Read Aloud Kids Book + Arts & Crafts Activity: Courageous People Who Changed the World!

Sure! Here’s a sanitized version of the transcript:

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[Music] Hello campers, and welcome to week four of Camp Books! Camp counselor Janae here. Can you believe we’ve already made it to week four? Those creativity badges were so impressive! This week was all about Science, Technology, Engineering, and Math, or STEM. After today’s read-along and activity, you’ll be able to receive your STEM badge!

Week four of Camp Books included the books “It’s a Firefly Night,” “Harry Bear and Friends Count Fish,” “Adam’s My First Science Textbook,” and “Slumberkins’ Narwhal.” Which part of STEM is your favorite: Science, Technology, Engineering, or Math? Be sure to ask your grown-up to help you share your answer with us in the comments!

This week’s books covered many topics, just like STEM. We counted along with Harry Bear and his friends, learned about atoms in “My First Science Textbook,” and discussed the importance of cleaning up our environment in “Slumberkins’ Narwhal.” One topic we haven’t learned much about yet is Technology and Engineering. One group of people that use Technology and Engineering is inventors. Today’s STEM book is “Inventors Who Change the World.” Let’s start the reading and see how these world changers used Science, Technology, Engineering, and Math to make our lives better.

Before we start the book, let’s gather our supplies and talk about the activity we’ll be doing together. Today, we’ll be designing our very own paper airplane. Here’s what you’ll need: one 8.5 by 11 sheet of paper and coloring utensils. That’s it! Alright everyone, enjoy the book!

[Music] [Applause] “Little Heroes: Inventors Who Change the World” [Music]

Little Kai liked watching wasps make their delicate nests from strips of bamboo. In AD 105, Kai gathered tiny pieces of bark, old rags, and fishing nets. He mixed them together, pressed the mixture flat, and dipped it in water. When the sheet dried, Kai had invented the first piece of paper.

Johannes Gutenberg lived at a time when hardly anyone had books because it took too long to write out copies by hand. Around 1439, Johannes set metal letters down in a block, adding ink and paper. Johannes created the first printing press, allowing him to print thousands of pages in no time. Ideas started spreading around the globe.

Leonardo da Vinci was curious about everything. He watched, measured, wrote, and wondered. He drew plans for machines that became real hundreds of years later, like a submarine, bicycle, and helicopter. With his greatest tool, a paintbrush, Leonardo invented ways to paint that made him the most famous artist in the world.

Thomas Edison was always reading and asking questions. One question was why he had to use dirty, smelly gas lamps to light his home at night. He began to tinker with light bulbs in 1879. After hundreds of failed attempts, he finally found a way to keep one lit. Now, people all over the world use electricity to see in the dark.

Louis Pasteur lived when no one really knew why people got sick. Using his microscope, he looked for answers and discovered germs. He found that if you boiled the germs, they went away. In 1885, he learned that germs could protect people too. Since then, Louis’s vaccines have saved millions of lives.

Marie Curie loved to study elements, materials that come from the earth. She tested a special rock until she found a strange glowing blue light. Marie had discovered a brand new element, radium. Doctors soon found that radium could fight off deadly cancers. In 1903, Marie was the first woman to ever win a Nobel Prize.

The Wright Brothers, Wilbur and Orville, were brothers who liked to tinker with machines. One day, their father brought home a toy helicopter that flew, and they wanted to fly too. They studied the wings, the tail, and everything they needed to know about flight. Crashing never discouraged them for long, and finally, in 1903, they flew the first airplane.

Grace Murray Hopper loved learning about math, science, and cool gadgets. Once, she took apart seven alarm clocks just to see how the gears worked. When she got older, Grace figured out how to program a room-sized computer to respond to human language, not just number codes. Now, people all over the world can use computers every day.

These heroes imagined and invented a better world. What kind of hero will you be? What were your favorite inventions? Does this book make you want to be an inventor?

I hope you’re ready because now we’re going to create our very own airplanes just like the Wright Brothers! Start with an 8.5 by 11 sheet of paper. First, fold it in half lengthwise. Then, open the paper back up again. Take one corner and fold it toward the crease, and repeat on the other side. Close the paper with the folded edges inside.

Next, fold the top edge down toward the bottom edge and press it down. Flip the paper over and repeat the same thing on this side. Now you can decorate your airplane! You can use markers, stickers, or anything else you like.

Once you’ve decorated your paper airplane, open up the wings and let it fly! I’m sure your airplanes are flying fantastically as well. Now you have finished the last activity for the fourth week of Camp Books. Great job! You have now earned your STEM badge. You can decorate your badge with coloring utensils and scissors to cut it out.

I’ve already decorated my badge, and I can’t wait to start next week and earn my next badge! Remember, we would love to see your paper airplanes and your decorated badges with approval from your grown-up or your camp counselor. Make sure to share your badge and activities with us by tagging Camp Books on social media.

If you’ve loved these activities, we have many more for you at books.com/resources. Be sure to check it out! This has been Camp Counselor Janae. Thank you for joining us, and I cannot wait to see you next week when we can earn our Dream Big badge. See you soon!

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