Sharks

by Seymour Simon

A deep dive into shark infested waters, with spine-tingling photogarphs and a text that explores what makes these remarkable and often misunderstood creatures so fascinating. Outstanding Science Trade Books for Children 1995 (NSTA/CBC)
Children's Choices for 1996 (IRA/CBC)

Genres: Nonfiction, Science, Picture Books, Childrens, Animals, Nature, Education

32 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 1995

About the author

Seymour Simon, whom the NY Times called "the dean of [children's science:] writers," is the author of more than 250 highly acclaimed science books (many of which have been named Outstanding Science Trade Books for Children by the National Science Teachers Association).

Seymour Simon uses his website, SeymourSimon.com, to provide free downloads of a wealth of materials for educators, homeschoolers and parents to use with his books, including 4-page Teacher Guides for all 26 of his Collins/Smithsonian photo essay books. The site provides multiple resources for kids writing book reports or wanting to explore the online Science Dictionary, and also features the Seymour Science blog highlighting current science news. Educators and families are encouraged to sign up to receive the monthly newsletter from SeymourSimon.com to stay abreast of the latest materials that Seymour Simon is introducing to enrich the reading experience.

He taught science and creative writing in elementary and secondary schools and was chair of the science department at a junior high school in the New York City public school system before leaving to become a full-time writer. "I haven't really given up teaching," he says, "and I suppose I never will, not as long as I keep writing and talking to kids around the country and the world."

Seymour Simon is also a creator and the author of a series of 3D books and a series of Glow-in-the-Dark Books for Scholastic Book Clubs, a series of leveled SEEMORE READERS for Chronicle Books, and the EINSTEIN ANDERSON, SCIENCE DETECTIVE series of fiction books. His books encourage children to enjoy the world around them through learning and discovery, and by making science fun. He has introduced tens of millions of children to a staggering array of subjects; one prominent science education specialist described Simon's books as "extraordinary examples of expository prose."

Seymour Simon has been honored with many awards for his work, including the American Association for the Advancement of Science/Subaru Lifetime Achievement Award for his lasting contribution to children's science literature; the New York State Knickerbocker Award for Juvenile Literature; the Hope S. Dean Memorial Award from the Boston Public Library for his contribution to children's science literature; The Washington Post/Children's Book Guild Award for Non-fiction; the Jeremiah Ludington Award for his outstanding contribution to children's nonfiction; the Empire State Award for excellence in literature for young people; and the Lifetime Achievement Award from the National Forum on Children's Science Books.

In a recent interview Simon was asked if he ever thinks of retiring. "I seem to be working faster and harder than ever. I absolutely don't feel any urge to sit back and look at what I've done. The only things that I'm thinking about are things I'd like to do in the future. I'm planning and doing and continuing to write. It's what I love to do. I remember a story about an anthropologist going to talk to a tribe and he asked them what was their word for "work." Their response was they have no word for work. Everybody does the things that they do in their life. I love that response. I don't differentiate between work and play. Everything I do is something that I enjoy doing - the writing, the research and everything else."

Seymour Simon writes and photographs nature from his hilltop home in Columbia County in upstate New York, where he lives with his wife Liz Nealon.

You can follow Seymour on Facebook and on Twitter, as well as on his website, which offers free, downloadable Teacher Guides to his books for educators, parents and homeschoolers, as well as the popular Seymour Science Daily Blo

Reviews

[Manybooks · Rating 2 out of 5]

REVIEW OF THE ORIGINAL 1995 EDITION

So yes, I do indeed very much appreciate that with his 1995 picture book Sharks (textually intended for older children above the age of seven or so and penned educationally but not too densely), author Seymour Simon certainly provides a thorough, balanced but also not ever scientifically overwhelming introduction to sharks (their physiologies, their various behaviours, what sharks eat, how different shark species reproduce, and yes indeed, that sharks are not really all that much of a threat to humans, that most stories showing sharks as horrible and evil killing machines are fantastical, ridiculous and sensationalistic, such as for example Jaws and most sharks are ruthless man-eaters movies or of course also sharks as monsters waiting to devour masses of humans novels).

However, if Seymour Simon really wants to rehabilitate sharks, why are oh so many of the accompanying photographs close-ups of gaping shark mouths and their pointed teeth? For if I were a child looking at many of the photographs featured in Sharks, I would both likely be frightened and also consider sharks in general as very much potentially dangerous to my health and well-being (and while Seymour Simon’s printed words of course show that the majority of shark attacks on humans are generally cases of mistaken identity, of predatory sharks believing that a swimmer or a surfer is possibly a seal or another type of prey animal, in my humble opinion, far too many of the included pictures visually seem to show sharks as frightening and dangerous, and yes, that is from my point of view most unfortunate and annoying). Combined with my massive annoyance at the lack of any bibliographic materials whatsoever in Sharks and that there is also no information and details provided by Seymour Simon’s text as to shark evolution (and that many scientists actually consider sharks in general as being pretty well living fossils), while as a general introduction to sharks I do rather grudgingly recommend Sharks, my star rating for Sharks also reflects my growing frustration and will only therefore be but two stars maximum (and no, I do not know whether the 2006 edition of Sharks might contain secondary sources, but the original, Seymour Simon’s 1995 edition, most definitely does not include a bibliography, and that is a huge academic lack and faux pas as far as I am concerned).

[Randie D. Camp, M.S. · Rating 2 out of 5]

All about sharks. The vocabulary was beyond my ability but my 5 year-old enjoyed helping me sound out shark specific terms. Way too long, but a child (or adult) hungry for knowledge about sharks would adore this.

[The Reading Countess · Rating 4 out of 5]

I recently had the pleasure of hearing Mr. Simon speak at NCTE, so when my youngest son came home with this one tucked in his backpack, we had much to share.
You can't go wrong with anything from this man. He is a delightful speaker and an even more talented author.
Any one of his books would make wonderful mentors for informational text writing.
This time he served as a mentor to a burgeoning reader.

[Jacelyn Neuleib]

I learned a lot more about sharks than I previously knew after reading "Sharks." It is an informational book that has full page pictures and paragraphs about aspects of sharks and what makes them special animals. The book tells about how sharks are important animals and shares statistics about why we shouldn't be afraid of them, like that you are more likely to be struck by lightening than attacked by a shark, and even if you are attacked, you are likely to live. Next, the book tells about the anatomy of a shark like its special eyes and how it does not have a swim bladder like other fish. This means that sharks can stay under water away from people. We learn about types of sharks, and how a shark's teeth are very special but that some of the largest sharks don't even eat with their teeth. Lastly, the books tells about sharks traveling far distances, but the book is also full of even more great information for readers.

[Courtney Ingraham · Rating 5 out of 5]

I think this book would be a great resource for a research project that students could complete during a lesson about animals. This book will help broaden students vocabulary, as well as their knowledge base on sharks.

[Alyson Carroll · Rating 5 out of 5]

If you love sharks, this is the book for you. Everything you could ever learn about sharks is in this book. There are also really cool, closeup pictures of each shark mentioned. I would definitely recommend this book for my students to do research with.

[Erika · Rating 3 out of 5]

I actually jumped when I turned the page and saw the great white. Learned about shark reproduction which was very fascinating.

[Victoria Bozarth · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book is all about sharks and the different sharks you could encounter if ever in the ocean. The book has real life pictures of sharks and plenty of details about them all.

[Andrea Bragdon · Rating 5 out of 5]

Amazing pictures and information about sharks! Great text to use for information or a research project. I use similar books for my third graders during our information writing unit.

[Jeannie Reveal · Rating 5 out of 5]

Just like the name this book gives details about many different types of sharks. This is great for kids who want to learn about different species, my kids love this book.

[Connor Krawczynski · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a great book that can be used to teach students about sharks.

[Class 501 · Rating 5 out of 5]

My review on this book is; I never knew the great white shark had it's own movie named jaws and I also did not know they lay eggs and been here 400 million years ago and I knew the whale shark was not the only biggest shark 400 million years ago there was a shark bigger than the whale shark named the Megladon it's called that because it's the mega shark bigger then a t-rex and whale shark it swallows everything whole except the t-rex. A shark can feel a injured fish 30,000 feet away a shark can smell tiny bits of blood and track it down it does not matter how far it will still track it down. A shark can hear a injured fish thrashing away a shark is so fast it will catch the fish. Here's a few tips to protect yourself from a shark: 1. Do not swim in where sharks have been seen, in places garbage or waste are dumped. 2. Always swim in group. Sharks attack single people. 3. if you have a cut stay out of the water until it stops bleeding. 4. Remove jewelry before you go swimming, sharks likely to attack bright or shiny objects. 5. Do not panic! tuck your arms and legs towards your body and try your best not to move the more you splash around the more interested the shark will be in you. By D'Angelo St. Arrommand

[Heidi Garner · Rating 4 out of 5]

Seymour Simon's "Sharks" was written with the intent of informing readers about the many characteristics of sharks, in hopes of raising awareness and decreasing fear of sharks. Simon talks about the fact that sharks rarely bite humans and when they do it is because they are confusing the humans for seals or sea lions. This book is full of information about sharks appearances, mating habits, diets, births, etc. This book also includes a lot of the scientific vocabulary.This book also includes a lot pictures of different sharks, not just great whites or tiger sharks, like are normally seen.
I think this book would be a great resource for a research project that students could complete during a lesson about animals. This book will help broaden students vocabulary, as well as their knowledge base on sharks. This book would be best in 3-5 classrooms because of the more complex vocabulary terms and different concepts that it addresses. This book would also be a good one to have in your classroom library because many students would benefit from and enjoy reading it.

[Brigid Sullivan]

This informational text discusses sharks. It is a picture book for young to older elementary students. There is a fascination with sharks for people at any age. My Kindergartners and I read this book and they were really into it! Even the ones that have a fear of sharks (myself included) are intrigued by these beasts of the ocean. This book discusses the shark body, different types of sharks, shark babies, people and sharks and sharks as predators. It is a perfect book to use to talk about the Table of Contents, non fiction, titles and headings and supporting evidence and details.

This could be incorporated into a science unit on predators, water life, ancient animals, adaptations, or people's interactions with their environment. You could also use it in a lesson about previewing a book by taking a picture walk through the book first before reading.

[Corkery]

What was good about the book?
It gave me more information on sharks wich helped me learn more.This book also helped me learn about sharks having no bones and that they have something called cartillage.This book helped in learning much.

Describe the characters or the main idea.
The main idea was on sharks life's.It talks about the things that sharks eat.It talks about their weakness.

Explain the audience of the book(ages,interests)
There were no humans only sharks.I guess this makes sharks the main characters.This book is for people who like and want to learn about sharks.

Osvaldo Nunez

[Kendall Kraiss · Rating 4 out of 5]

I actually observed a first grade student read this book and it was a perfect book for that grade level. He really liked the book and he was able to comprehend the information. The pictures provided were good because they support the text very well. I was surprised about how much information their are about sharks. I (21 years old) learned so much about sharks just by reading this elementary school level book. Amazing what is available to kids today.

[Sheryl Smith · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a geat bilingual book, going/coming from either language, Spanish or English. There is enough of the easy common words, with the introduction of some specific words having to do with sharks.

Very cool pictures!!!

[Deanna Sutter · Rating 4 out of 5]

We really liked this book. The book we read was from the "Smithsonian" series however, so I don't know if the pictures are different in that edition. The cover is different at any rate. Lots of good information and GREAT pictures.

[Cyndi · Rating 4 out of 5]

My nephew is not a fan of reading, but he really liked this book. The back cover has pictures of covers of books on other topics and he told me that we need to tell his dad to get those books for him.

[Tricia · Rating 3 out of 5]

Photographs make this book...especially after as many as we have read in the past 6 months. Geared to elementary-school aged.

[Andrew Lefevre · Rating 5 out of 5]

I like the shark book because it has many pictures. The whale shark is my favorite.

[Dj · Rating 5 out of 5]

So much information. did you know sharks don't have any bones

[Alexis cardenas]

it was interastinqq

[Eric · Rating 3 out of 5]

My son has made me read this book many times. He is always asking what does this say, what does that say. He really enjoys this book.

[Deserie · Rating 4 out of 5]

Just always enjoy Seymour Simon's nonfiction. Learned a couple things about sharks. Appreciated the facts he included.

[Theresa · Rating 3 out of 5]

Breif informational story

[Austin · Rating 5 out of 5]

Sharks are a type of fish that are very dangerous. The most dangerous shark is the Great White Shark. The friendliest sharks are the whale sharks which have huge mouths.

[Mr. Coomey teacher · Rating 5 out of 5]

I thought this book ws freaky but awesome because I LOVE !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! sharks.

[Gracie]

I need to read this book some how

[Sarah · Rating 5 out of 5]

It's a little freaky but it's awesome!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!