~ MARVELOUS MIDDLE-GRADE
MONDAY S.T.E.A.M. BIOGRAPHY FEATURE ~
-- 'NEIL ARMSTRONG'S WIND TUNNEL DREAM' --
AUTHOR RINDA BEACH
ILLUSTRATOR COLE ROBERTS
~Post Includes: Book Spotlight, Author &
Illustrator Bios, My Thoughts & Giveaway~
ABOUT THE BOOK:
Most people know that Neil Alden Armstrong was the first man to set foot on the moon, but very few know how it all started . . . with a dream to build his own wind tunnel.
Read how Neil’s love of planes took him from the Cleveland air races at age two to the Wright Brothers’ wind tunnel at age sixteen. Discover how Neil made his wind tunnel dream come true.
Read the back matter to find the facts behind this story. Continue on to build your own wind tunnel and conduct your own experiments so you can study the wind, just like Neil did.
FIND THE BOOK AT:
AMAZON
BARNES & NOBLE
ABOUT THE AUTHOR:
Rinda never planned to write. She was a second-grade teacher who read and told stories, till the night a bat visited her. The bat inspired her to write. She learned how to edit, thanks to SCBWI, writing classes, and critique partners. Rinda substitute teaches to stay connected to today’s kids. She uses her knowledge and imagination to write stories for them. Her website features a weekly blog and book review for kids. She is also the owner of Beach Girl Press.
CONNECT WITH THE AUTHOR:
Website: http://www.rindabeach.com/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/rinda.beach
Twitter: https://twitter.com/BeachRinda
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/rindajbeach/
Pinterest: https://www.pinterest.com/rindabeach/
ABOUT THE ILLUSTRATOR:
Cole Roberts is an Illustrator based in Nashville, Tennessee who loves creating artwork for children's publications. You can find more of his work by visiting www.coleswork.com
MY THOUGHTS:
I thought I knew a lot about Neil Armstrong from the other biographies I had read, movies I had seen, and the documentaries I had viewed -- but I didn't really know this brilliant American space pioneer at all until I read this biography by debut children's author, Rinda Beach!
The book opens with two-year-old Neil sitting on his father's shoulders at a 1932 airplane race in Cleveland, Ohio. That was the moment when Neil Armstrong's fascination with flying began, and his fascination never diminished.
In the summer before his senior year in high school Neil began designing his final project for his upcoming high school physics class. It was a wind tunnel. The book documents Neil's journey throughout the summer and the next school year as he works on designing, testing, adjusting, and fine-tuning his wind tunnel.
There is a lot of humorous dialogue between Neil and his younger brother, Dean, and their mother as Neil blows fuse after fuse in the Armstrong house while testing various versions of his wind tunnel. The witty banter and quick-pacing of this book were two things I really enjoyed as a reader.
At age eighteen, Neil became a Navy fighter pilot for the U.S. Navy. He flew seventy-eight missions in Korea during the Korean War. In 1952 he resigned from active duty, but remained in the Navy Reserves. He eventually graduated from Purdue University in 1955, earning his degree in aeronautical engineering.
In 1962, he was chosen for as a pilot engineer for NASA's space program. In March, 1966, Neil Armstrong was assigned to the Gemini 8 mission. Their objective was to orbit Earth for seventy-five hours. Eleven hours into the mission, the ship was spinning out of control. Able to keep his wits about him in this extremely stressful situation, Neil figured out how to get the ship back under control and returned to Earth safely.
In December, 1968, Neil Armstrong was named the Apollo 11 mission commander. He would be the first man to walk on the moon on July 20, 1969. The author includes many interesting facts about this mission.
The back matter in this book is extensive and is equally as interesting as the text. The author includes a detailed Author's Note and a section entitled, 'What's True', that gives a chapter-by-chapter rundown of each point in the text based on fact.
Ms. Beach includes instructions and photographs for 'How to Build a Tunnel for Wind, Primary Version'. Instructions and photographs for 'How to Build a Wind Tunnel, Advanced Version' follows. This version shows the author's wind tunnel. Lastly, is a section titled, 'Let's Use Your Wind Tunnel' wherein the author encourages students to make a prediction and record results for their own wind tunnels.
The back matter ends with a detailed Bibliography and list of Other Resources along with Acknowledgments and About the Author pages.
Highly-recommended for teachers; libraries; fans of US history, famous Americans, NASA and space history, engineering, S.T.E.A.M. education, biographies, twentieth century history, and astronomy.
I was granted access to a digital copy of this book for my own use. I was not compensated in any way for posting my thoughts here or on any other site.
🌑 🚀 🌟 GIVEAWAY! 🌟 🚀 🌑
Just
in time for the 50th anniversary of the moon walk later this month,
Author Rinda Beach is giving away one paperback copy of 'Neil Armstrong's Wind Tunnel Dream' to one lucky US resident! Enter the giveaway contest by completing the below Rafflecopter form.Most people know that Neil Alden Armstrong was the first man to set foot on the moon, but very few know how it all started . . . with a dream to build his own wind tunnel.
Read how Neil’s love of planes took him from the Cleveland air races at age two to the Wright Brothers’ wind tunnel at age sixteen. Discover how Neil made his wind tunnel dream come true.
Read the back matter to find the facts behind this story. Continue on to build your own wind tunnel and conduct your own experiments so you can study the wind, just like Neil did.
FIND THE BOOK AT:
AMAZON
BARNES & NOBLE
ABOUT THE AUTHOR:
Rinda never planned to write. She was a second-grade teacher who read and told stories, till the night a bat visited her. The bat inspired her to write. She learned how to edit, thanks to SCBWI, writing classes, and critique partners. Rinda substitute teaches to stay connected to today’s kids. She uses her knowledge and imagination to write stories for them. Her website features a weekly blog and book review for kids. She is also the owner of Beach Girl Press.
CONNECT WITH THE AUTHOR:
Website: http://www.rindabeach.com/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/rinda.beach
Twitter: https://twitter.com/BeachRinda
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/rindajbeach/
Pinterest: https://www.pinterest.com/rindabeach/
ABOUT THE ILLUSTRATOR:
Cole Roberts is an Illustrator based in Nashville, Tennessee who loves creating artwork for children's publications. You can find more of his work by visiting www.coleswork.com
MY THOUGHTS:
I thought I knew a lot about Neil Armstrong from the other biographies I had read, movies I had seen, and the documentaries I had viewed -- but I didn't really know this brilliant American space pioneer at all until I read this biography by debut children's author, Rinda Beach!
The book opens with two-year-old Neil sitting on his father's shoulders at a 1932 airplane race in Cleveland, Ohio. That was the moment when Neil Armstrong's fascination with flying began, and his fascination never diminished.
In the summer before his senior year in high school Neil began designing his final project for his upcoming high school physics class. It was a wind tunnel. The book documents Neil's journey throughout the summer and the next school year as he works on designing, testing, adjusting, and fine-tuning his wind tunnel.
There is a lot of humorous dialogue between Neil and his younger brother, Dean, and their mother as Neil blows fuse after fuse in the Armstrong house while testing various versions of his wind tunnel. The witty banter and quick-pacing of this book were two things I really enjoyed as a reader.
At age eighteen, Neil became a Navy fighter pilot for the U.S. Navy. He flew seventy-eight missions in Korea during the Korean War. In 1952 he resigned from active duty, but remained in the Navy Reserves. He eventually graduated from Purdue University in 1955, earning his degree in aeronautical engineering.
In 1962, he was chosen for as a pilot engineer for NASA's space program. In March, 1966, Neil Armstrong was assigned to the Gemini 8 mission. Their objective was to orbit Earth for seventy-five hours. Eleven hours into the mission, the ship was spinning out of control. Able to keep his wits about him in this extremely stressful situation, Neil figured out how to get the ship back under control and returned to Earth safely.
In December, 1968, Neil Armstrong was named the Apollo 11 mission commander. He would be the first man to walk on the moon on July 20, 1969. The author includes many interesting facts about this mission.
The back matter in this book is extensive and is equally as interesting as the text. The author includes a detailed Author's Note and a section entitled, 'What's True', that gives a chapter-by-chapter rundown of each point in the text based on fact.
Ms. Beach includes instructions and photographs for 'How to Build a Tunnel for Wind, Primary Version'. Instructions and photographs for 'How to Build a Wind Tunnel, Advanced Version' follows. This version shows the author's wind tunnel. Lastly, is a section titled, 'Let's Use Your Wind Tunnel' wherein the author encourages students to make a prediction and record results for their own wind tunnels.
The back matter ends with a detailed Bibliography and list of Other Resources along with Acknowledgments and About the Author pages.
Highly-recommended for teachers; libraries; fans of US history, famous Americans, NASA and space history, engineering, S.T.E.A.M. education, biographies, twentieth century history, and astronomy.
I was granted access to a digital copy of this book for my own use. I was not compensated in any way for posting my thoughts here or on any other site.
🌑 🚀 🌟 GIVEAWAY! 🌟 🚀 🌑
🌑 🚀 🌟🌑 🚀 🌟🌑 🚀 🌟🌑 🚀 🌟🌑 🚀 🌟
Title: A Cuppa Trouble 
