Special Collections
Fountas & Pinnell Leveled Literacy Intervention (LLI) Purple System Grade 5
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Two of a Kind
by Allen MogolWhat's It Like to Have an Identical Twin? Imagine having another person in the world who looks like you, acts like you, and even thinks like you. That's what life is like for some identical twins. Can they read each other's minds? If they're separated at birth, do they follow the same path in life? Find out the answers to these questions and more in this look at the fascinating world of identical twins.
Elijah McCoy
by Kate FosterAgainst the Odds. How can one person make over fifty inventions in a single lifetime? He's got to be the best--the real McCoy! Meet Elijah McCoy, mechanical engineer and inventor extraordinaire. Find out how the son of escaped slaves used his unusual talents to overcome discrimination and become an important inventor of his time.
Fighting Fake Money
by Kate ForsterFAKING IT. In Australia, criminal masterminds were making their own fake cash. People were becoming suspicious. How could they be sure that any money was genuine? Something had to be done. Find out how Australians outsmarted the criminals and changed money forever.
Moe Berg
by John PerritanoThe Spy in a Baseball Cap. Moe Berg's story is the stuff of legend. He played professional baseball in the United States from 1923 to 1939 and was one of the game's more colorful characters. He also was an attorney who spoke at least ten different languages. But Berg had a secret, too--he was a spy for the U.S. government.
Delectable Insects
by Zoë KashnerEating Insects. We eat mammals, like cows and pigs. We eat fish. We even eat birds, like chickens and turkeys. Why, then, is it so hard to imagine eating insects? While insects are not a typical part of the European or American diet, they are a regular--and delicious-- part of the human diet in other parts of the world. Find out what's so great about eating insects and why it might be something you'll want to try.
Farming in the City
by Mia LewisThe Perks of Being a City Gardener. Living in the city doesn't mean you have to go without a vegetable garden. It just means you have to garden smart and find creative ways to grow more plants in less space. If you do, you'll be rewarded with flavorful, healthy, environmentally friendly, and fresh food--plus what many city gardeners say is a great sense of accomplishment!
The Book No One Has Ever Read
by Betsy ThomasSecret Code? In the early 1900s, a very rare book was found. It was written in a secret alphabet and filled with strange drawings. If only someone could read it! What messages might be hidden in its mysterious pages?
Dreamfields
by Mia LewisDreaming Big. While South Africa was getting ready to host the 2010 World Cup, an organization called Dreamfields was working to give South African children a chance to play more and better soccer. Playing soccer is fun, and fun has benefits. "Happy kids make for happy schools, and happy schools are good places for learning," says Dreamfields founder, John Perlman.
The Google Team
by Lisa BenjaminA Wildly Successful Website. The statistics are stunning. One billion people use it each month. It makes almost $40 billion a year. It is available in dozens of different languages, and you can use it to track down anything, from sports scores to cake recipes. Welcome to the world of Google--the most popular search engine ever. But who dreamed up this amazing site? Meet Larry Page and Sergey Brin, and find out how they started Google and changed the way we search online.
Chili Peppers
by Darius TulyFiery Food. Habaneros and jalapeños... these hot peppers will burn your mouth. Yet they aren't even close to being the world's hottest chili peppers. Some of those will set your insides on fire, but people want to eat them anyway. Nature has created some truly extreme peppers. Can you stand the heat?
Robots in Space
by Kathleen Krull and Paul BrewerA Solution in Space. Space travel is exciting--seeing what other planets look like, finding out about the origins of the universe, and creating brand-new technologies. But sending a manned mission out into deep space presents huge risks and obstacles. A solution is here: robots. They can take our place in space, and in fact, we've already sent robots to explore the planet Mars. Robots are probably the only way that earthlings will ever get to see what is out there--way, way out there!
The Power of Red
by Sarah BrockettAn Unlikely Treasure. One of the world's greatest treasures of all time might surprise you. Adventurers traveled around the world to find it, and it led people to start a New World in the Americas. It wasn't gold, jewels, or clothes. It was the color red.
Fireworks!
by Paul WinterThe Sound of Celebration. A high-pitched whistle pierces the quiet night, and the spectators hold their breath. Soon a resounding boom will rock the ground beneath their feet, and the sky will light up in a dazzling display of color. For millennia, fireworks have held the world's attention. Discover how an accidental explosion set off a love of fireworks that continues to this day.
Big Problems
by Mia LewisA two-liter soda bottle filled with water lights up the inside of a dim house. Now the family can get work done, save money, and stay safe. This idea may be small, but it really works! Learn how three simple solutions are chipping away at some of the world's biggest problems, one step at a time.
Contagious Yawning
by Alexis BurlingYawning Can Be Contagious. Even if you weren't sleepy at the time, you can probably remember a time when you yawned soon after seeing someone else yawn. If so, you're not alone. Plenty of people, along with some primate species and dogs, have experienced a phenomenon known as "contagious yawning." Finding out the reasons why will definitely not put you to sleep.
The Stories Shoes Tell
by Nancy WhiteShoes talk. From athletic shoes to five-inch heels, from baseball cleats to flip-flops, the kinds of shoes people wear say a lot about who they are and who they want to be. Even shoes from thousands of years ago have stories to tell about the people who wore them.
The Shackleton Expedition
by Laura JohnsonThe advertisement that Ernest Shackleton wrote to attract workers to his expedition to Antarctica began with the words, "Men wanted for hazardous journey". Neither he nor any of those responded had any idea that their trip to the bottom of the world would become one of the greatest survival stories in history.
The Stones of Yap
by Jacqueline AdamsOn the islands of Yap, people use money that seems strange to outsiders. It doesn't look like any other kind of money in the world, and some of it is so heavy that its owners can't even take it home with them. But this money is so valuable that many men risked their lives to get it.
The Mystery of the Vasa
by Barbara FiermanFor hundreds of years the sinking of the Swedish warship Vasa was an unsolved mystery. But when a Swedish amateur archaeologist named Anders Franzen let his curiosity get the best of him, he was motivated to solve the mystery. This book describes the salvage and preservation of the Swedish warship Vasa that sank in Stockholm harbor on her maiden voyage in 1628.
The Sweet History of Cake
by Carmen MoraisWhen did people first start eating cake? What makes it fluffy? And why do most of us love it so much? Find out these facts and more when you grab a slice of information about the history of cake.
From Rocky Waters to a Smooth Finish
by Helen ScullyBorn dark-skinned in South Africa and with a missing hip joint, Neal Petersen faced many challenges to achieve his dream of sailing around the world.
What You Should Know About...Pets
by Nancy WhitePets play an important role in the lives of many people. Animals provide unconditional love, hours of entertainment, and valuable companionship. Learning more about their lives isn't just fascinating, its important. Discover what a dog many really be saying with its wagging tail and why a cat needs its whiskers in this in depth look at the animals that share our homes.
Bananas
by Terry ShannonBananas are one of the most popular fruits in the world, but it wasn't always that way. They were unknown by most people until two men figured out how to get the exotic fruit from the tropics to North American tables.