Engineering in My Community

Engineering in My Community” is packed with colourful photos and limited text presenting engaging examples of the connections between Science, Technology, Engineering, the Arts, and Math.

The format of the book is very visually appealing. Photos show males and females of a variety of ages, ethnicities, and abilities demonstrating engineers and engineering in action. Engineering in My Community includes examples of familiar things in our communities that help us move, work, play and live better. Some of the examples are bridges, ramps, recycling containers, and schools. Kudos to Crabtree Publishing for including a Canadian flag flying over the photograph of a school building.

Each book in “Engineering Everywhere” includes “Words to Know”, a short index, and “STEAM Notes for Educators”. The notes outline activities intended to guide teachers and parents/caregivers to extend the ideas in the book. Worksheets to support the activities in “Engineering in My Community” are found at www.crabtreebooks.com/resources/printables. These worksheets help student build a growth mindset: “when we learn from mistakes and do not give up, it is called ‘growth mindset’”. The link to www.crabtreeplus.com/fullsteamahead is not working at the time of this review.

The other three titles in “Engineering Everywhere” are What Does an Engineer Do?, Mistakes Help Us Learn, and How Engineers Solve Problems. All of the books in the series are well-suited to primary students. The basic information in the set of four books is consistent but presented with a slightly different focus. It is worth purchasing the entire set if possible.