Bertha Morris Parker

author

American b. 7 February 1890, Rochester, Illinois, United States^[1] d. 1980^[2] active 1916–1955

Bertha Morris Parker (1890–1980) was an American educator, science writer, and children's author. She is best known for her extensive work in developing educational materials for young readers, particularly within the field of science. She taught science at the Laboratory Schools at the University of Chicago from 1916 into the 1950s, eventually serving as a department chairman starting in 1940. Parker was also a research associate at the Chicago Natural History Museum. Her notable literary contributions include being the principal author of the 16-volume Golden Book Encyclopedia (1959) and writing numerous science unit booklets and books on natural history for elementary school students.^[1,3,4]

• science education
• natural history
• children's literature