As young readers journey into the natural world, they will discover that numbers, patterns, shapes -- and much more! -- can be found by observing everyday plants and animals. What if animals and plants knew math, just like us? Would flowers bloom in patterns? Would raindrops fall in rhythm? Would birds balance evenly on branches? In "Sorting through Spring," the second title in the Math in Nature series, nature comes to life to help children grasp concepts of patterning, sorting, data management, and probability. This interactive, poetic, and artful picture book series is a non-intimidating and enticing way to introduce math to kids -- they will laugh, use their imaginations, and learn through activities inspired by the books.

What if animals and plants knew maths, just like us? Would flowers bloom in patterns? Would raindrops fall in rhythm? Would birds balance evenly on branches? In Sorting through Spring, nature comes to life to help children grasp concepts of patterning, sorting, data management, and probability. Maths in Nature is a lovely four book series, which explores seasonal and natural beauty through maths concepts, which are made engaging with energetic and colourful paper collage illustrations, poetic language and thoughtful questions. Each book also includes nature notes at the end, which give more information about the animals and plants featured in the seasonal scenes. Colourful, cut- paper collage art uniquely evokes the natural world, while two levels of text - one a lyrical story, the other asking children to problem-solve - bring the reader to a full understanding of the maths concept being covered. The engaging "What if?" format of these informational picture books is sure to delight five- to seven-year-olds.

A witty and thought-provoking collection of visual poems constructed from stacks of books. Delighting in the look and feel of books, conceptual artist Nina Katchadourian’s playful photographic series proves that books’ covers—or more specifically, their spines—can speak volumes. Over the past two decades, Katchadourian has perused libraries across the globe, selecting, stacking, and photographing groupings of two, three, four, or five books so that their titles can be read as sentences, creating whimsical narratives from the text found there. Thought-provoking, clever, and at times laugh-out-loud funny (one cluster of titles from the Akron Museum of Art’s research library consists of: Primitive Art /Just Imagine/Picasso/Raised by Wolves), Sorted Books is an enthralling collection of visual poems full of wry wit and bookish smarts. Praise for Sorted Books “Katchadourian’s project . . . takes on a weight beyond its initial novelty. It’s a love letter to books, book collecting and the act of reading.” —San Francisco Chronicle “As a longtime fan of [Katchadourian’s] long-running Sorted Books project I’m thrilled for the release of Sorted Books—a collection spanning nearly two decades of her witty and wise minimalist mediations on life by way of ingeniously arranged book spines. . . . In an era drowned in periodic death tolls for the future of the physical book, her project stands as a celebration of the spirit embedded in the magnificent materiality of the printed page.” —Brain Pickings “Katchadourian’s stacks possess an understated sophistication; they are true to the intimate nature of books and yet reveal their dramatic features and unexpected potential.” —Publishers Weekly

A revealing and surprising look at how classification systems can shape both worldviews and social interactions. What do a seventeenth-century mortality table (whose causes of death include "fainted in a bath," "frighted," and "itch"); the identification of South Africans during apartheid as European, Asian, colored, or black; and the separation of machine- from hand-washables have in common? All are examples of classification—the scaffolding of information infrastructures. In Sorting Things Out, Geoffrey C. Bowker and Susan Leigh Star explore the role of categories and standards in shaping the modern world. In a clear and lively style, they investigate a variety of classification systems, including the International Classification of Diseases, the Nursing Interventions Classification, race classification under apartheid in South Africa, and the classification of viruses and of tuberculosis. The authors emphasize the role of invisibility in the process by which classification orders human interaction. They examine how categories are made and kept invisible, and how people can change this invisibility when necessary. They also explore systems of classification as part of the built information environment. Much as an urban historian would review highway permits and zoning decisions to tell a city's story, the authors review archives of classification design to understand how decisions have been made. Sorting Things Out has a moral agenda, for each standard and category valorizes some point of view and silences another. Standards and classifications produce advantage or suffering. Jobs are made and lost; some regions benefit at the expense of others. How these choices are made and how we think about that process are at the moral and political core of this work. The book is an important empirical source for understanding the building of information infrastructures.

A picture book exploration of math concepts time and measurement featuring winter animals in cut paper collage

Explore the beauty of summer in this new edition of What to Look For in Summer. The increased warmth and long sunny days of summertime in the UK helps crops to grow, insects to thrive and animals to hunt. This book takes a closer look at ripening fruits, buzzing bees, summer storms and the solstice as the secrets of summer begin to appear in the world around us. Follow the changing seasons with the other titles in the What to Look For... series: What to Look For in Autumn What to Look For in Winter What to Look For in Spring

Journey into the natural world in the fall and discover that numbers, patterns, shapes -- and much more! -- can be found by observing everyday plants and animals.

Organizing and tidying up has become a national obsession. We are on an endless quest for the perfect containers, boxes, totes, bags, bins, shelves, files, folders, and labels to tame our closets, corral our clutter, and eliminate chaos. Books and television shows promise the magical secrets to getting and staying organized. “So,” you think, “if I just buy these things and follow these instructions, I will finally be organized and joyful!” Author Lisa Lawmaster Hess is going to let you in on a secret: that doesn’t work. Why? Because you have been chasing one-size-fits-all solutions. But you are not a one-size-fits-all person. You’re unique. (Just ask God, who created you!) Know Thyself is an effective and fun way to discover your personal and organizational styles, and will help you own your style. You’ll take what you might have thought was a flaw and learn how to make it a strength. And that, plus Lisa’s help and a sense of humor, will guide you toward an organization method you can really stick with.