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June's Solar Oven

Part of Steamworks

Author Jen Malia
Hardcover
$17.99 US
9-1/2"W x 8-1/2"H | 20 oz | 12 per carton
On sale Oct 13, 2026 | 40 Pages | 9781623547455
Age 4-7 years | Preschool - 2

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Join June in an exploration of solar energy, engineering, and trial & error, because STEAM is everywhere and for everyone!

Part of STEAMWORKS, a series of fiction picture books for ages 4-7 that relate science, technology, engineering, arts, and math (STEAM) to kids’ everyday lives.


June is determined to have the best day—building the best solar oven to cook the best pizza crackers. But when science club suddenly changes locations, June freezes. She hates new places. Still, science is her superpower, and she knows she needs to show up. With a few deep breaths and her noise-canceling headphones, she’s ready.

At the club, June and her friends troubleshoot their solar pizza oven, experimenting with the best way to layer the toppings so the sun can melt the cheese just right. Can they harness solar energy to make the perfect pizza cracker?


Extend the learning beyond the story with expertly crafted back matter, including additional information about solar energy and experimentation and fun STEAM activities.

STEAMWORKS features children of all backgrounds and abilities using scientific and mathematical thinking to solve everyday problems and answer questions that matter to them. Playful stories and extension activities ignite excitement for science, technology, engineering, arts, and math (STEAM) and empower children as thinkers, problem solvers, and innovators. STEAMWORKS picutre books are available in Spanish.
An autistic mom of three autistic kids, Jen Malia is the author of the children’s chapter book series The Infinity Rainbow Club and the picture book Too Sticky! Sensory Issues with Autism. She is professor of English and creative writing coordinator at Norfolk State University.

Rachael and Phillippa Corcutt are twin sisters and illustrators who work together as an illustration collective, specializing in children’s illustration. After graduating  from the University of Derby with a degree in illustration, they now create illustrations for magazines, children’s books, gifts, and greeting cards and paint sculptures for the United Kingdom's Wild in Art public sculpture trails. www.corcutt.com

Classroom Activities for June's Solar Oven

Classroom activities supplement discussion and traditional lessons with group projects and creative tasks. Can be used in pre-existing units and lessons, or as stand-alone.

(Please note: the guide displayed here is the most recently uploaded version; while unlikely, any page citation discrepancies between the guide and book is likely due to pagination differences between a book’s different formats.)

Photos

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additional book photo
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About

Join June in an exploration of solar energy, engineering, and trial & error, because STEAM is everywhere and for everyone!

Part of STEAMWORKS, a series of fiction picture books for ages 4-7 that relate science, technology, engineering, arts, and math (STEAM) to kids’ everyday lives.


June is determined to have the best day—building the best solar oven to cook the best pizza crackers. But when science club suddenly changes locations, June freezes. She hates new places. Still, science is her superpower, and she knows she needs to show up. With a few deep breaths and her noise-canceling headphones, she’s ready.

At the club, June and her friends troubleshoot their solar pizza oven, experimenting with the best way to layer the toppings so the sun can melt the cheese just right. Can they harness solar energy to make the perfect pizza cracker?


Extend the learning beyond the story with expertly crafted back matter, including additional information about solar energy and experimentation and fun STEAM activities.

STEAMWORKS features children of all backgrounds and abilities using scientific and mathematical thinking to solve everyday problems and answer questions that matter to them. Playful stories and extension activities ignite excitement for science, technology, engineering, arts, and math (STEAM) and empower children as thinkers, problem solvers, and innovators. STEAMWORKS picutre books are available in Spanish.

Author

An autistic mom of three autistic kids, Jen Malia is the author of the children’s chapter book series The Infinity Rainbow Club and the picture book Too Sticky! Sensory Issues with Autism. She is professor of English and creative writing coordinator at Norfolk State University.

Rachael and Phillippa Corcutt are twin sisters and illustrators who work together as an illustration collective, specializing in children’s illustration. After graduating  from the University of Derby with a degree in illustration, they now create illustrations for magazines, children’s books, gifts, and greeting cards and paint sculptures for the United Kingdom's Wild in Art public sculpture trails. www.corcutt.com

Additional Materials

Classroom Activities for June's Solar Oven

Classroom activities supplement discussion and traditional lessons with group projects and creative tasks. Can be used in pre-existing units and lessons, or as stand-alone.

(Please note: the guide displayed here is the most recently uploaded version; while unlikely, any page citation discrepancies between the guide and book is likely due to pagination differences between a book’s different formats.)

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