Who Lives in an Alligator Hole?

by Anne Rockwell, Lizzy Rockwell (Illustrator)

Overview

Read and find out about aligators in this colorfully illustrated nonfiction picture book.

Scientists consider alligators a "keystone species"—the most important animal in their habitat. Without the alligator, many animals dependent on the gator would become extinct. Read and find out about how alligators are much more than big jaws and sharp teeth!

This clear and appealing science book for early elementary age kids, both at home and in the classroom, gives interesting information about American alligators while highlighting how they became an endangered species and what is being done to preserve them and their habitat. 

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:

• hands-on and visual
• acclaimed and trusted
• great for classrooms

Top 10 reasons to love LRFOs:

• Entertain and educate at the same time
• Have appealing, child-centered topics
• Developmentally appropriate for emerging readers
• Focused; answering questions instead of using survey approach
• Employ engaging picture book quality illustrations
• Use simple charts and graphics to improve visual literacy skills
• Feature hands-on activities to engage young scientists
• Meet national science education standards
• Written/illustrated by award-winning authors/illustrators & vetted by an expert in the field
• Over 130 titles in print, meeting a wide range of kids' scientific interests

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.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780064452007
Publisher:	HarperCollins
Publication date:	11/07/2006
Series:	Let's Read and Find Out Science Series: Level 2
Pages:	40
Sales rank:	591,621
Product dimensions:	10.00(w) x 8.00(h) x (d)
Lexile:	AD780L (what's this?)
Age Range:	5 - 8 Years

About the Author

Anne Rockwell was a pioneer in the field of nonfiction for very young children. She has more than a hundred books to her credit, including Why Are the Ice Caps Melting? and Clouds in the Let’s-Read-and-Find-Out Science series.

Anne and Lizzy Rockwell have collaborated on all the Mrs. Madoff books, including St. Patrick's Day and Presidents' Day, and Who Lives in an Alligator Hole? in the Let's-Read-and-Find-Out Science series. Lizzy is the author-illustrator of Good Enough to Eat, The Busy Body Book, The All-Together Quilt, and How Do You Feel? Lizzy lives in Connecticut.

Editorial Reviews

Gr 2-4-Introductory titles with an environmentalist point of view. The first book offers facts about alligators and their habitat, followed by discussions of why they began to disappear, how their environment changed, and what has been done to save American alligators. Readers are asked to think of ways to save those in China, which continue to be endangered. An activity is included. Ice Caps discusses the need for balance in nature, the greenhouse effect, and what can be done to help combat global warming. In both books, the information is detailed, but not overwhelming. However, the absence of chapters might hinder their use for reports. Colorful illustrations provide details that support the texts.-Christine Markley, Washington Elementary School, Barto, PA Copyright 2006 Reed Business Information.

School Library Journal

Rockwell's latest Let's Read and Find Out introduces readers to alligators and the role they play in their habitat. While she also addresses the positive and negative ways people have had an impact on the alligator population over the years, her focus is on alligator holes-places where alligators have thrashed through the damp muck overlying a limestone pit, which then fills with underground water. In these watering holes, dormant fish and insects lay their eggs, attracting the animals that feed on them. Birds drop the seeds that grow to provide food and shelter for even more. By changing the habitat for its own use, the alligator has helped other species survive, so it's called a keystone species. A non-reading child would be able to get much of the text's information from Lizzy Rockwell's pictures alone. Her lifelike (and labeled) illustrations could be used to identify animals in the wild. A follow-up activity demonstrates how alligator holes provide water in the dry season. Finally, a list of gator facts is provided. A good introduction to alligators, reptiles and endangered species. (Nonfiction. 5-9)

Kirkus Reviews