Add a sprinkle of science to your child’s bookshelf this autumn with these three inspiring titles from Wren and Rook.
Launch yourself into the great unknown with Space Explorers by Libby Jackson. Marvel at 25 extraordinary true stories of humankind’s thrilling journey to the stars which have been brought to life by Léonard Dupon’s beautiful illustrations.
In An Engineer Like Me by Dr Shini Somara and illustrated by Nadja Sarell, Zara’s journey around the city sparks some serious curiosity: How do roller coasters do loop-the-loops? How do planes stay up? As she marvels about how they work, Zara learns about some of the brilliant engineers who have shaped the world around her. This inventive book is packed with engineering explanations and challenges get future scientists thinking.
A Climate in Chaosby Neal Laytontackles the huge issue of our warming planet by explaining what it is, what’s causing it and – most importantly – how we can all help to keep Planet Earth happy.
Want to win all three books for your family? We’ve got five bundles of three to give away to Whizz Pop Bang fans!
To be in with a chance of winning, simply answer this question in the comments:
Whizz Pop Bang is a top-quality, gender-neutral, advert-free science magazine for families everywhere. Each issue is packed with experiments, activities, amazing facts, puzzles, jokes, riddles and more. Find out more here!
Want to win some brilliant games? We’ve got five sets of this inspiring bingo game to give away!
Wonder Women Bingo (written by Whizz Pop Bang writer, Isabel Thomas and illustrated by Laura Bernard) is based around the amazing achievements of 44 women, including loads of scientists!
Each set includes a booklet telling the stories of these women – did you know that mathematician Ada Lovelace realised the potential of computers back in the 1800s, or that cosmonaut Valentina Tereshkova zoomed around Earth 48 times in 1963?
This fab game will be available from Laurence King’s online shop and good book shops from August, but if you can’t wait until then, answer this question to be in with a chance of winning:
Which elements did Marie Curie discover? a. Radium and polonium b. Rhodium and palladium c. Radon and platinum
Hooray, it’s British Science Week from 6th – 15th March! To celebrate, our friends at Learning Resources have given us three pairs of GeoSafari® Jr. Kidnoculars® Extreme™ to give away.
See what you hear, with Kidnoculars Extreme. Magnify your world with these awesome 3x no-focus binoculars and amplify the nature around you with a built-in microphone.
Just answer this question in the comments to be in with a chance of winning:
Where can the tympanic membrane, cochlear and auditory ossicles be found?
a. In the nose b. In the ear c. In the eye
If you can’t see the ‘Leave a reply’ box below, click here to see the full version of this blog post.
Are mountains of festive plastic tat making your Christmas feel a little less than magical? Being an eco-warrior, a super-parent AND Father Christmas can be exhausting stuff, so we’ve sought out some present ideas that bring more cheer and less guilt.
Looking for plastic-free gifts, ethical present ideas, green gifts and other ways to have a green Christmas and make a difference at his time of year? Keep scrolling…
Junko junk modelling kits, from £9.99, www.planetjunko.com
Make junk into toys with this super-creative, eco-friendly toy! Each kit contains a variety of accessories (including wheels, paddle wheels, floats, rubber band drives and more) along with plenty of clip-on and magnetic fixings that can be combined to turn household junk into almost anything you can imagine.
Invented by a dad who wanted to avoid throwaway plastic toys, Junko is fully reusable and made from recycled plastic in England. Its system of clips, magnetic fixings and accessories take junk modelling up a notch, encouraging imaginative play, problem solving and serious FUN!
Whizz Pop Bang subscription, from £20.99, www.whizzpopbang.com
Want to give the gift of science wonder every month of the year? A subscription to Whizz Pop Bang magazine sends science learning and fun rocketing through your letterbox, every single month, with no plastic tat in sight! ⠀
And as if that’s not enough…⠀ 🌳 Printed with vegetable inks on paper from FSC/PEFC suppliers 🌳 Delivered in paper envelopes⠀ 🌳 Advert-free⠀ 🌳 Activities and experiments often reuse household items (like the content of your recycling box and shed!)⠀
First up is an amazing shop dedicated to plastic-free gifts: EcoVibe. From craft kits to lunch bags, building blocks to origami kits, this website promises an easy conscience for all of Santa’s elves. It’s worth having a peek at their adult self-care range too – you might need some TLC after all that shopping!
Throw it and grow it with these easy-gardening seedboms (packed with native wildflower and herb seeds in peat-free compost). There’s even an accompanying books, There’s a Tiger in the Garden, if you’re buying for a younger child (age 4-7). We also love the Make a Pizza for the Birds kit – tasty treats for little tweeters!
Dino Snores for Kids sleepover, £65 per person, www.nhm.ac.uk
Prefer dinosaurs to reindeer? If you’re looking for something that most definitely won’t get lost under the bed, the Natural History Museum’s dino-snores sleepovers offers a thrilling experience to wander the corridors of the pre-historic after dark. Explore a torch-lit trail, make a dinosaur t-shirt and watch a science show. That’s a present they certainly won’t forget!
Adopt a polar bear, from £3 per month, www.wwf.org.uk
Have your kids asked for a puppy for Christmas? How about a polar bear instead? The WWF offers a huge range of animals to ‘adopt’ for Christmas, without the extra hassle of walkies, litter trays and vet bills! From £3 a month, (or from a £36 one-off payment), your little animals will receive a fact pack and regular updates on how their animal is faring in the wild. Upgrade to £5 per month and they’ll get a soft toy of your chosen animal, too! Best of all, your well-earned money will be spent directly on helping the species.
Putting together a super-exciting science magazine for children (and with some of us being parents of some scientists-in-training ourselves) means that Team Whizz Pop Bang read rather a lot of science books. Looking for science gift ideas for children, science books for kids or Christmas present ideas for young scientists? You’ve come to the right place!
Here’s our list of our top curiosity-awakening, fact-packed, inspiring science reads…
Moth: An Evolution Story by Isabel Thomas
“This is a story of light and dark… Against a lush backdrop of lichen-covered trees, the peppered moth lies hidden. Until the world begins to change. Along come people with their magnificent machines which stain the land with soot. In a beautiful landscape changed by humans, how will the little moth survive?”
Moth: An Evolution Story by Isabel Thomas
OK, so we’re a little bit biased, but Isabel Thomas (writer of many of Whizz Pop Bang’s features) is just brilliant at communicating complicated ideas to children. Moth is a beautifully-illustrated picture book that explains evolution through the story of the peppered moth. It has recently been shortlisted on the Children’s Science Picture Book Award and included on the New York Public Library’s Best Books of 2019 list!
The Professor Astro Cat series
Meet Professor Astro Cat: “the world’s smartest and bravest feline scientific explorer and he wants to recruit you! Together with Felicity (also a cat) and Astro Mouse, they are always ready to take you on mind bogglingly brilliant adventures into the incredible world of science.” With books covering Space, the Human Body, Physics and more, our Editor Tammy says “We love them!”
The Whizz Pop Bang Science Joke Book by Tara Pardo
Did you hear the joke about the germ? Never mind, I don’t want to spread it around!
How does the Moon cut his hair? E-clipse it!
What’s a scientist’s favourite dog? A lab!
The Whizz Pop Bang Science Joke Book by Tara Pardo
Packed with super-silly science giggles and fantastic facts, the Whizz Pop Bang Science Joke Book is not only a team favourite – Assistant Editor, Tara, wrote it! We can honestly say that every single one of our children love it, too.
Owling: Enter the World of the Mysterious Birds of the Night by Mark Wilson
“My daughter is a very big owl lover so she absolutely adores it,” says Editor-in-chief, Jenny. “It contains loads of information about an assortment of owls, as well as general owl info – pellets, behaviour, abilities and so on. It’s a shame that it’s based on the common owls in North America, rather than in the UK (no tawny owls), but that still includes barn owls and it also includes Emily’s favourite, snowy owls!”
On a Beam of Light: A Story of Albert Einstein by Jennifer Berne
This is another of Editor Tammy’s family’s favourite science stories. “A boy rides a bicycle down a dusty road. But in his mind, he envisions himself traveling at a speed beyond imagining, on a beam of light. This brilliant mind will one day offer up some of the most revolutionary ideas ever conceived. From a boy endlessly fascinated by the wonders around him, Albert Einstein ultimately grows into a man of genius recognized the world over for profoundly illuminating our understanding of the universe,” says Chronicle Books, publisher of this beautiful book.
Audrey the Amazing Inventor by Rachel Valentine
“Audrey was the most inquisitive girl you could hope to meet…”
Audrey the Amazing Inventor by Rachel Valentine
begins this tale of questions, fiddling and fixing, suitable for curious children aged 3+ “My daughter adores this book and often reaches for it at bedtime,” says Whizz Pop Bang’s Schools co-ordinator, Libby.
Women in Science by Rachel Ignotofsky
Celebrate some incredible women in STEM with this beautiful book. Rachel Ignotofsky’s gorgeous illustrations bring the stories of 50 inspirational women in science to life. It’s another one that our Editor, Tammy, recommends for people looking for great science books for kids.
The Infinite Lives of Maisie Day by Christopher Edge
Editor-in-Chief, Jenny, says that this is one of her daughter’s favourites: “It’s about a girl genius who is studying science and maths and whose world gets turned upside down when she wakes on her birthday to find herself in a weird and scary world. It’s full of intriguing and challenging scientific concepts, like infinity, relativity and entropy, and it gets you thinking about the possibility of parallel universes. Probably best for ages 9+”
You Are Stardust by Elin Kelsey
“If you were a planet, you’d be a lot like the Earth. Rainforests on land and ale in the oceans are the Earth’s lungs,”
You Are Stardust by Elin Kelsey
This intriguing book draws connections between people and the natural world – and it’s another of Editor Tammy’s top science books.
Look Inside How Things Work by Rob Lloyd Jones
“This was very popular with my boys!” says our Customer Service Advisor, Hennie.
“Have you ever wondered how cars roar along roads, or planes soar into the sky? Discover how all sorts of amazing things work, from fire engines and submarines to dishwashers and vacuum cleaners, in this exciting introduction to engineering for young children, with over 70 flaps to lift.”
Explanatorium of Nature by DK
Editor Tammy’s son loves the Explanatorium books (which includes an edition about Science by Robert Winston) and the DK Knowledge Encyclopedias, but the Explanatorium of Nature is his favourite.
We’ve got an awesome Y’s Wonder Club pack to give away to one lucky Whizz Pop Bang fan – but you need to be quick because this competition is only open for 24 hours!
Y’s Wonder Club is our brand new club that encourages Whizz Pop Bang readers to get stuck into experimenting and to share their adventures in science. This bumper scrapbook club pack is the perfect gift for any scientist-in-training and includes:
• Large science scrapbook (315 x 240mm, 48 pages), ideal for recording hopeful hypotheses, nature notes, future inventions, experiment results and more – it’s bound to spark curiosity and creativity!
• Enamel Y’s Wonder Club pin badge – wear this quality badge and glow with pride
• A4 Sheet of fun science stickers – perfect for adorning the scrapbook
• Club membership certificate – A5 certificate to show you’re part of the club
Want to win one? Just answer the question in the comments to be in with a chance!
What are the moons of Mars called?
Jupiter and Saturn
Phobos and Deimos
Oberon and Puck
This competition closes at 7am on 8th December 2019. For full terms and conditions visit whizzpopbang.com/terms
It’s DAY FOUR of WHIZZ POP BANG’s SEVEN DAYS OF PRIZES!
This month’s Whizz Pop Bang magazine is all about SCIENCE SUPERPOWERS, so we’ve arranged a competition that is all about a real-life superhero who wants to save the Earth: Greta Thunberg!
We’ve got six copies of We Are All Greta by Valentina Gianella to give away! This beautifully illustrated book will take you on a journey of hope, resilience and curiosity as we take a a look inside Greta’s life. From drinking water to fossil fuels, from hashtags to education, the book is packed with scientific facts and ideas of things we can all do to help protect our planet.
Just answer this question in the comments to be in with a chance of winning one of six copies!
How many trees are cut down every year?*
1. 15 2. Around 15 million 3. Up to 15 billion
*According to figures reported by WWF
This competition closes on 31st December 2019. For full terms and conditions visit whizzpopbang.com/terms
If you’ve read the SCIENCE HEROES feature in WHIZZ POP BANG: SCIENCE SUPERPOWERS, you’ll know all about Professor E. Paul Zehr. He’s a neuroscientist, author and martial artist who studies the adaptability of the human body at the University of Victoria, Canada.
We’ve got two of Paul’s books about the science behind superpowers to give away. PROJECT SUPERHERO is aimed at readers aged 8 – 12, while CHASING CAPTAIN AMERICA is for adults, so here’s a prize you can share with your parents, grandparents, Scout leader, next-door neighbour, or any other grown up superhero fans you know!
PROJECT SUPERHERO is the diary of Jessie, a 13 year old girl who is doing project on superheroes. Read advice from real-life heroes (including Olympian Clara Hughes, sailor Jessica Watson and Captain Marvel writer Kelly Sue De Connick) as one ordinary girl investigates what it would take to be Batgirl.
CHASING CAPTAIN AMERICA: How advances in science, engineering, and biotechnology will produce a superhuman is a book for adults about whether we can create a real-life superhuman by changing human biology itself!
To be in with a chance of winning these two books, just answer this question in the comments:
How long can a naked mole rat survive without any oxygen?
18 seconds
18 minutes
18 hours
This competition closes at midnight on 31st December 2019. For full terms and conditions visit whizzpopbang.com/terms
Are you looking for Christmas presents for your grandchildren? Or perhaps your children’s grandparents are asking for Christmas present ideas? Maybe you need science present ideas for your nieces and nephews, or for any other small science fans in your life?
If you’re looking for science kits for kids, we’ve got the perfect solution: Whizz Pop Bang science magazine for children is the gift that delivers science wonder through the letterbox every month! Packed with exciting activities, eye-opening facts, puzzles, jokes and more with features written by science experts, it’s the present that keeps on giving all year round!
But that’s not all… We’ve also launched a lab-load of extra goodies this year, perfect for popping under the tree to inspire scientists-in-training to start experimenting! Science presents for kids are right here…
Grandchildren, godchildren, nieces and nephews can be tricky to buy for. Read our handy science gift guide and give the gift of curiosity this year!
Under £10: Science stocking fillers
Choose from dozens of back issues in our shop, £4.75 each
