Product Description: Popcorn, corn on the cob, cornbread -- and corncob pipes! Tacos and tamales and tortillas! All these and many other good things come from an amazing plant that the Indians discovered and taught the white man how to grow.
In her own magical way, Aliki tells the story of corn: how Indian farmers thousands of years ago found and nourished a wild grass plant and made it an important part of their lives, how they learned the best ways to grow and store and use its fat yellow kernels, how they shared this knowledge with the new settlers of America.
Cheerful illustrations by the author complete this lively account of the Indians' gift to us all.
All About Corn -- a review of Aliki's "Corn is Maize" This is an interesting book and the second science book that we have looked at which was written and illustrated by Aliki. In this book she covers a wide variety of aspects of Corn.
She begins by explaining that a corn kernel is a seed. She then shows how sun and rain affects the planted seeds. There are drawings of developing corn with tassels and silk (boy and girl parts.) There is a smaller drawing of the route pollen takes to get to the kernel. The pollen travels down the silk to reach the kernel egg.
It is at this point that I will say that I think 4 and 5 years of age is too young for this book. (I have a 5 and a 3 and it was definitely over their heads.)
But to continue-- The book discusses how other plants scatter their seeds but how corn needs people to survive. It emphasizes that scientist have never found any 'wild' corn but only the `civilized' version we know now.
From there the book divulges how native American were instrumental in developing the corn of today. It discusses how some groups used to bury a fish under each corn `hill' and how growing beans and squash with corn made all do better.
It then proceeds to show how corn was used by native Americans, how it was stored and celebrated in religion and dance, and how Christopher Columbus took corn or maize back to Europe. The pilgrims appreciation of corn is discussed as well as the many, many ways that corn and corn products are used today.
Five stars. A comprehensive book about corn for children. The artwork is alternatively in color and grayscale, but this should not be a big drawback for those interested in the subject. The age range as mentioned before, should be fairly advanced, say first or second grade and above.
Example of text follows so you can gage reading level, etc.:
"But although scientists searched, they had never found any wild corn. Not long ago they found some. It was in a cave in Mexico where people once lived. They found scraps of plants and tiny ears of ancient corn, more than 5,000 years old. It was not like any the scientist had ever seen."
A great informational book Corn is Maize is a great book on corn. It not only shows how corn is grown and the many uses. It teaches the children about Indian culture and how they shared their corn with the prilgrams. A book of history, science, and social development.
Anything Goes Trivia
Megaton Man
Tony's Online Tips
Trevor
