First, know this: Georgia Heard and Jennifer McDonough don’t
write in the world of the hypotheticals. Every idea they share
for helping children make nonfiction discoveries comes from
their real-life experiences with kindergartners and first
graders. Every lesson plan has been implemented in “real time,”
and it shows through the anecdotal stories, the authentic and
very funny student dialogues, and their suggestions for
practitioners based upon their experiences. This isn’t another
book of themes or centers; this is an easy-to-implement series
of lessons which will assist any teacher, in any school
environment, in opening the eyes of curiosity. And while some
will argue that children are naturally curious, I would point
out that schools have a way of stifling that curiosity. Not
purposely, not systemically, but simply through neglect. A Place
for Wonder shows how to take that natural curiosity and channel
it toward authentic and purposeful explorations of nonfiction
topics. What particularly impressed me was