Want to spark your child’s interest in science, technology, engineering, and math? Do you have a child who is fascinated by coding but you don’t know the first thing about it? Check out this list of STEM books from Lowell’s librarians!
These are some of the newest and most popular books now out on STEM-related topics and featured at Lowell's 2016 STEMFest. Our librarians combed journals and library lists and consulted teachers to find these inspiring titles for kids in preschool, elementary school and middle school.
Lowell Librarians—Annette Davis, Melissa Hill, and Christine McDaniels—hope you find something for your child here. Enjoy!
A STEM BOOKLIST (from picture books to YA and beyond)
Baby Elephant in the Wild
by Caitlin O’Connell
level: Picture Book
Come On, Rain!
by Karen Hesse
level: Picture Book
Fossils Tell of Long Ago
by Aliki
level: Picture Book
Aircraft (Amazing Inventions)
by Mary Elizabeth Salzmann
level: Preschool–Kindergarten
Seedlings Jets
by Kate Riggs
level: Preschool–Kindergarten
And Everyone Shouted, "Pull!": A First Look at Forces and Motion
by Claire Llewellyn
level: Preschool-1st grade
Assistant Librarian Annette Davis, who comes from a family of engineers and physicists, says this about And Everyone Shouted, “Pull!”: “This is a great read aloud. The story format teaches the concepts both explicitly and intuitively. It’s absolutely for everyone!”
The Best Book of Spaceships
by Ian Graham
level: Kindergarten–1st grade
Infinity and Me
by Kate Hosford
level: Picture Book
National Geographic Kids First Big Book of Space
by Catherine D. Hughes
level: 1st–4th grades
What Is Computer Coding?
by Mary K. Pratt
level: 2nd–4th grades
Bicycle Book
by Gail Gibbons
level: 2nd-5th grades
Ivan: The Remarkable True Story of the Shopping Mall Gorilla
by Katherine Applegate
level: 2nd–5th grades
Tortuga Squad: Kids Saving Sea Turtle in Costa Rica
by Cathleen Burnham
level: 3rd grade and up
Could a Robot Make My Dinner?: And other questions about Technology
by Kay Barnham
level: 3rd-5th grades
Marveling at Minerals
by Sally M. Walker
level: 3rd–5th grades
Super Cool Chemical Reaction Activities with Max Axiom
by Agnieszka Biskup
level: 3rd–6th grades
You Wouldn't Want to Live Without Fire!
by Professor Alex Woolf
level: 3rd–6th grades
Ancient Earth Journal: The Early Cretaceous: Notes, drawings and observations from prehistory
by Juan Carlos Alonso
level: 4th and up
The Walking Fish
by Kopel Burk and Rachelle Burk
level: 4th and up
Potato Clocks and Solar Cars: Renewable and Nonrenewable Energy
by Elizabeth Raum
level: 4th–5th grades
A Million Dots
by Andrew Clements
level: 4th–6th grades
Aerospace Engineer Aprille Ericsson
by Laura Hamilton Waxman
level: 4th–7th grades
Bigfoot and Adaptation
by Terry Collins
level: 4th–7th grades
Mummies and Sound (Monster Science)
by Anthony Wacholtz
level: 4th–7th grades
Nintendo Video Game Designer Shigeru Miyamoto
by Kari Cornell
level: 4th–7th grades
Go Figure!: Big Questions About Numbers
by Johnny Ball
level: 4th–8th grades
Magnificent Minds: 16 Pioneering Women in Science and Medicine
by Pendred E. Noyce
level: 5th grade and up
Mystery of Life: How Nothing Became Everything
by Jan Paul Schutten
level: 5th and up
What Middle School Librarian Melissa Hill loves about The Mystery of Life: “The author explains concepts like the big bang and evolution in clear, often playful language. The illustrations and diagrams are beautiful and at times really funny. The author also provides endnotes, showing how carefully he researched his material. A great read for parents, too!”
Discoveries in Medicine that Changed the World
by Rose Johnson
level: 5th–8th grades
Inside Biosphere 2 Earth Science Under Glass
by Mary Kay Carson
level: 5th–8th grades
Breakthrough: How Three People Saved “Blue Babies” and Changed Medicine Forever
by Jim Murphy
level: 6th–8th grade
This book is another one of Melissa Hill’s favorites: “Jim Murphy’s books read like thrillers, and Breakthrough is no exception. Murphy shows how physicians worked to discover a way to repair a fatal heart defect in infants; what’s fascinating is the way he sheds light on how Vivien Thomas (an African American medical assistant who was at times mistaken for a janitor) patiently developed the groundbreaking technique that saved babies’ lives.”
Chocolate: Sweet Science & Dark Secrets of the World's Favorite Treat
by Kay Frydenborg
level: 6th–8th grades
Knowledge Encyclopedia
by DK
level: 7th grade and up
Lonely Planet Discover Costa Rica (Travel Guide)
by Lonely Planet
level: 8th grade and up
