Cool Stuff

Ever since I started teaching Technology I've had one problem I couldn't find a way around. Anytime I tried to do a reading assignment on technology or a technology issue the text was way too hard for my kids to read. However, I stumbled across called "Cool Stuff and How It Works" by DK (ISBN 0-7566-1465-1). Written by Chris Woodford, and Luke Collins, Clint Witchalls, Ben Morgan, and James Flint with gorgeous illustrations by Kevin Jones, Andrew Kerr, and Lee Gibbons. The page layouts are a lot like webpages, except the illustrations are better than any webpage I've ever seen. It doesn't water down the technical terms, but it does a wonderful job of either explaining them or writing/illustrating so that they are easy to understand.
Here at my school I've tried to do a reading assignment at least once every two weeks and in the past it's been a chore because I basically have to read it as a class and stop and explain everything. NO MORE OF THAT! The students take to the articles in this book like ducks to water. I just wish I could afford a room set so they would all the colors of the illustrations.