Why? Why? Why? Every preschooler’s favorite question. Annoying at times but important for building a knowledge foundation of how the world works – also key to how engineers, including structural engineers, approach new challenges and advance the profession. Rather than shutting down these questions, encourage problem-solving and creative thinking. Just as books for the youngest readers presented in Part 1 of this series of reviews introduced the language of engineering, several books aimed at preschool- to early elementary-aged children start to introduce engineering principles and approaches.

A Review of Some Interesting Titles

Goodnight Moon (HarperCollins). Chica Chica Boom Boom (Little Simon). The Very Hungry Caterpillar (World of Eric Carle). Great classics of children’s literature written for the youngest babies and gifted to new parents regularly. But how about Future Engineer or Baby Loves Structural Engineering? Also excellent books, written for the youngest babies, but not nearly as well known and primarily gifted to or from an engineer. These deserve a place on every young reader’s shelf, not just those with a direct connection to the field of engineering.