It’s easy to get hooked on the Wormworld kit before you even open it. The attractive blue and green checkered box that contains the kit has some fascinating worm facts that make you want to find out more. For example, did you know that worms have five hearts or that worms are both male and female at the same time? The kit inside the box continues to delight the inquiring mind. It consists of a small plastic terrarium with a lid and magnifying glass. The accompanying book, appropriately titled The Worm Book, contains experiments and activities that allow readers to discover everything they could possibly want to know about worms and didn’t know to ask, such as the food, music, and colour preferences of worms, how worms help plants grow, and how worms sound when they move. The experiments are well organized with short, enticing introductions, clear step- by-step instructions, and a What Happens section explaining the results. The sidebars that appear throughout the book are also interesting, but the small print might deter some kids from reading them.

A recurring theme throughout the book is “don’t mistreat the worms.” Author Shar Levine emphasizes this in her introduction, in the explanation of how to set up the terrarium, and in many of the experiments. In keeping with this theme, the book ends with a spread on returning the worms to their natural environment unless, of course, you want to have them live in your composter. Shar Levine encourages the maintenance of a classroom composter, with red wrigglers rather than earthworms, to cut down on lunchtime garbage waste in schools.

Wormworld is a kit that can be used enthusiastically both at home and in the classroom. In the classroom, it is a wonderful tool to develop such scientific research skills as observation, recording, and formulating hypotheses. As well, it teaches sensitivity to animals in our natural environment.