Planet Earth/Inside Out: A Picture Book About the Forces Shaping Our World for Kids

by Gail Gibbons

A basic and enjoyable introduction to our planet from Washington Post/Children’s Book Guild Award winner Gail Gibbons! What if we could open up our planet and look inside? From its red-hot core to the highest mountain peak, come see the ins and outs of Earth as you’ve never seen them before in a colorful introduction to the powerful forces shaping our home. With detailed illustrations and diagrams, Gail Gibbons offers a classroom-ready nonfiction picture book that makes complex scientific concepts understandable and entertaining for young readers.

Genres: Science, Picture Books, Geology, Childrens, Nonfiction, Earth Sciences, Nature

32 pages, Paperback

First published June 1, 1900

About the author

From gailgibbons.com: I was born in Oak Park, Illinois, in 1944. Even as a little child, I was always busy putting books together. Sometimes I would bind them with yarn to hold the pages together. I've always loved drawing and painting. I was also a very curious child. My parents tell me that I was always asking lots and lots of questions.

Later, I went on to the University of Illinois, where I studied graphic design. Then I moved to New York City, where I got a job doing artwork for television shows. Eventually I was asked to do the artwork for a children's show. While doing that show, some of the children asked me if I had ever thought of doing children's books. My mind immediately recalled how much I enjoyed doing that type of thing when I was a child. So I put an idea for a book together and right away a publisher bought it. That book was called Willy and His Wheel Wagon. Since then, over 170 books that I have written and illustrated have been published. The type of books I write are non-fiction books. This is because I love researching so much. I get to ask lots of questions, just like when I was a kid. I also get to travel and meet lots of interesting people. While doing research for my book Nature's Green Umbrella: Tropical Rain Forests, I traveled to two islands where there are tropical rain forests, Saba and Dominica. I also had a great time writing and illustrating the book. I get a lot of pleasure from doing the type of work I do.

Reviews

[Willow · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was a pretty good introduction to geology, including the layers of the earth, plates and fault lines, and volcanoes.

It was, however, assuming evolutionary theory to be fact, and the first several pages dealt with origins and were easy enough to skip over completely. There were still a few references throughout the book.

[Sandy · Rating 4 out of 5]

Other than the book being a little on the long-side, which I could tell was starting to drag for my kids, this is a really great introduction to the Earth's composition. If you want a cartoon to accompany and build on the topic, Dinosaur Train has a great show called "What's at the Center of the Earth?" and my kids really enjoy that show.

[Nolan Brendel · Rating 5 out of 5]

I liked it because it was educational and it let me see cool rocks.

[Logan · Rating 5 out of 5]

The Earth can be a tough topic to study as a child, especially concepts like tectonic plates, gravity and the layers of Earth's crust. Gail Gibbons has a way of laying these kinds of big topics out in a highly digestible, yet not dumbed-down way. Her wonderful illustrations always help to convey appropriate information in a unique and exciting way. Some people argue that nonfiction texts are more effective with photographs, while I agree that children should be exposed to real life images and examples when studying nonfiction topics, Gail Gibbons' illustrations always do a wonderful job of showing features in a way that helps to solidify and strengthen the concepts she is teaching about and are able to be "read" with just as much importance as the text. Multimodal literacy for life!

[Jennifer · Rating 3 out of 5]

Explains the aspects of planet Earth. Gravity, Pangaea, the layers inside the Earth, plates, faults, earthquakes, volcanoes, under the ocean, and types of rocks.

6th Grade New Mexico Science Standards:
Strand II. Standard I. 5-8 Benchmark III. 1
Strand II. Standard I. 5-8 Benchmark III. 2
Strand II. Standard III. 5-8 Benchmark II. 1
Strand II. Standard III. 5-8 Benchmark II. 2
Strand II. Standard III. 5-8 Benchmark II. 3
Strand II. Standard III. 5-8 Benchmark II. 5

*Available at Albuquerque/Bernalillo County Libraries*

[Heather · Rating 4 out of 5]

You'll probably get sick of me saying how much I love Gail Gibbons. (In a strictly she's-a-great-author kind of way). But I do. Deal with it.

We used this book when learning about the structure of the earth. It was very clear and the illustrations helped support and strengthen the written explanations.

It's on our list to use again. One of the best books on the topic. But with all of her books, I like to find actual pictures to go along with it.

[Erin Brown · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was a mentor text used with my 2nd graders for both our Reading and Writing nonfiction units. It was a little dry for my students but overall it was very informative and the illustrations were phenomenal!

[Chak · Rating 4 out of 5]

Just read everything by Gail Gibbons. This one not as strong as some of the others, such as How to Build a House, but still very good. Ages 4-8.

[Colleen]

Earth - unit 2
Nonfiction

[Seung Lee · Rating 3 out of 5]

It was an okay book. My five year old liked it.

[April · Rating 4 out of 5]

Loved this one!