The Sun: Our Nearest Star

Let's-Read-and-Find-Out Science, Stage 2

by Franklyn Mansfield Branley, Edward Miller (Illustrator)

Read and find out about the sun in this colorfully illustrated nonfiction picture book. The sun brings heat, warmth, and energy to the Earth. What is the sun made of? How big is it? How far away? Read and find out!  This is a clear and appealing science book for early elementary age kids, both at home and in the classroom. It's a Level 2 Let's-Read-and-Find-Out, which means the book explores more challenging concepts for children in the primary grades. The 100+ titles in this leading nonfiction series are: Top 10 reasons to love LRFOs: Books in this series support the Common Core Learning Standards, Next Generation Science Standards, and the Science, Technology, Engineering, and Math (STEM) standards. Let's-Read-and-Find-Out is the winner of the American Association for the Advancement of Science/Subaru Science Books & Films Prize for Outstanding Science Series.

Genres: Science, Space, Nonfiction, Picture Books, Childrens, 1st Grade, Astronomy

32 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1961

Reviews

[Katie Fitzgerald · Rating 4 out of 5]

This simple book explains that our sun is a star, that it is far away and hot, and that living things need sunshine to survive. It's just right for a preschooler, as it has visually appealing illustrations and very simple and repetitive text.

[Myles · Rating 1 out of 5]

I already knew all the things about the sun.

[Diana · Rating 1 out of 5]

Oh, you had to take a perfectly good, readable book about the sun and add in stuff about the Earth being millions of years old and dinosaurs turning into coal. Not proven, folks, and there's good science disproving it. By doing so, you portrayed theory as fact, making this a book I can't recommend. Too bad, really, because it really good up until those last few pages!

[Megan · Rating 3 out of 5]

Has some great, however outdated at this point information about the sun. Also, the Dinosaur pages were out of place in a story about the sun. Not because EvOlUtIoN iSn'T ReAl or EaRtH iS oNlY 5000 YeArS old. It's out of place because it tries tying fossil fuels to solar energy in a very bizarre way that isn't needed in a early childhood science book.

[Two Hearts Homeschool · Rating 2 out of 5]

Not a patch on the old (vintage) Let’s-Read-And-Find-Out-About science texts. Terrible illustrations, bland text - this kind of book says much about how mainstream society views children ie they’re not worth the effort. Definitely not a living book.

[Karen Dransfield · Rating 5 out of 5]

(2023) Let's Read and Find Out Science books. Stage 2.
The sun and space, stars and where things are and how they work. A lovely story. I'm working on some learning units and reading a range of picture books looking for stories to use.

[Jamie Call · Rating 3 out of 5]

Informational Text
This book is cute and the illustrations help students identify with and remember the information. This is a great informational read-aloud book for young children.

[Rachael Olson · Rating 3 out of 5]

Informational - Great comparisons to understand how far or hot the sun is. Simple and concise.

[Allen · Rating 3 out of 5]

Nice, short, informative.

[Michael Fitzgerald · Rating 4 out of 5]

Interesting illustrations. Very simple text, bordering on See Spot Run. One of the easiest in this series.

[Willow · Rating 3 out of 5]

Has a few pages of evolutionary content.

[Megan B. · Rating 4 out of 5]

Between 3-4 stars. Decent enough information.

[Kristiana · Rating 4 out of 5]

“Millions of years”

[Heather · Rating 5 out of 5]

45 months - this series is wonderful for introducing small kids to new science concepts in a simple and fun way in picture book format. This one explains how the earth rotates around the sun and how this gives us day and night, seasons, alters the length of the day over the year all using an orange, pencil and flashlight.

[Jasmin Garcia · Rating 5 out of 5]

I really, really liked this book. It's a book about the sun and how the sun is one of our greatest resources. It talks about solar energy, the sun being a star, how we need the sun to live, etc. I would use this book as a science intro to studying about the sun and it's valuable resources to our planet.

[Robin Heimann · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a great informational book for young students. It would be a good book to use to incorporate math lessons with. It discusses time, distances, and compares different sizes. It has a couple of experiments in the back that would be good to use in the classroom.

[Hatka Kecalovic · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book is The Sun: Our Nearest Star by Franklyn M. Barnley. This book can be used in Kindergarten to 2 grade classrooms. This book provides facts about the Sun. The book also focuses on the Sun's effects on plant growth.

[Stephanie Ung · Rating 4 out of 5]

I would use this book when talking about plants and the solar system. It works both ways because this book talks a lot about the effect the sun has on Earth as well as the characteristics it contains.

[Taylor Anderson · Rating 5 out of 5]

This text is all about the sun! Because it provides so many facts, the main writing trait evident is voice (to inform). This could be used as an authentic text to introduce a science lesson, could be used in a text set about the sun or about planets.

[Samantha Penrose · Rating 5 out of 5]

Beautifully illustrated and expertly explained. I found this book to be suitable for my 5 1/2 year old....

[Christine Turner · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a non-fiction book in a picture book format.

I love this book because it would love well for many age groups. I read it during my family storytime and the kids seemed to really like it.

[Debra]

K - 2

The Sun - How Large - How Far - How Hot

[Kathryn Joyce · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great book about the sun for grades k-2. Teaches how hot and the distance away. Nice for a mini lesson.

[Ashly Roman · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book explains how important the sun is without getting into complicated science terms that kids may not understand.

[Rebecca Ray · Rating 4 out of 5]

Used with Apologia Astronomy chapter 2 on the sun. The children found the illustrations great, especially drawing showing the distances between the earth, moon and sun.

[Jessica · Rating 3 out of 5]

A good learn and find out book.

[Kayla Nannariello]

1) Awards: none

2) Age Range: 5-8

3) Summary: This book gives basic facts about the sun

4) Review: I enjoyed the fact that it read more like a story than just straight facts. I think it would be a good book to incorporate into a science lesson

5) In Class Use: This book can be read during a science lesson about the sun