Ready, Set . . . WAIT!: What Animals Do Before a Hurricane

Earth Systems & Human Activity

by Patti R. Zelch, Connie McLennan (Illustrator)

Hurricane . . . just the word brings to mind the power of these natural disasters. Humans watch the news and know of impending arrival. We board up windows and gather supplies. We might huddle in our homes or go inland. Then we wait for the storm to arrive. But what do wild animals do? Do they know when a storm is coming? If so, how do they prepare? This book explains how nine animals sense, react, and prepare for a hurricane. Based on research or observations, the brief portraits are explained in simple, poetic language for children of all ages.

Genres: Nonfiction, Science, Animals, Picture Books

32 pages, Hardcover

First published August 10, 2010

Reviews

[Tatiana Affemann · Rating 4 out of 5]

Ready Set... WAIT! was a nonfiction book about what animals do in order to prepare for hurricanes. This book was a great discovery, in my opinion! It gives students an overview of what different kinds of animals do including fish, dolphins, birds, crocodiles, butterflies, and rabbits. I loved that it included various kinds of animals in its descriptions, as it allows students to gain a lot of information on how differently animals prepare for a natural disaster. The book also gave a description of hurricanes with key vocabulary, and even included a map of where the most hurricanes occur. Lastly, it finishes with telling how students and their families might prepare for hurricanes and some other fun facts at the end of the book.

I think that this book would be really fun to tie into various different implementations within the classroom. I would love to begin any lesson including this story with a read aloud to the entire class. For one lesson, I would give students the opportunity to choose the fishbone organizer we have used within the class and then students have to answer the 5 W's and an H. Students would have to come up with different questions about the text while/after reading and then use textual evidence to support their answer. Another implementation I would like to do one day is to use the book to help them create an "action plan" for one of the animals (or humans) to help them prepare for a hurricane using step by step instructions based on the information they learned about in the book.

This book was a WOW book due to its ability to put complex information about a natural disaster into an engaging format going through each different animal listed and how they prepare for hurricanes. I think that this style helps students get excited about how animals prepare for something, just like them, and want to learn more about the information in the book. I also think that this is an incredibly relevant book because it allows students to learn about a phenomenon which they experience regularly since we live in an environment which is prone to hurricanes. Therefore, students can learn more about hurricanes and get information about them in a non scary way by discussing animals also go through the preparation too. I have always personally wondered about what animals do during hurricanes so this was very informational for an adult too! Students would love to hear about hurricanes from animal's perspective, and there are so many ways to implement this WOW book that I can not wait for!

[Suzanne · Rating 3 out of 5]

As a family prepares for a hurricane, a young boy wonders what animals do before and during the storms. The first few pages show the family gathering supplies and putting up storm shutters, and then the following pages show various animals and how they react to the approaching hurricane. From fish sheltering deep in coral to butterflies finding a hollow tree, animals on land and in the water all find a safe place to ride out the storm. The final spread of the waves and wind hitting the beach and blowing the palm trees will remind young readers of coverage from the Weather Channel or local news. Back matter includes an description of what a hurricane is, there it a map showing locations that are affected by hurricanes around the world, an explanation of how storm winds are measured, a guide to preparation for a hurricane, and a discussion of the animal behavior shown in the book and how scientists know what animals do.

[Chelsea · Rating 5 out of 5]

Wonderful little book you can read to and with children. Even I, an adult, learned some new things. Gives me hope for the animals caught in a hurricane. I highly recommend it.

[ACS Book-finder · Rating 4 out of 5]

What do animals do when a hurricane is coming? That is what this book discusses. It talks about people and how they get prepared as well as many animals in and out of the ocean.

This book is best for younger children. Although, there is a lot of informative information that would be helpful to adults even at the end of the story.

I recommend this book for younger children. It is a great book that describes hurricanes in a "not so scary" way.

DISCLOSURE: A complimentary copy was provided by Arbordale Publishing to facilitate this review. Opinions expressed are solely those of the reviewer. No compensation was received for this review.

[DelGal · Rating 4 out of 5]

The actual story in this book is "so-so", but the illustrations and the section in the back of the book entitled "For Creative Minds" is a wonderful addition to this book that goes beyond mere fun story time and provides great information for children on what to expect during a hurricane. There's plenty of easy to understand information for younger readers and a bit more advanced subject matter for older ones too.

[AnnieM · Rating 5 out of 5]

Storm prep is something humans suck at. We complain we didn't know a storm was coming, or we need more warning. Meanwhile animals just know. Lots of great information on how to prepare for a storm as well as the different types tropical storms.

[Abby Johnson · Rating 2 out of 5]

I was hoping for more information from this slight book, but it turns out the we don't know a whole lot yet about how animals know hurricanes are coming. Animals take shelter. I'm not sure I needed a whole book about it.

[Alice · Rating 4 out of 5]

Another great non-fiction narrative. We get ready for a storm but what about wild animals... According to this book "THEY KNOW"

In the back it offer tips about preparing for a storm and some weather experiments!

[Dana · Rating 3 out of 5]

The most interesting part of the book is the nonfiction material at the back.