Fact based books for the Magic Tree House series are a great way to combine the excitement of adventure with educational content. These books provide young readers with the opportunity to learn about a variety of topics while following the thrilling adventures of Jack and Annie. Each book in the series follows a similar format, with Jack and Annie traveling to a different time and place using their magical tree house. Along the way, they encounter historical figures, witness important events, and learn valuable lessons. What sets the fact based books apart from the rest of the series is their emphasis on providing accurate and interesting information about the topic at hand. From dinosaurs and knights to mummies and pirates, there is a fact based book for every young reader's interest.
When Jack and Annie got back from their adventure in Magic Tree House #23: Twister on Tuesday, they had lots of questions. How do tornadoes form? What kinds of tools can help predict bad storms? Where did the biggest snowfall on record happen? How fast are hurricane winds?
43 Llamas and the Andes A nonfiction companion to Magic Tree House 34 Late Lunch with Llamas Magic Tree House R Fact Tracker 43 Library Binding Please email or call us for pricing on this book. 31 China Land of the Emperor s Great Wall A Nonfiction Companion to Magic Tree House 14 Day of the Dragon King Magic Tree House R Fact Tracker 31 Paperback 6.
From dinosaurs and knights to mummies and pirates, there is a fact based book for every young reader's interest. In addition to captivating storytelling, each fact based book includes nonfiction elements such as photographs, illustrations, and additional facts at the end. These resources allow readers to delve deeper into the topic and expand their understanding of the subject matter.
Book Reviews: Fact-Checking the Impressions Given by The Magic Tree House
These books mark a shift in The Magic Tree House series. Jack and Annie are now card-carrying Master Librarians. Their missions in this set of four are to travel back in time to retrieve specific works for Morgan to put in the library at Camelot.
Previous books have taken the pair to specific places or eras, but broadly: the medieval period of Europe, the Age of Sail and piracy, the American Old West and places like the Amazon, the African savannah, the Arctic.
Now the stories have them arrive at a place before a specific event. I began to mark these books on my timeline of historical fiction as now I can place the books more specifically.
With more concrete characters and events, I found myself fact-checking and studying as I read these four, and now I’m here to share what I’ve learned.
First, the pair go to Pompeii on the day of the eruption that buries the city in 79 CE. They retrieve a scroll from the library of a patrician citizen and escape with the help of Hercules before the ash buries the city.
This adventure did not excite much complaint or question from me, being already fairly familiar with Pompeii and nothing violently contradicting what I know.
I am though upset to discover how woeful is my public school education in Chinese history. The year of the Day of the Dragon King, determined by the recorded year of a book burning event ordered by China’s first emperor, Qin Shi Huang, predates the destruction of Pompeii by 292 years, and this to me was mind-blowing! And it shouldn’t be mind-blowing. This is fact that I feel that I should have been taught, the great, long period covered by Chinese history.
I have spent more than a week now trying to trace the story referred to in Viking Ships at Sunrise, wanting to know more about this story. I can find no myth of Sarph. I can find no Irish or Celtic myth linking the Milky Way to a sea serpent. I have found that “sarph” is the Welsh word for “serpent.” This myth seems an odd thing for Osborne to have invented, but she doesn’t cite her sources, and I am failing to find them through my own means.
From the description of the island, the sharp incline lined by stairs, the beehive-shaped buildings of the monastery, I am guessing that Osborne meant to depict Skellig Michael, an island you might now recognize as Luke Skywalker’s island hideaway in The Last Jedi. If that’s the case, this book may be set in 823, when the Annals of Inisfallen report the island having been attacked by Vikings.
I have serious problems with the portrayal of ancient Greece in Hour at the Olympics.
- You can’t conflate all the Greek city-states when talking about the place of women or the education of children. Upper class women in Athens were barely allowed to leave the house; Spartan women were given public education and expected to be athletic. If Pope had even added a “most” in front of her sweeping depiction of women’s lives in ancient Greece, I might be satisfied.
- The Olympics website and the Penn Museum say that unmarried women could attend the men’s games and that the priestess of Demeter would be in attendance. Annie is definitely an unmarried woman. Whether unaccompanied minors were allowed or whether there was a punishment for impersonating a soldier, I don’t know.
- Some Greek women were definitely allowed to be poets. Sappho is among the most famous of the Greek poets and was in her own time too.
Plato, a character in this story, lived roughly between 429-347 BCE. Plato is an old man in this story, so this is set probably in the latter part of his life (40+).
This whole series has been inspiring for me in the way that is Chris Paolini’s Eragon, inspiring jealousy, igniting the spirit of competition and the desire to write a better (in this case more historically accurate and inclusive) story, though I’ve not begun any such project yet.
I’m still clearly learning from these stories. I am just also learning that the impressions Osborne gives her readers of these stories are sometimes incomplete and perhaps sometimes completely fictionalized rather than historical. It is a reminder to not believe everything that you read. It is a reminder to question what you read. It is a reminder that the information is out there and fairly accessible if you care to look (I never did more than search Google for the answers that I found).
As a book-lover, I appreciate the emphasis in these four on ancient manuscripts.
Morgan is now outfitting the siblings with period and climate appropriate clothing, so there is far less theft in these four than in previous books.
I’ve already read the next in the series, Tonight on the Titanic, but as it begins a new four-part quest for the siblings, I thought I would end my review with the 16 th . Stay tuned for more!
Osborne, Mary Pope. The Magic Tree House, Books 13-16. Illus. Sal Murdocca. Random, 2010 (Kindle editions). Originally published 1998.
Intended audience: Ages 6-9.
Visit the series’ page for links to order, summaries, sample pages, and games.
This review is not endorsed by Mary Pope Osborne, Sal Murdocca, or Random House. It is an independent, honest review by a reader.
As a book-lover, I appreciate the emphasis in these four on ancient manuscripts.
One of the main goals of the fact based books is to engage readers and instill a love of learning. By combining adventure with educational content, the Magic Tree House series manages to make learning fun and exciting. Parents and educators can use these books as a tool to supplement their child's learning. Whether it's a homeschool lesson or a classroom activity, the fact based books can provide a solid foundation for further exploration and discussion. Overall, fact based books for the Magic Tree House series are a valuable resource for young readers. They offer a unique combination of adventure and education, sparking curiosity and fostering a love of learning..
Reviews for "Fact or Fiction: Uncovering the Truth with the Magic Tree House Series"
1. Jane - 2 stars - I was really disappointed with the fact based books in the Magic Tree House series. I feel like they took away the magic and adventure that made the series so enjoyable. The books became more like non-fiction textbooks with facts being dumped on every page. It became hard to follow the actual storyline and get lost in the world of the tree house. I would recommend sticking to the original fictional adventures of Jack and Annie.
2. Mark - 1 star - I couldn't stand the fact based books in the Magic Tree House series. It felt like a rushed attempt to educate kids without really integrating the facts seamlessly into the storytelling. The information was presented in a dry and boring manner, lacking the excitement and imagination of the other books in the series. I would advise skipping these books and finding more engaging educational resources for children.
3. Roberta - 2 stars - As an adult reader, I found the fact based books in the Magic Tree House series to be tedious and uninteresting. The constant interruptions in the story to provide factual information disrupted the flow and made it difficult to stay engaged. While I understand the educational aspect of these books, I believe there are better ways to present information without sacrificing the overall enjoyment of the story. I would not recommend these fact based books, especially to older readers.