Welcome to STEM Tuesday: Author Interview, a fun feature for the last Tuesday of every month. Go Science-Tech-Engineering-Math!

Got a little tickle in your throat? Nose running? We’re all familiar with the common cold, the ferocious flu, and all kinds of illnesses, but did you know that animals struggle with sick days, too? It’s true!

In Sick!: The Twists and Turns Behind Animal Germs, Heather Montgomery explores different stories of animals getting sick: what causes it, how they get better, and what we can learn from it. Let’s take a look!

Andi Diehn: I love all your examples of scientists collaborating – does this happen often in the science world?

AD: In each chapter you do a fantastic job of breaking down the scientific process into real steps taken by the scientists – discovery, hypothesis, research, testing, conclusions, and beyond. Why include all these stages?

HM: The research for this book opened my eyes to the fun and value of each stage of the scientific process. Most of us (myself included) have a favorite part, but—just like discoveries are made possible by a team of people—new understandings of our world are made possible thanks to the every stage of the process.

AD: I love this quote: “One scientific study doesn’t give us an answer—it gives us a piece of the puzzle.” Why is this an important concept for kids to understand?

HM: Because the human mind likes clarity, we can all fall into the trap of believing that one study, statistic, or statement is THE answer—especially if it supports what we already believe. But science isn’t about belief. It is about asking questions, collecting evidence, and probing deeper into the puzzles of our world.

AD: This paragraph was wonderful: “And the reason we now understand the power of camel anti- bodies? Not a bunch of experts doling out answers. Nope. It was students asking genuine questions. Students who pushed them- selves past the same old easy experiment. Students who embraced a challenge, then challenged our understanding of mammal antibodies.” What do you hope kids take away from this paragraph?

HM: Anyone can participate in science! As a child I remember thinking that all the fun science was done. That we had all the answers, that all the facts had been figured out, and that all the best discoveries had been made. Of course, that couldn’t be further from the truth. All a discovery really needs is a solid question and a brave someone to follow where it leads.

AD: The story of Chausiku the chimp was fascinating – it made me realize how much we still don’t know about the world. Why might kids find this inspiring?

HM: Animals are awesome! And their “knowledge” of the world—whether that be innate, learned, or some other form our big brains can’t understand—is fascinating. What if we could sense the world as a chimp can? What if we could know what an ant knows? Kids don’t let preconceived ideas of what we can and can’t do stop them. And that is pretty awesome, too.

AD: The chapter about vultures was just one example of my whole understanding of bacteria being turned on its head! How do scientists keep their minds open to all the possible causalities and correlations? What can students learn from this?

HM: Right?! We have this idea (this bias) of what is “bad” and what is “good.” When a scientific discovery flips that idea over, it’s like flipping a rock and finding a whole world underneath it. And when that kind of discovery comes from the belly of a buzzard, you can’t help but dive in and explore!

AD: Symbiotic relationships with bacteria – this feels like a very new way to think about our bodies and the world around us. How long have scientists been exploring this concept?

HM: In the early 1900s, scientists were hypothesizing that mitochondria (the power houses in our cells) were of microbial origin. But where was the evidence? Sixty years later Lynn Margulis proposed that the cell is actually a community of microbes. It wasn’t combat, she said, but networking that allowed complex life to thrive. Her peers considered her a radical. It wasn’t until we developed more advanced genetic tools—and saw that the DNA in mitochondria is different than the DNA of the cell the mitochondria is in—that this concept of symbiosis within a cell took hold. And now we are seeing it everywhere!

AD: I know you touch on this in your author’s note, but what was your inspiration to write about animal germs?

HM: In 2020 when the world was in lockdown thanks to a “germ,” I needed some hope. One day I realized that every animal species still surviving on this planet had survived an epidemic. How? So I dug into databases, Zoom-interviewed cool scientists, and started drafting. I got so deep into the science that I churned out a book too complex for my audience. Three years later, after scrapping the second half of that draft (don’t worry, I squirreled it away to use later), it all came together as Sick!: The Twists and Turns Behind Animal Germs.

Heather Montgomery’s interest in nature led to a B.S. in Biology and an M.S. in Environmental Education. For years she developed curriculum and directed the McDowell Environmental Center. Later, she taught in the classroom, directed summer camps, and finally discovered writing! She’s published 18 books for young people and owes much of her publishing knowledge to the Society of Children’s Book Writers and Illustrators, particularly the Southern Breeze Region.

The post STEM Tuesday — Pests that Bug Us — Author Interview appeared first on From The Mixed Up Files.

• • The Origami Resource Center has many free patterns. https://origami-resource-center.com/origami-insects/

• • Downloadable scholarly article called Into the Fold by Yong-Lak Park and Jeff Bradshaw. Using the art of paper folding to stimulate an interest in insect diversity and morphology. https://www.researchgate.net/publication/262826782_Insect_Origami_Into_the_Fold

• • More insect patterns here. “I (c)Ant Believe How Complex and Realistic these Origami Insects Look!”  https://origami.me/insects-3/

The post STEM Tuesday — Pests that Bug Us — Writing Tips and Resources appeared first on From The Mixed Up Files.

Leeches, bedbugs, and plagues! These books focus on some of the plants, pests, and parasites that share our home and, in some cases, our body. The possibilities are endless for bug-filled classroom discussions and activities!

Plagues and Pandemics (History Smashers) by Kate Messner

A mix of conversational text and graphic panels takes readers on a world-wide tour of the best-known plagues and pandemics from ancient times to our current era. Highlights include the black death, smallpox, cholera, polio, Ebola, SARS, and Covid 19. The final chapter explores how to prevent the next pandemic.

Classroom Activity

Assign each student (or a small group of students) a pandemic or plague-causing microbe to research. Ask them to investigate their microbe using library resources or the Internet. Using the information they have learned, have the students created a “Most Wanted” poster for their assigned microbe. Have them include photos and/or drawings, scientific name, common name, symptoms, how it spreads, how to stop it, and more.

Itch!: Everything You Didn’t Want to Know About What Makes You Scratch by Anita Sanchez

To understand why things itch, we need to understand how skin reacts to stings and bites. This book includes the usual buggy suspects as well as plants with spines, needles, and poisons. Readers will learn how to identify poison ivy, how fleas leap, and how bedbugs talk to each other and they will find non-toxic alternatives for treatment.

Classroom Activity

When you have an itch, there are a variety of suspects that could be to blame. Is it a mosquito bite or a brush with poison ivy or something else? Let’s find out! Assign each student an itch-causing suspect, from bugs to plants to poisons. Have students research their itchy suspects using the Internet and/or library. Using the information they learn, students should create a set of clues to the identify of the itchy suspect. Have students read the clues to the class and see if the class can identify the itch-causing culprit.

What’s Eating You? Parasites – The Inside Story by Nicola Davies, illustrated by Neal Layton

You are a habitat to (potentially) more than 430 kinds of parasites! Text, accompanied by graphic panels, explores the lives of ticks, fleas, and other parasites that live on your body surface, the tapeworms, hookworms, and roundworms that live inside you, and some of the defenses your body uses against them.

Classroom Activity

How much do you know about parasites? Have students use this book and other resources to learn about parasites. How do people become infected with parasites? Where can parasites live in the human body? What body parts can parasites infect? What are the signs and symptoms of parasites? How can you reduce the risk of getting parasites? Have students use what they have learned to create a public service announcement about staying safe from parasites.

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Carla Mooney loves to explore the world around us and discover the details about how it works. An award-winning author of numerous nonfiction science books for kids and teens, she hopes to spark a healthy curiosity and love of science in today’s young people. She lives in Pennsylvania with her husband, three kids, and dog. Find her at http://www.carlamooney.com, on Facebook @carlamooneyauthor, or on X @carlawrites.

The post STEM Tuesday — Pests that Bug Us — In the Classroom appeared first on From The Mixed Up Files.

Leeches, bedbugs, and plagues! These books focus on some of the plants, pests, and parasites that share our home and, in some cases, our body.

Bugged: How Insects Changed History by Sarah Albee, illustrated by Robert Leighton

This book is filled with “death, disease, and disgusting details…” There are bugs that swarm, bugs that devour crops, and bugs that transmit plagues. There are also stories about insects that have built entire industries (think: silkworms, honeybees). The author even provides a “TMI” warning for some sidebars, so squeamish readers can avoid the grossest (and coolest) stuff.

Itch!: Everything You Didn’t Want to Know About What Makes You Scratch by Anita Sanchez

To understand why things itch, we need to understand how skin reacts to stings and bites. This book includes the usual buggy suspects as well as plants with spines, needles, and poisons. Readers will learn how to identify poison ivy, how fleas leap, and how bedbugs talk to each other and they’ll find non-toxic alternatives for treatment.

Infestation! : Roaches, Bedbugs, Ants and Other Insect Invaders by Sharon L. Reith

Ants! Cockroaches! Bedbugs! To get to know these pesky invaders you’ll have to become an insect detective. This book shows how to follow the clues and fight back without reaching for the poison first. Text boxes include Invader Facts and cool extras.

Bizarro Bloodsuckers by Ron Knapp

Mosquitoes, lice, leeches … just thinking about these little bloodsuckers gives some folks the shivers. But these tiny vampires aren’t trying to be disgusting – like any other creature, they just want to live. Each chapter focuses on one kind of organism, including a couple that don’t bother people at all.

What’s Eating You? Parasites – The Inside Story by Nicola Davies, illustrated by Neal Layton

You are a habitat to (potentially) more than 430 kinds of parasites! Text, accompanied by graphic panels, explores the lives of ticks, fleas, and other parasites that live on your body surface, the tapeworms, hookworms, and roundworms that live inside you, and some of the defenses your body uses against them.

Plagues and Pandemics (History Smashers) by Kate Messner

A mix of conversational text and graphic panels takes readers on a world-wide tour of the best-known plagues and pandemics from ancient times to our current era. Highlights include the black death, smallpox, cholera, polio, Ebola, SARS, and Covid 19. The final chapter explores how to prevent the next pandemic.

Micro Mania: A Really Close-Up Look at Bacteria, Bedbugs & The Zillions of Other Gross Little Creatures That Live In, On & All Around You! by Jordan D. Brown

The mantra of this book is: you’re never alone. It introduces the microbes that live on your arms and legs, and some of the pests that live with us. Chapters have light-hearted titles, such as “You and Trillions of Your Close Personal Friends” and topics include foot fungus, farts, and the five-second rule.

Inside the World of Microbes by Howard Phillips

After exploring the basics of genetics and a brief survey of microbiology and scientists from 1665 to 1970, the book explores the beneficial, detrimental, fascinating, and extreme characteristics of bacteria, archaea, protists, and viruses. Full of stunning photos, many microscopic, and diagrams, as well as further reading and a list of U.S. and Canadian organizations.

The Case of the Flesh-Eating Bacteria by Michelle Faulk, PhD

Using an investigator’s voice and side cameos of crime detective Annie Biotica, this engaging book establishes the symptoms (“crime”), the microbes involved (suspect), and the tests and treatments for flesh-eating bacteria, pinkeye, ringworm, chicken pox, and measles. It includes microscopic photos, diagrams, and three additional cases for the reader to solve.

Little Monsters: The Creatures That Live on Us and in Us by Albert Marrin

Detailed photographs of these “creatures” and their effect on our bodies, accompany a conversational discussion of mosquitoes, mites, fleas, lice, worms, and the parasites or hyperparasites (parasites of parasites) that inhabit them. And highlights many scientists whose dogged tenacity and experimentation enabled the discovery (and in some case treatment) of these parasites. A final chapter offers ways to avoid parasites.

Sick! The Twists and Turns Behind Animal Germs by Heather L. Montgomery, illustrated by Lindsey Leigh

Humorous comic illustrations pair with a light-hearted, engaging narrative to take a deep dive into bacteria, fungi, and viruses and the scientists who’ve discovered amazing things about them. In learning how chimpanzees battle worms and stomach distress, frogs and ants fight against fungi, and a gator’s blood cell’s kill bacteria, they are finding possible applications and startling examples of symbiosis. Throughout, a bespectacled brain in a baseball cap, the “word nerd,” offers definitions and explanations and tons of “fun facts” and “not so fun facts” sidebars add to the fun.

And don’t forget American Murderer: The Parasite that Haunted the South by Gail Jarrow, a scary tale about hookworms that we featured back in October.

This month’s STEM Tuesday book list was prepared by:

Sue Heavenrich, who writes about science for children and their families on topics ranging from space to backyard ecology. Bees, flies, squirrel behavior—things she observes in her neighborhood and around her home—inspire her writing. Visit her at www.sueheavenrich.com.

Maria Marshall, a children’s author, blogger, and poet who is passionate about making nature and reading fun for children. When not writing, critiquing, or reading, she watches birds, travels the world, bakes, and hikes. Visit her at www.mariacmarshall.com.

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