Wheat

by Jane E. Singer, Kim Etingoff

Overview

Wheat is a plant that most of us eat every day. The flour used to bake bread, cookies, and cakes is made out of wheat. Pasta and pizza crust are made from wheat flour too. We eat wheat in cereals and in snacks. Discover how all this wheat is grown ? and how it gets from the field to the factory … and then to your kitchen. Discover the story of your food-where it was grown, who grows it, and how it gets to your plate.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781422227497
Publisher:	Mason Crest, an Imprint of National Highlight
Publication date:	09/28/2013
Series:	Feeding the World Series
Pages:	48
Product dimensions:	8.60(w) x 11.00(h) x 0.40(d)
Age Range:	8 - 12 Years

Table of Contents

1 Where Does Wheat Come From? 7

2 The History of Wheat 15

3 Who Grows the Wheat We Eat? 23

4 How Is Wheat Grown? 31

5 How Does Wheat Get to Your Plate? 39

Words to Know 45

Find Out More 46

Index 47

About the Author & Picture Credits 48

Editorial Reviews

Books in the “Feeding the World” series encourage readers to think deeply about where their food comes from. This book points out to readers that almost all of the food we eat comes from the earth. Wheat is a grain and is one of the most important plants in the world. Bread was one of the first products made from wheat and loaves of bread over 5,000 years old have been found in Egyptian tombs. Not everyone can eat bread and there is a brief discussion about people who cannot eat wheat, mainly because they are allergic to gluten. The Middle East is the area where the first wheat farms appeared more than 10,000 years ago. Wheat farming has changed along with farming techniques, and today it usually occurs on large farms using mechanical equipment rather than hand labor. Wheat has also been hybridized to be drought resistant and cold weather resistant. Readers may be surprised to learn that China is the largest producer of wheat, followed by India and then the United States. Both China and India must import wheat because they cannot grow enough to satisfy the needs of their people. Words highlighted in red can be found in the “Words to Know” section, along with their definitions, at the end of the book, along with online and book resources (which are not particularly current). The content in this series is generally slight and repetitive. However, the layout is appealing and there are excellent full color photographs, but these qualities are not sufficient to make this a recommended book or series. Reviewer: Marilyn Courtot; Ages 7 to 10.

Children's Literature - Marilyn Courtot