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~Rachel~
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I was trying to find my 10 yo some good science books to read- some LIVING science books to read, and he seems to be in that 'in between' stage. You know the one- where the picture books you get for the early years are TOO simplistic, and the books suggested for high school are just a little out of his league!
So I was wondering if anyone has a list of good books suitable for his age and level (he's doing 5th grade work).
MacBeth's site is wonderful, but didn't seem to have what I was looking for either  and right now he is into DNA. That was an accident  that occurred when I showed him an article in a magazine, which used Lego Blocks to build a model of DNA... but went on to discuss something else. He has been trying to recreate one the last couple of days .
But I digress- just wanting some good suggestions!
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MaryM
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Hopefully, Kris will join in here with her expertise. Kris has recently joined 4 Real, but is known to those of us who follow her blog At Home Science and her science classes/webinars at Homeschool Connections. I'm betting she has some great ideas especially on OOP print sources, especially from the 1960s which she has said she finds to be better for science than many recent materials. I've started discovering that as well. I'm starting a separate thread on that right after this.
A living book I would recommend for genetics/DNA is Gregor Mendel: The Friar Who Grew Peas. It is a picture book but a pretty substantial one. The concepts that it is covering are deep and really need an older child to grasp beyond the story.
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Mary M. in Denver
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KackyK
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I love love Acorn Naturalistcatalog/website. They have so many amazing books.
And a book we happened upon in the library that my ds age 12 has read several times is Phineas Gage. It's not DNA but it is about medicine.
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Mackfam
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I have some recommendations, but some of them may be beyond a 10yo...I'm going to add them all for consideration...
Microbe Hunters by Paul de Kruif - this is a very fascinating book with the stories of 13 scientists and discoveries in microbiology. It's written in a completely engaging way! It's possible that it's a little over your son's head...but then again, I've met some amazing 10 yo's and this would be right up their alley. In any case, it ought to be everyone's shelf of living science reading for Biology/Microbiology!
The Journey - An Inside Look at the Human Body - this book is a classic! Dr. Joers leads two teens on a guided tour inside the human body and they explore all the microbes and functions of the amazing human body. The great thing about this book is that the doctor who wrote this definitely writes from the perspective that we are "fearfully and wonderfully made". It is wonderfully written - I'd say jr. high/high school reading. The material is fine for younger and could be an exciting read aloud!
The Cartoon Guide to Genetics - love this book! Humorous, engaging, well written, accurate!
Not a living book, but I thought I'd throw this at you anyway....K'Nex Educational DNA, transcriptions and replications set - I've become a huge fan of K'nex materials for assisting the information we read about on a page and making it come to life. We've been using their simple machines sets with our David Macauley The Way Things Work science study. Highly, highly recommend!!!!
A World in a Drop of Water by Alvin and Virginia Silverstein. Written in 1969, this book is a GREAT introduction to microscopic life. Though this book doesn't relate specifically to DNA, it does point out in a fascinating way the *life* within one drop of pond water.
Adventures with a Microscope by Richard Headstrom (originally published 1941) - I know you weren't asking for a microscope book specifically, but in case you have one, this book is fantastic! Just awesome! Written simply and directed for independent work it's a perfect course for entering the microscopic world!
Another great book along these lines also by Richard Headstrom is Adventures with a Hand Lens - it doesn't exactly go along with your theme of DNA, but it sort of follows with the Adventures with a Microscope book and is a great course in itself, really. Written so well! It would make a perfect 5th/6th grade science course all by itself with a few great library books!
I haven't read this, but came across it in searching and it looks promising - Double Talking Helix Blues by Joel Herskowitz.
That's all I've got for now! Sorry. I wish I had more time. I'm anxious to read other recommendations - this is a genre I love to explore. Like Mary, and apparently Kris, I prefer books written and published between 1940 and 1960 for depth of information and engaging writing when it comes to living science.
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KackyK
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I love your links Jen! I splurged for 93 cents and bought a used copy of The Journey. I didn't know K'nex had such goodies...I knew Lego did. Thanks!
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~Rachel~
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Jen- DS is quite capable of picking up an advanced book and really getting into it- so I definitely appreciate the links :) Keep it coming ladies- I'm making notes!!! 
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Erin
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Jen
Just how do you come up with wonderful titles all the time? I'd love to know your searching tips, perhaps I should start another thread.
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AtHomeScience
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Hi All! What wonderful and resourceful people are on this board!
I would not discount picture books for this age, which happens to be the same age as my oldest son. A lot of picture books are aimed at this group and have quite a bit of information in them. For DNA and lots of other things relating to cells, my kids like books by Frances Balkwill. Have a Nice DNA and DNA is Here to Stay are a couple, plus a couple of more about genes.
HTH!
Blessings,
Kris
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MaryM
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And Zome also has a DNA kit but it sounds like your son did pretty well on his own with Legos 
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Mary M. in Denver
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~Rachel~
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yes, Legos can be very useful 
Kris: I don't discount them- they just need to be meatier ones... I will definitely look these resources up!
Keep it coming everyone- and definitely mention more resources even if they are not DNA related 
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MaryM
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AtHomeScience wrote:
| For DNA and lots of other things relating to cells, my kids like books by Frances Balkwill. Have a Nice DNA and DNA is Here to Stay are a couple, plus a couple of more about genes. |
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One of the reviews I just read listed these topics as being part of the cell series - stem cells, cloning, embryo transfer, emerging infections, vaccine development…How are those handled? I'm curious.
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AtHomeScience
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Oh ug! Mea culpa! I have Cell Wars, which was published in 1994 and I thought all of her books were from the early 1990s. Her series all have very close titles, but it looks like Enjoy Your Cells are the problem ones.
You can search through the books on Amazon. Search for "clone" in Gene Machine and you can see it explains all about cloning and nuclear transfers. 
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Nique
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Oh all these GREAT recommendations, our local library carried only 3!!!
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4Real Forums : Exploring God's Creation in Nature and Science
Topic: Living Science Books
