Ticktock Banneker's Clock

by Shana Keller (Author) David C Gardner (Illustrator)

Ticktock Banneker's Clock
Reading Level: 2nd − 3rd Grade

Throughout his life, Benjamin Banneker was known and admired for his work in science, mathematics, and astronomy, just to name a few pursuits. But even when he was born in Maryland in 1731, he was already an extraordinary person for that time period.

He was born free at a time in America when most African Americans were slaves. Though he only briefly attended school and was largely self-taught, at a young age Benjamin displayed a keen aptitude for mathematics and science. Inspired by a pocket watch he had seen, at the age of 22 he built a strike clock based on his own drawings and using a pocket-knife. This picture book biography focuses on one episode in a remarkable life.

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School Library Journal

K-Gr 2—This cheerfully illustrated volume centers on Benjamin Banneker's invention of a striking clock. The story begins just as Banneker (1731-1806) has finished his farm chores for the day. He decides to take a moment to study a pocket watch lent to him by a friend. Inspired by the tiny, dazzling machine, he imagines a much larger version, one that chimes. Readers watch him over a number of seasons as he works toward completing his invention. The rich illustrations highlight Banneker's spirit and the beauty of his farm. (A faithful hound dog appears on nearly every page.) This book offers a glimpse into the brilliant mind and hard work of an engineer. An author's note provides more information on his life. VERDICT A concise introduction to Banneker and a welcome addition to any picture book biography collection.—Megan Kilgallen, Packer Collegiate Institute, Brooklyn

Copyright 2016 School Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.
Shana Keller
Shana Keller began her studies of African American history at the University of Miami in Florida, and she's been delving deeper and deeper into our diverse past ever since. She is the author of Bread for Words: A Frederick Douglass Story (an Irma S. Black Honor Award winner). She writes lost-and-found tales of courage and commitment from her home in the beautiful state of North Carolina. Visit her at ShanaKeller.com.

Laura Freeman has illustrated many fine children's books over the years, including Fancy Party Gowns: The Story of Fashion Designer Ann Cole Lowe, written by Deborah Blumenthal, and the Coretta Scott King Honor book Hidden Figures: The True Story of Four Black Women and the Space Race, by Margot Lee Shetterly and Winifred Conkling. Laura lives in Atlanta, Georgia, with her husband and their two children. Find out more about Laura at LFreemanArt.com.
Classification
Non-fiction
ISBN-13
9781585369560
Lexile Measure
720
Guided Reading Level
-
Publisher
Sleeping Bear Press
Publication date
September 01, 2016
Series
-
BISAC categories
JNF007050 - Juvenile Nonfiction | Biography & Autobiography | Cultural Heritage
JNF018010 - Juvenile Nonfiction | People & Places | United States - African-American
JNF025200 - Juvenile Nonfiction | History | United States/19th Century
JNF007020 - Juvenile Nonfiction | Biography & Autobiography | Historical
Library of Congress categories
Biographies
Design and construction
Banneker, Benjamin
Clocks and watches
African American scientists

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