Author/Scientist Donates Books to 10,000 Schools

Jeffrey Bennett has never appeared on a best-seller list, but if you are the parent of elementary-age children, there’s a good chance your kids will be reading his books. That’s because he has now donated copies of one or more of his books to more than 10,000 public elementary school libraries across the nation.
Trained as an astronomer, and holding a Ph.D. in astrophysics, Bennett is the lead author of top-selling college textbooks in astronomy, astrobiology, mathematics, and statistics. But he got his start as an elementary teaching aide, and he always hoped to be able to give something back to children. In the last four years, Bennett has written two critically-acclaimed “science adventure” books for children: Max Goes to the Moon and Max Goes to Mars. Both books have been recommended by the National Science Teachers Association, NASA, and numerous other education groups. The first book won the Colorado Book Award for Children’s Book of the Year in 2004, and the second is currently under consideration for awards for books published in 2006.
Of course, it’s one thing to win awards and critical acclaim, and quite another to realize a dream of inspiring children, especially underprivileged children who might not be able to afford to buy the books. Drawing on his school experience, Bennett quickly realized that the best way to get his books in front of kids would be through public school libraries. Knowing also that libraries are chronically under-funded, Bennett decided to embark on his “Max Goes to Schools” donation program. To date, Bennett has donated more than 10,000 of his books, with hopes of donating a book to every public elementary school in the United States. Outside the U.S., Bennett is working with a United Nations group in hopes of being able to donate the books to schools in developing nations.

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Jeffrey Bennett

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Big Kid Science

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