What Is a Living Thing?

by Bobbie Kalman

Children see themselves as part of a non-living world of houses, schools, and televisions. This intriguing book explains what a living thing is so that children can make the connection between themselves and other living things, including plants, animals, and insects. Children will - why living things need air, food, water, and sunshine - what cells are - how living things need energy - how they grow, change, and reproduce - the different senses

Genres: Science

32 pages, Paperback

First published October 31, 1998

About the author

Bobbie Kalman is the award-winning author of more than 400 non-fiction books. She established herself as a leading author in children’s non-fiction in the 1980’s and 90’s with two acclaimed series about pioneer life, The Early Settler Life Series (15 titles) and The Historic Communities Series (31 titles), both published by Crabtree Publishing. She has created many of Crabtree’s most popular series, which also include The Native Nations of North America Series (19 titles), The Lands, Peoples, and Cultures Series (93 titles), and The Science of Living Things Series (32 titles), among others.

Born in Hungary in 1947, Bobbie and her family escaped to Austria during the Hungarian Revolution in 1956. The family spent several weeks there as refugees before immigrating to North America. A former teacher, Bobbie Kalman taught at both the elementary and secondary levels. She also spent several years working as an educational consultant for several publishing companies. Bobbie holds degrees in English, Psychology, and Education. She is married and has four children and three grandchildren.

Although best known for her non-fiction, Bobbie’s newest book is autobiographical. Released in September, 2006, Refugee Child is the account of Bobbie and her family’s escape from Hungary when she was just nine years old. Written to coincide with the 50th anniversary of the Hungarian Revolution in October of 2006, the book is told from the perspective of a young girl.

Reviews

[Bethe · Rating 3 out of 5]

Interesting look with more detail than my favorite living/non-living book "What's Alive", for those redy to move beyond. Wish it had all photos, some of the illustrations are goofy.

[Tierra Garr · Rating 4 out of 5]

Great book to introduce living things. It talks about the different kinds from plants to humans and what they need to survive. It also talks about how they change and grow.