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A review by middle_name_joy
The Magic School Bus Inside a Hurricane by Joanna Cole
4.0
What starts as a field trip to a weather station turns into a much more hands-on experience with deadly storms! Flying through the clouds in the Magic School Bus, Ms. Frizzle's class experiences a hurricane—and even a tornado—firsthand. During their thrilling ride through the sky, Arnold gets lost and the class must follow rescue procedures to save him. In the end, Ms. Frizzle’s class arrives at the weather station, but due to their unconventional field trip, the students can teach the experts a thing or two about hurricanes.
The information presented on weather and hurricanes is accurate and written scientifically (real science terms are used). Nevertheless, the facts are clustered in short bursts of information throughout the book, making it more manageable to take in the information. Aside from some of the students falling into “types,” there is no apparent stereotyping. The organization of the text—vivid, detailed illustrations that will snag and keep students’ short attention spans constantly fed and eager for more—aid in students’ ability to think analytically about the content.
The Magic School Bus TV show was must-see programming, right up there with Wishbone and Bill Nye the Science Guy, when I was a kid. Reading this book brought back memories, but looking at it from a teacher’s point of view, I really see the educational value in the storytelling of Joanne Cole, who found a way to make science topics relatable and comprehensible by wrapping them a modern fantasy narrative.
The information presented on weather and hurricanes is accurate and written scientifically (real science terms are used). Nevertheless, the facts are clustered in short bursts of information throughout the book, making it more manageable to take in the information. Aside from some of the students falling into “types,” there is no apparent stereotyping. The organization of the text—vivid, detailed illustrations that will snag and keep students’ short attention spans constantly fed and eager for more—aid in students’ ability to think analytically about the content.
The Magic School Bus TV show was must-see programming, right up there with Wishbone and Bill Nye the Science Guy, when I was a kid. Reading this book brought back memories, but looking at it from a teacher’s point of view, I really see the educational value in the storytelling of Joanne Cole, who found a way to make science topics relatable and comprehensible by wrapping them a modern fantasy narrative.