CHILDREN'S ANIMAL ATLAS

Sheets of stickers and big, simple maps of each continent invite young naturalists to study dozens of animals, both common and endangered, in their natural environments.

Each of the 13 maps is colored to indicate biomes, features (where appropriate) country names and borders along with brief nature notes around the edges, and is lightly decorated with small, stylized, labeled images of major landforms and select wildlife. Many of the animals have dashes around them, which indicates that there is a matching sticker for each on one of the enclosed sheets (there is one sheet of less localized “general stickers” too). The attached envelope also contains a small folded world map that highlights eight biomes, a sheet of postcards with preprinted fill-in-the-blank messages, and a booklet with quiz questions that test animal recognition and map-reading skills as well as covering facts presented in the notes. Young readers persuaded to pore over the maps and use the stickers (at least as they are intended) will come away with a broader understanding of general geography as well as both animal and environmental diversity.

Pedagogically useful in multiple ways, though not suitable for school or public library shelves.