Eclipses have amazed and terrified people for thousands of years. The sky grows dark. Daytime animals go to sleep and nocturnal animals wake up. Roosters crow and cows come in for milking. The sun is slowly covered by some mysterious celestial object. Sometimes it is blocked out completely. What had the people done wrong? Would the sun ever come back? Was it the end of the world? Today we know that eclipses are caused by the movements of the sun, the moon and the Earth. They still amaze us and they can still terrify us. How much do you know about eclipses? How many kinds of eclipses are there? What is an annular eclipse? (Hint: it's not an eclipse that occurs once a year.) True or false: A solar eclipse can only occur on a new moon? How many different shadows does a solar eclipse have? What are Baily's Beads? Find out more about eclipses and amaze your family and friends with these fun facts. All measurements in American and metric. Ages 8 and up. LearningIsland.com believes in the value of children practicing reading for 15 minutes every day. Our 15-Minute Books give children lots of fun, exciting choices to read, from classic stories, to mysteries, to books of knowledge. Many books are appropriate for hi-lo readers. Open the world of reading to a child by having them read for 15 minutes a day.

Eclipses have amazed and terrified people for thousands of years. The sky grows dark. Daytime animals go to sleep and nocturnal animals wake up. Roosters crow and cows come in for milking. The sun is slowly covered by some mysterious celestial object. Sometimes it is blocked out completely. What had the people done wrong? Would the sun ever come back? Was it the end of the world? Today we know that eclipses are caused by the movements of the sun, the moon and the Earth. They still amaze us and they can still terrify us. How much do you know about eclipses? How many kinds of eclipses are there? What is an annular eclipse? (Hint: it's not an eclipse that occurs once a year.) True or false: A solar eclipse can only occur on a new moon? How many different shadows does a solar eclipse have? What are Baily's Beads? Find out more about eclipses and amaze your family and friends with these fun facts. All measurements in American and metric. Ages 8 and up. The Educational Version has activities that meet Common Core Curriculum Standards. LearningIsland.com believes in the value of children practicing reading for 15 minutes every day. Our 15-Minute Books give children lots of fun, exciting choices to read, from classic stories, to mysteries, to books of knowledge. Many books are appropriate for hi-lo readers. Open the world of reading to a child by having them read for 15 minutes a day.

Ears sit on opposite sides of our head. They are flappy bits of skin that stick out. Sometimes we decorate them with piercings. Ears are our own little satellite dishes. They pick up sound waves and send them through the ear canal, where the tiniest bones and muscles in our body pick up the vibrations and send them further into our ears. Through a journey of air and liquid, our brains finally get the message and tell us that we have heard something. Our ears are also responsible for making sure we don’t fall flat on our face. Let’s see how much you know about ears. Can you answer these questions? How many parts does your ear have? How many types of fluid are supposed to be in your ear? Who can hear better, babies or adults? Can you hear with your bones? What does ear wax do? Find out more about your ears and amaze your family and friends with these fun facts. Ages 8 and up. All measurements in American and metric. LearningIsland.com believes in the value of children practicing reading for 15 minutes every day. Our 15-Minute Books give children lots of fun, exciting choices to read, from classic stories, to mysteries, to books of knowledge. Many books are appropriate for hi-lo readers. Open the world of reading to a child by having them read for 15 minutes a day.

When we look at clouds in our sky, we can sometimes make out shapes. This is called pareidolia, where the human brain finds shapes or patterns hidden in random images. This can also happen with nebulas – clouds of dust and gas in space. There are two main types of nebulas; bright and dark. There are four types of bright nebulas; emission, reflection, planetary and supernova remnants. This book covers 14 strange and interesting nebulas in our galaxy. Find out more about these fun nebulas in this short 15-minute book. Ages 8 and up. All measurements in American and metric. Reading level: 6.9 LearningIsland.com believes in the value of children practicing reading for 15 minutes every day. Our 15-Minute Books give children lots of fun, exciting choices to read, from classic stories, to mysteries, to books of knowledge. Many books are appropriate for hi-lo readers. Open the world of reading to a child by having them read for 15 minutes a day.

John Flynn was a man with a dream. The outback of Australia was a land of risk and adventure. It was also a land of isolation and danger. Flynn wanted to create a “mantle of safety” across the outback. He set up hospitals, hostels, nursing homes and welfare centres, and created the world’s first aerial medical service – the Royal Flying Doctor Service. Flynn had a simple philosophy. He believed that if you start with an idea, nothing can stop it. Find out more about this man who brought medical service to Australia's outback and why he has more memorials dedicated to him than any other Australian. Ages 8 and up. LearningIsland.com believes in the value of children practicing reading for 15 minutes every day. Our 15-Minute Books give children lots of fun, exciting choices to read, from classic stories, to mysteries, to books of knowledge. Many books are appropriate for hi-lo readers. Open the world of reading to a child by having them read for 15 minutes a day.

I never thought my mum’s bad memory would lead me to another case. It was Friday evening. Mum had spent the afternoon gardening in the front yard and was enjoying a well deserved cup of tea. Dad was helping me with my homework. I would have been happy to leave it until bedtime Sunday night. Dad was aware of this and decided that we could get it all done tonight. And by “we”, I mean “me”. Dad’s idea of helping was covering the kitchen table in all my books and asking me more questions than my teacher. Mum didn’t feel like cooking. So she went out for fish and chips. Half an hour later, Mum was home again. “I’ll just go and get a lemon,” I said. I went out the back, past the garage and down to the lemon tree in the corner of our yard. Our lemon tree always seems to have lemons on it, no matter what time of year it is. I stopped, and looked at the lemon tree in surprise. There were hardly any lemons. Who has stolen the lemons? Can Courtney and her trusty sidekick Laura solve the case? Ages 7 to 10 Chapter book Reading level: 3.4

Mary Tudor was a princess who should have been a queen. Instead, her father shunned and disowned her because she was not a boy. After the deaths of her father and half brother, she had to fight those in power who sought to keep her off the throne. She was eventually crowned Queen of England. Her battles to abolish her father’s new church and return England to a Roman Catholic country resulted in rebellion and mass persecutions. Over 300 people were burned at the stake for heresy and witchcraft. This earned Mary the name of Bloody Mary. Here is her story. Find out about the life of this woman who fought to become Queen of England, and how she earned the name Bloody Mary. Ages 8 and up. LearningIsland.com believes in the value of children practicing reading for 15 minutes every day. Our 15-Minute Books give children lots of fun, exciting choices to read, from classic stories, to mysteries, to books of knowledge. Many books are appropriate for hi-lo readers. Open the world of reading to a child by having them read for 15 minutes a day.

Maria Sklodowska was a Polish girl who wanted a proper education. She changed her name to and went to university in France. She met and married Pierre Curie and began to work with radioactivity. Marie Curie became the first woman to win a Nobel Prize and the first person to win two Nobel Prizes. Hers was a life filled with firsts. Find out more about this discoverer of radium in this short 15-minute children's biography. Ages 10 and up. Reading Level: 6.9 LearningIsland.com believes in the value of children practicing reading for 15 minutes every day. Our 15-Minute Books give children lots of fun, exciting choices to read, from classic stories, to mysteries, to books of knowledge. Many books are appropriate for hi-lo readers. Open the world of reading to a child by having them read for 15 minutes a day.

This is the fourth book in the exciting Courtney Case Mystery Series. I'd had a hard week at school, so I wasn't ready for the Saturday morning early knock on my door. I pulled the blankets over my head, hoping whoever it was would go away. A soft paw reached under the blankets and batted at my face. "Miaow." "I'm asleep, Maggie," I told my cat. The batting persisted. So did the knocking. "Courtney! Are you there?" It was Mack. He and his twin sister, Liesel, lived over the road from me. "Courtney!" Mack called again. I rolled over and looked at the clock. It was 7:49 am. I dragged myself out of bed, pulled on my dressing gown and staggered to the front door. "What is it, Mack?" I asked, half yawning at the closed front door. "I've got a case for you." he answered. Who has stolen Mack's A-Man? Can Courtney and her trusty sidekick Laura solve the case? Ages 7 to 10 Chapter book Reading level: 3.0

Courtney Case, the Australian detective solves the case of what happened to her this past Valentine's Day when she received a card from a secret admirer. Courtney's teacher assigned her students to make cards for Valentine's Day. On February 14th, she passed out cards to those kids who had received one. Every child got at least one. But the one Courtney got didn't have a name on it! There were flowers that were neatly cut out, but the handwriting was messy. How could she find out who had sent her the card? Read this fifth book in the exciting Courtney Case Mystery Series. Ages 7 to 10 Chapter book Reading level: 3.4