, levers have been used to move things. People have used levers to hunt mammoths, build Great Walls, print books, produce movies – even defend the Crown Jewels of England!  Over the span of ten spreads, this book invites readers to discover the science – and the history – of this simple, yet important machine. 

 

\

 

 What I like about this book: I like the visual table of contents. I also like the fun lever sidebars on each spread. But what I really like is how part of the book is a hands on build-it-yourself catapult model that allows kids to discover the power of a lever in action. 

 

  

I asked Christine if she had constructed the model catapult. "Oh yes!" she said. "The cats love it!"You can watch author Christine Van Zandt demonstrate her model catapult in this video at her website, christinevanzandt.com/models

Beyond the Books:

 
Check out this short video about levers and some simple machines you might use that incorporate levers. 

Make your own lever using a ruler (or similar flat wood piece) and a marker or other item (dowel, block) as a fulcrum. Use your lever to lift a flat stone or can of tuna. What happens when you move the fulcrum closer to the load? Or farther away?

Go lever-looking. How many kinds of levers do you find around your house and yard? Make a list of what you find using words or pictures. One of the levers we have around our house is a T-post puller.

Christine is a member of the STEAM Team Books group. You can find out more about her at her at her website christinevanzandt.com. You can find more about recently released STEM and STEAM at www.steamteambooks.com

We'll be joining Perfect Picture Book Friday after the holidays. It’s a wonderful gathering where bloggers share great picture books at Susanna Leonard Hill's website. Review pdf provided by the author.

Books for Little Engineers

One of my favorite memories from homeschooling was all the engineering that went on around the house. One week it was building marble runs along a wall, another week it was designing a hand-powered elevator to hoist toys to the second floor. Inside winter activities are a great time to explore machines and building things.

theme: machines, engineering, reuse

Franny's Fix-It Shop 

by Edward Miller 

32 pages; ages 6-9

‎Holiday House, 2022

Franny Fixit can fix anything. Her robot friend, Robbie, knows a lot, too.

When a friend says he needs a new wagon, Franny suggests they fix it and give it a new coat of paint. She helps one friend fix a skateboard, another with a bike. As she repairs, she points out what’s broken and how it can be fixed. Along the way readers learn about wheels and axles, levers, inclined planes, and pulleys.

What I like about this book: I like how Franny presents repairing things as a way to help the environment. It’s a great way to reuse, recycle, or even repurpose things. I also like how she points out a problem, such as worn wheels, and then explains how they cause friction which slows down the skateboard. And when she talks about wheels and axles, illustrations show how axles are used in other applications. 

Working With Machines (Kid Engineer series)

By Sonya Newland; illus. by Diego Vaisberg

32 pages; ages 9+

Kane Miller Publishing, 2022

This book focuses on mechanical engineering. It introduces young readers to the concepts of work, force, and movement and the idea that they could be an engineer. Then it explains how simple machines work (levers, pulleys, axles, etc) and includes a hands-on activity to explore each type of machine. A great companion to Franny Fixit.

Beyond the Books:

Look for wheels and axles, wedges, screws, gears, levers, and other simple machines around your home. Around here I’ve got a wheelbarrow (lever and axle), skateboard (wheels and axles), and a pulley on the clothesline. What do you find?

Make a pulley out of an old thread spool. Then use it to pull a cup loaded with marbles up, up, up to the second floor. Here’s how.

Build a simple catapult to launch marshmallows into your cocoa cup. A catapult is a lever – one of the simple machines Franny talks about. Here’s directions.

Thanks for dropping by. Today we're joining Perfect Picture Book Friday, an event where bloggers share great picture books at Susanna Leonard Hill's website. Review copies provided by the publishers.