REVIEWS
Grounds an Outdoor Classroom,” “Taking
Getting to Know
to 500 live tarantulas and Marshall, who
Your Class Outside: The Nuts and Bolts,”
has learned that tarantulas prefer not to be
and “Teaching Content-Area Concepts
Tarantulas: The Biggest handled, has never been bitten by one of
Outdoors.” Broda’s suggestions are based
Spiders in the World
his specimens. Marshall also travels to the
on many years of personal experience and
rainforests of French Guiana to study these
best practices harvested from othe teach-
biggest and hairiest spiders on Earth the
Book reviews by Patricia Richwine, Ph.D.
ers. Readers will find activities “related to
largest of which, the Goliath, can have a 12-
inch leg span. The photographs in the book
specific subject areas; activities that teach
An Interview
highlight the beauty of various species such
process skills; activities that encourage
with Harry as the pinktoe tarantula. In the biographi-
initiative and build community.”
the Tarantula cal information about Marshall, the reader
Schoolyard-Enhanced Learning... also
Author: Leigh Ann
finds that his wife is an arachnologist, too.
includes a chapter called “Beyond the
Included in the statistics about tarantulas
Tyson (2003)
Schoolyard,” that encourages teachers to
is that there are 30 species of tarantulas
Illustrator: Henrik
consider other outdoor areas for instruc-
in the United States and that a tarantula
Drescher
tion. Admittedly, it is a brief overview pro-
might live 30 years in captivity. Definitions,
Publisher: Nation-
viding a mix of ideas including use of GPS
research background, a bibliography, web
al Geographic
units, resident camping, and hiking trips.
sites, and hints and cautions about purchas-
32 pages; ISBN 0-7922-5122-9
There are, however, useful suggestions for
ing a tarantula are also presented in this
the uninitiated.
book.
Reasonably priced at $17.50, School-
K
aty Did, the talk-show host on KBUG
radio, does an “up close and personal” Who would want to purchase a
yard-Enhanced Learning... (Stenhouse
interview with Harry the Tarantula in this tarantula for a pet? And, how would you
Publishers) is a good buy. I plan to adopt it
picture book which might be classified as go about doing so? My questions led me
for my graduate course on Environmental faction, a combination of fact and fiction. In to a book by Sam Marshall, the tarantula
and Outdoor Education, believing many question and answer format, the habits and scientist himself.
of my students (practicing elementary behaviors of tarantula spiders are present-
teachers) will find it instructive and useful ed. To the reader’s relief, one finds that a
Tarantulas
in convincing administrators that children
tarantula spider’s venom couldn’t do much
and other
learn best from direct experience in the
harm to a human and that the tarantula
uses it tiny barbed hairs to ward off en-
Arachnids: A
outdoors.
emies. The cartoon-like illustrations accu-
Complete Pet
rately represent the species with their eight
Owners Manual
Charles Yapple is the Executive Director of eyes and eight legs. The book includes facts
Author and Photog-
the Coalition for Education in the Outdoor about tarantulas in the back pages. For
rapher: Samuel D.
and the Editor of Taproot Journal, from which
basic information about tarantulas or for an
Marshall (2001)
this review was reprinted (Volume 18, No. 1
interview format writing model, this book
Illustrator: Laura
Spring/Summer 2008).
is an excellent addition for any elementary
Barghusen
library or science classroom.
Publisher: Barrons; ISBN 0-7641-1463-8
After reading An Interview with Harry
the Tarantula, I wanted to know more about
these often-feared spiders so I went in
T
his pet owners guide gives all the in-
formation you might need to purchase
search of other books about tarantulas that
and care for a tarantula spider. It includes
might be appropriate for children and
sources of tarantulas as well as contacts for
young adults.
needed supplies such as insects for feed.
All the basics you need to know about
breeding, handling, feeding, and caring
The Tarantula Scientist
for tarantulas is addressed here. There are
Author: Sy Montgomery (2004)
even instructions on how to pack a taran-
Photographs by: Nic Bishop
tula for travel. The section on tarantulas
Publisher: Houghton Mifflin
and the law and information about the US
80 pages; ISBN 0-618-14799-3
Fish and Wildlife Services will be helpful
for first-time tarantula owners.
This 2005 Robert F. Sibert award win-
ning informational honor book is part of Pat Richwine is the Co-Children’s Literature
the series Scientists in the Field. It is about Consultant for Clearing. She is a former uni-
Sam Marshall an arachnologist and taran- versity associate professor and is interested in
tula spider specialist from Hiram, Ohio. integrating literacy, mathematics, and science.
Marshall’s spider laboratory contains close
Page 50 http://www.clearingmagazine.org Clearing - 2009 Compendium Edition
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