Check Out "Robotics" and "Simple Machines!," Two New Books from Nomad Press That Will Get Kids Excited Learning About the World Through Experiential Activities (Review)

Disclosure: I was sent review copies from the publisher in exchange for an honest review. All views shared are mine and mine alone.

Now that the kids have been home for a month, have they talked your ear off yet by asking you "What if?" and "Why?" questions.  It is crazy how kids don't get tired talking, but it is also nice to see they want to learn and know so much about their surroundings and how things work especially.  Both of my girls love to ask questions, and many times I find myself researching alongside them to find out the answer.  Those are the best learning experiences as I am learning something new, and many of these questions we can perform hands-on learning experiments and projects with, to explore further.

Knowing that my girls would be filled with questions for the summer, I made sure I was ready for some of their simple machines and robotics questions, thanks to Nomad Press' Explore Your World "Simple Machines" and "Robotics," which the publisher sent my way for review.  Both of these books contain 25 science projects for kids, and do an amazing job at explaining the answers to each question posed.  They even include a "consider and discuss" question at the end of each topic, for further pondering and discussion.

Here is more about these two books, which would be great for hands on learning and curious kids.  The books are recommended for children ages 7-10 as the guided reading level is "T," but I see these books being enjoyed by younger children with parent guidance and help, as well as curious older kids.

With children as young as two spending hours a day looking at a screen, it’s essential that we find ways of teaching them the joy and utility of building their own creations with their own hands.

Two new books from Nomad Press get young kids excited learning about the world through experiential activities. Simple Machines! With 25 Science Activities for Kids explores the six simple machines that are used in just about every type of engineering and construction project on the planet. And there’s a reason they’re called SIMPLE machines—because anyone can understand what they do and how to make them. Robotics! With 25 Science Projects for Kids offers young children the chance to learn more about the robots that are increasingly a part of our daily lives—and how to design, construct, and even code their own!"

Pre-order from Amazon for only $19.95

(Releases on August 6th)

"Where was the last time you saw a robot? Did you read about one in a book or see one in a movie? Maybe you saw one in a video game!

Some people think robots exist only in our imagination, but actually, robots are all around us right now. Robotics! With 25 Science Projects for Kids offers readers ages 7 to 10 an introduction to the history, mechanics, and future use of robots! Readers explore the history of robotics and discover how the first types looked and moved and what people expected they could do. Compare these early robots to those we have today, some of which don’t even have bodies! Kids discover how robots have changed as decades have passed and see how they now look, think, sense, move, and do things. 

Robotics! also discusses all the amazing things robots do for us―help us around the house, go into and explore dangerous situations, build our cars and other products, assist during surgeries, and protect and entertain us. Learn all about early robots such as Unimate and Elmer and Elsie, and compare them to modern-day robots Robonaut 2 and ASIMO.

Robotics! includes 25 science-minded activities to engage budding scientists, engineers, mathematicians, and artists and help answer the questions, what exactly is a robot and where do they come from? Kids also discover how technology such as computers and other electronics of the last 50 or so years played an important role in the development of modern-day robotics. Requiring little adult supervision and using common, easy-to-find (and often recycled!) materials, kids experiment, play games, and explore components of robotics. They also build a variety of things such as their own automaton, a robot hand, and a replica of Robonaut 2. Combining hands-on fun with interesting facts, cartoons, and sidebars, Robotics provides young readers with a fun introduction to this fascinating and important field.

Robotics! is part of a set of two Explore Technology books that introduce young digital natives to the history, science, and engineering of the tech world in which we live, using hands-on STEM activities, essential questions, links to online primary sources and real-life connections. The other title in this series is Simple Machines!"

Pre-order now in paperback from Amazon for only $14.95

(Releases on Aug. 6th)

"Does your coat have a zipper? Did you eat breakfast with a fork? You’re using simple machines!

From butter knives to seesaws, rolling pins to catapults, we are surrounded by simple machines! Simple Machines! With 25 Science Projects for Kids astounds readers with the ingenuity they already possess and inspires them to look differently at the objects they use every day.

What do a fork and an axe have in common? How do pulleys get a flag up a flagpole? Simple Machines! introduces kids to the concept of mechanical advantage and harnesses kid-power by inviting them to build machines of their own design. This book also opens eyes and minds to the diversity of machines in their lives, and sparks the imagination with challenge, humor, and achievable projects.

Simple Machines! dedicates a chapter to each of the six simple machines that were identified centuries ago: levers, inclined planes, pulleys, screws, wedges, and wheels and axles. Kids develop analytical skills as they figure out where force is applied and what kind of work it generates. Essential questions, fascinating facts, and links to online primary sources make student-led learning fun and productive! Through science-minded STEM projects and investigative engineering experiments, kids develop critical and creative thinking skills about the roles simple machines play in our world and their importance to human civilization.

Simple Machines! is part of a set of two Explore Technology books that introduce young digital natives to the history, science, and engineering of the tech world in which we live, using hands-on STEM activities, essential questions, links to online primary sources and real-life connections. The other title in this series is Robotics!"

Author of Simple Machines, Anita Yasuda, is the award-winning author of more than 100 books for children. She lives with her family in Huntington Beach, California.

Author of Robotics, Carmella Van Vleet, is a former teacher and the author of dozens of books for children. She lives in Lewis Center, Ohio.

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Science is a favorite school subject for my girls, and I am always looking for books like this that include both questions and explanations, as well as hands on projects and activities to explore a topic further.  I find that the hands on learning really helps in explain further a topic, and my girls seem to retain more information being shared when they are learning and creating, instead of just reading text.

There are so many fun projects for kids to make with these two books including building a walking robot, code a sandwich, build your own helicopter and even make your own movable pulley.  My girls really enjoyed these two books, and want me to get more for them to include in our schooling in the fall.  Seeing just how much they liked these two books, and how much they learned and continue to talk about, I made a point to pick up the "Explore Electricity" book from this Explore Your World series from Nomad Press.  You can learn more about these hands on science and STEM learning books by visiting:

With summer winding down and school starting back, why not pick up these books for your kids to create and learn with the fun hands-on projects, and get their brain going with questions, for you to research and help them answer. :-)



Disclosure: I was sent review copies from the publisher in exchange for an honest review. All views shared are mine and mine alone.