Seymour Simon (author)
Seymour Simon (born August 9, 1931) is an American author of children's books.
Biography
Simon was born August 9, 1931 in New York City. He graduated from the Bronx High School of Science and the City College of New York. A science teacher for 23 years, he began writing for children in the early 1970s.[1]
Simon is the world's most prolific writer of science books for younger children (up to second grade), with more than 250 published titles listed in Books in Print. He also writes fiction, and created Einstein Anderson, Science Detective.
His books encourage children to engage in activities to discover scientific principles, using household materials. For example, Let's Try It Out With Towers and Bridges, asks, "What keeps trees from falling over? How do skyscrapers stand so tall? What makes a bridge strong? Let's try it out!" and shows children how to build a sturdy tower of blocks, create a solid foundation with clay, and make a paper bridge span short and long distances without falling down.
His books are frequent selections in the Outstanding Science Trade Books for Students lists of the National Science Teachers Association.[2]
Simon visits schools and talks to students and teachers, because it is this important contact with children, teachers, and librarians that has made him one of their favorite writers. "I haven't really given up teaching," says Simon, "and I suppose I never will, not as long as I keep writing." [3]
He has two children, and resides in Hudson Valley, New York.
Partial list of awards
Seymour Simon has been honored by many awards for his work including:
- the New York State Knickerbocker Award for Juvenile Literature
- the Hope S. Dean Memorial Award from the Boston Public Library
- the Eva L. Gordon Award, presented by the American Nature Society, for his contribution to children's science literature
- the Washington Post/Children's Book Guild Award for Non-fiction for the body of his work.
- Lifetime Achievement Award in Science Literature from Children from American Association for the Advancement of Science
- Kansas Reading Association 2001 Picture Book Award
- The 2002 Jeremiah Neward Leddington Memorial Award
- 1992 National Forum on Children's Science Books Lifetime Achievement Commendation
- New York Time's One of the Years Best Illustrated Children's Books, Certificate of Excellence
- The New Jersey Reading Association 2003 Book Award for 'Out Of Sight'
June 29, 1999 was Seymour Simon day in Houston, Texas, in recognition of his "outstanding contributions and accomplishments."
August 2, 1999 was a day of recognition for Seymour Simon in Green Bay, Wisconsin, "who has engaged the mind of countless school children, with clear, thoughtful, thorough explanations, from crocodiles to the cosmos. We proclaim that Seymour Simon has done more than any other author to help us understand and appreciate the beauty of our planet and universe."
Partial list of books
- Chip Rogers, Computer Whiz. William Morrow & Company, 1984 ISBN 0688038557
- Big Cats. HarperCollins, 1991. ISBN 0060216476.
- The Dinosaur Is the Biggest Animal That Ever Lived and Other Wrong Ideas You Thought Were True. HarperCollins, 1984. ISBN 0064460533.
- Earthquakes. Morrow, 1991 ISBN 0688096336.
- How to Be an Ocean Scientist in Your Own Home. HarperCollins, 1988. ISBN 0397322925.
- Mars. Morrow, 1987. ISBN 0688065848.
- Neptune. Morrow, 1991. ISBN 068809631X.
- Oceans textbook
- Science Dictionary, 1994. ISBN 006025629X.
- Snakes. HarperCollins, 1992. ISBN 0060225297.
- Uranus. Morrow, 1987. ISBN 0688065821.
- Whales. HarperCollins, 1989. ISBN 0064460959.
- Wolves. HarperCollins, 1993 ISBN 0060225319.
Sources
- Seymour Simon on Carol Hurst's Children's Literature site - quoting from Open Books: Literature in the Curriculum Kindergarten through Grade Two by Carol Hurst. Published by Linworth ISBN 0938865773
- "Writing Science for Children in an Age of Discovery," Eric Nagourney, New York Times, 16 December 2003 [1]
- "Exploring Space: Using Seymour Simon's Books in the Classroom" Bourne and Saul, Morrow, 1994. ISBN 0688136435.
References
External links
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Simon, Seymour |
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| Date of birth |
August 9, 1931 |
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