Sandra Markle (born November 10, 1946, in

Fostoria, Ohio Fostoria (, ) is a city located at the convergence of Hancock, Seneca, and Wood counties in the northwestern part of the U.S. state of Ohio. The population was 13,046 at the 2020 Census, slightly down from 13,441 at the 2010 Census. It is ap ...

) is an American author of children's books. She has published more than 200 non-fiction books for children. She worked on a project for the National Science Foundation called Kit & Kaboodle which helped students to understand science better. She has won many awards for her books. She is a redhead.

Personal life and education

Markle was born on November 10, 1946, in

, to Robert and Dorothy (nee Sauler) Haldeman. She graduated from Fostoria High School, then received a

Bachelor of Science A Bachelor of Science (BS, BSc, B.S., B.Sc., SB, or ScB; from the Latin ') is a bachelor's degree that is awarded for programs that generally last three to five years. The first university to admit a student to the degree of Bachelor of Scienc ...

degree

Bowling Green State University Bowling Green State University (BGSU) is a Public university, public research university in Bowling Green, Ohio, United States. The main academic and residential campus is south of Toledo, Ohio. The university has nationally recognized progr ...

in 1968, after which she conducted her graduate studies at

Ohio University Ohio University (Ohio or OU) is a Public university, public research university with its main campus in Athens, Ohio, United States. The university was first conceived in the 1787 contract between the United States Department of the Treasury#Re ...

and the

University of North Carolina The University of North Carolina is the Public university, public university system for the state of North Carolina. Overseeing the state's 16 public universities and the North Carolina School of Science and Mathematics, it is commonly referre ...

. She married William Markle on August 10, 1968. The couple has two children: Scott and Holly.

Career

Markle worked as an elementary and middle school teacher until 1979 at which time she started being a full-time writer. Markle has published more than 200 non-fiction books for children, primarily on science topics. She appeared as Ms. Whiz on local television in

Asheville, North Carolina Asheville ( ) is a city in Buncombe County, North Carolina, United States. Located at the confluence of the French Broad River, French Broad and Swannanoa River, Swannanoa rivers, it is the county seat of Buncombe County. It is the most populou ...

, and

Atlanta, Georgia Atlanta ( ) is the List of capitals in the United States, capital and List of municipalities in Georgia (U.S. state), most populous city in the U.S. state of Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia. It is the county seat, seat of Fulton County, Georg ...

. She wrote and helped developed science specials for CNN and PBS. She also produced the first on-line interactive program from

Antarctica Antarctica () is Earth's southernmost and least-populated continent. Situated almost entirely south of the Antarctic Circle and surrounded by the Southern Ocean (also known as the Antarctic Ocean), it contains the geographic South Pole. ...

in 1996: ''On-line Expedition Antarctica.'' She has also written fiction, creating the young adult novel, ''The Fledglings'' (now available as an e-book "Soaring Like Eagles"), and a series of poetic prose natural history stories, including ''The Long, Long Journey'', and ''Waiting For Ice''. Sandra Markle is particularly noted for her work in sharing scientists as detectives solving real-life mysteries, including "The Case of the Vanishing Golden Frogs," "The Case of the Vanishing Honeybees," and "The Case of the Vanishing Little Brown Bats."

Unique experiences

Markle was chosen to journey to Antarctica in 1996 and 1998 as part of the

National Science Foundation The U.S. National Science Foundation (NSF) is an Independent agencies of the United States government#Examples of independent agencies, independent agency of the Federal government of the United States, United States federal government that su ...

's Artists and Writers Program. A number of books came out of her experiences in Antarctica, including ''A Mother's Journey'' (Charlesbridge, 2005). Markle also worked on a project for the National Science Foundation called Kit & Kaboodle. Its goal was to make science more interactive in order to improve student understanding of basic curriculum concepts. The results of independent testing conducted by

Georgia State University Georgia State University (Georgia State, State, or GSU) is a Public university, public research university in Atlanta, Georgia, United States. Founded in 1913, it is one of the University System of Georgia's four research universities. It is al ...

revealed that students participating in Kit & Kaboodle scored significantly higher on related skills tests than those that did not. Kit & Kaboodle has been used by thousands of schools in all fifty states plus eleven countries.

Partial list of awards

*AAAS SB&F Award For Excellence in Science Books (Middle Grade Level) *Bank Street College of Education's list of "Best Children's Books of the Year" *Boston Globe-Horn Book Awards Honor Book *Children's Book Council/International Reading Association Children's Book Choice *International Reading Association Teacher's Choice Awards List *Nick Jr. Magazine's Best Books of the Year *Texas Blue Bonnet selection *Texas Mockingbird Award *John Burroughs List of Nature Books for Young Readers *Various selections for the Outstanding Science Trade Books for Students lists of the

National Science Teachers Association The National Science Teaching Association (NSTA), founded in 1944 (as the National Science Teachers Association) and headquartered in Arlington, Virginia, is an association of science teachers in the United States and is the largest organization ...

. * 2nd place in the book contest of 2013

Sources

*Interviews with NZ Children's Authors: Sandra Markle *Ohio Center For The Book: Cleveland Public Library "Ohio Authors: Sandra Markle" *Teaching with Children's Books: A Scientific Approach by Lisa Von Drasek from Teachi

References

*Outstanding Science Trade Books for Students K-12 National Science Teachers Association

External links

Sandra Markle's official website
{{DEFAULTSORT:Markle, Sandra 1946 births Living people American children's writers People from Fostoria, Ohio Bowling Green State University alumni