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Inkluderar namnet: brittontamara

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Verk av Tamara L. Britton

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Flaggad
lcslibrarian | Aug 13, 2020 |
This is a great informational book about a variety of aspects of Maine Coon cats. For example, the book talks about the qualities, coats and colors, size care and feeding to name a few. This book is non-fiction. The genre used is real life pictures.
 
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Jennifer828 | Apr 11, 2016 |
1. I think the book series, “Economy in Action”, can be classified under survey informational books. They are set up to be introductions to the topic of the economy and only include a quick overview of the different subtopics of the economy. Each book has the topic presented in a logical order and does not cover all of the information on the topic. They are well illustrated and include additional information in the sidebars. Each book seemed to be written at the same level with consistent coverage on the topic and subtopics.

2. The book “Economic Systems” is part of a book series entitled “Economy in Action”. It is written by Tamara L. Britton. There is no information about the qualifications of the author included in the book. There are also no sources noted or a bibliography. There is a publisher’s website listed in the back where you can find links to more books and websites on the topic. You have to trust the publisher and assume that the information is accurate.

As for content, the scope covers what an economy is and how it works, some basic economic theories, four types of economies and how difficult it is to determine which type works for different countries. It also gives examples of countries that use the different types of economies, such as stating that Cuba has a managed economy. The depth is very basic. It is meant to be an introduction and overview of what an economy is in simplistic terms. The focus is simply on sharing facts and introducing students to the concept of economy.

In terms of style, the content is clear and organized logically. The language is on level with the intended audience and technical terms are bolded with definitions in the glossary. Most explanations can be understood by the audience but some may be too complex or require some background information to understand clearly. The language and tone are very factual and neutral. The terms used are proper terms that are not “dumbed down” or condescending, such as “supply and demand”, “barter”, “redistribute”, and “resources”. She also gives no opinion on whether she agrees with Marx’s economic theory. She simply states what it is. She lists the pros and cons. She states that no one likes to see anyone go hungry but she also states that people, who are given stuff without the opportunity to be rewarded for doing more, may not work as hard. I think this is a fare assessment. It is stated on the reader’s level and does not give a bias either way.

This book is organized from simple to complex. It starts by explaining what an economy is and how it works at a simple introductory level. It then gives brief information on a few economic theories and then moves on to types of economies and examples of how they work. It gives real life examples like explaining that the traditional economy is still used in small villages where each person/family provides for their own needs through hunting, planting, etc. It then proceeds to ask what if it is not working and how to decide which is best. You must understand the first concepts to discuss these. It ends with an activity about resources and needs versus wants to wrap it up.

The table of contents is short, much like the book, very simple and clear. The chapter titles let you know exactly what is found in each section. They do not make you curious or ask questions. The titles are just factual headings. For example, the chapter title “Mixed Economies” simply lets you know what that chapter is about. There are bolded words that are defined in the glossary. The definitions are clear, although a few more words should be defined, such as “demand”. There is no pronunciation guide but it may not be necessary as words like supply and demand should be easily pronounced by the reader. The index is also short and sweet with major topics and names covered. There is only one website listed and it is to the publisher’s website. This will link you to current websites about the economy. This is done so that links are current and up to date. There are no bibliography or author’s notes. There is also no list of books for further reading.

The format is simple with lots of pictures and sidebars that fit with the topic being covered. The chapter on economic theories has a picture of the economist on the page. The chapters on types of economic systems have pictures representative of that type of system. For example, the managed economy has a picture of a Cuban ration card and a couple of bags of grocery staples. The photographs are multicultural and current. There is a picture of an American teenage boy who owns an ice cream stand as well as a picture of villages on the other side of the world. The pictures are accompanied with sidebars that add information, clarify terms, and increase understanding, for example laissez faire is discussed on the page discussing a market economy. . The layout is easy to follow. It is bright and colorful but the colors don’t distract.

The small hardcover size makes it portable and great for the classroom or library to be checked out. The cover is bright and the smiling girl on the front invites you in. The picture makes you think about a foreign market and wonder about the differences between her culture and our own. The book has no endpages, notes, introduction, preface, afterward, or appendix. There are no maps, diagrams, or tables. Maps would serve to provide a reference for the countries discussed in the types of economies.

This series of books is called “Economy in Action”. Each book is written by a different author but has a consistent layout, format, reading level, and amount of content covered. The other book entitled “Labor and Management” was a little better. The author, Megan M. Gunderson, seems to be targeting the audience more on their level and interest. When she is discussing business, she talks about how a young person could start and build his/her own business and puts it in a more personally relevant way. The problem is that these concepts are too advanced to be covered so quickly. Her section on supply and demand has a graph but it still will not be understood by the target audience unless they have background information or the book is part of a larger lesson and used as a resource for additional reading. I would be interested to see how they fit with the other books in the series as well as how they would work integrated into a curriculum.

3. As a teacher, I was not 100% sure what the actual target audience was of these books. The concepts seemed more middle school yet the language and tone of the book seemed geared towards elementary. Their website states grades 3-6 so I had my gifted 3rd grade daughter and my 6th grade daughter read the first book and tell me what they thought. My 6th grader said it was boring and that she had already covered these concepts last year. She was easily distracted by the people in the pictures wondering where they were from and what they were doing. My 3rd grader was frustrated because it was too difficult for her, even though her reading level is higher, the concepts were too difficult. I know that these concepts are touched on in 4th and 5th grade in some schools. I think these books would work as part of a full lesson on the economy. I don’t see students reading these books for fun but make great resources for 4-6 students studying this unit. The books seem to have been pulled out of a textbook chapter and then broken the sections into individual books. Currently, local parishes go to JA Biztown and they cover these concepts leading up to the field trip. These books would fit nicely into this unit. I can see a great interdisciplinary unit being made for this. I would use these for a short refresher lesson in middle school or for a class project on building a business. Having them choose what type of economy they would live in and how they would build their business there.

4. I could not find any books on the economy for this level in the UNO education library. I think this series of books could be added to the UNO library, especially considering that there are no others on this topic available. When used in series as part of a unit study, this is a good way to introduce younger students to this complex topic.

5. I searched Mackin, Amazon, Kirkus, Barnes and Noble, BTSB bookstore, and Hornbook and found no reviews of this book. Mackin and Barnes and Noble were the only ones that listed the book at all and only had the publishers information but no reviews.
… (mer)
 
Flaggad
Sandra_Loya | Mar 14, 2013 |

Statistik

Verk
75
Medlemmar
312
Popularitet
#75,595
Betyg
½ 3.5
Recensioner
3
ISBN
227
Språk
1

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