With 120 franchise locations and a cumulative audience of 5 million children, Challenge Island has been providing kids with award-winning STEAM (Science, Technology, Engineering, Art, & Math) learning adven tures through field trips, afterschool enrichment classes,  summer camps, scout workshops, and family nights for  almost two decades. On National STEM Day (Nov. 8), the  magic of the world’s #1 STEAM program will combine  with the magic of reading to launch the first book in the  first-ever STEAM-themed chapter book series.  

The Bridge to Sharktooth Island: A Challenge Island® STEAM Adventure (West Margin Press) is written by  award-winning educator and East Cobb resident, Sharon  Duke Estroff, Founder and CEO of Challenge Island and  award-winning author Joel Ross.  

The Bridge to Sharktooth Island artfully intertwines  action-packed fantasy with real-life engineering as cautious Daniel, his brave cousin Joy, and their studious  new friend Kimani find themselves suddenly stranded on  a mysterious island surrounded by sharks. Together the  kids find clues hidden around the island and realize that  if they want to escape, they’ll have to work together  to build the strongest bridge they can to get to safety!  The characters return in the back of the book, where  they speak directly and intimately to the reader, sharing  engineering tidbits learned during their adventure, cool  shark facts from Kimani’s notebook, and fun STEAM  activities kids can do at home including building a  bridge, mixing up a blue slime ocean, and designing  ferocious paper sharks. 

“As an educator, an author, a mom, and the creator  of the Challenge Island program and curriculum, the  release of the first book in the Challenge Island book  series is among the proudest moments of my entire  career,” says Sharon Duke Estroff, Founder and CEO  of Challenge Island Global. “But more importantly, I  truly believe that this it is exactly what kids need in this  moment in time. What better way to reignite child’s  a love of learning than by turning a beloved STEAM  enrichment program into a fantastical new book series?  And – for the millions more children who will first come  to know Challenge Island inside the pages of this book  – to see that magical story come to life, not only in their  imaginations, but in the real worlds.  

To purchase the book, visit Amazon.com/Bridge Sharktooth-Island-Challenge-Adventure. To learn more  about Challenge Island book-related programs visit  challenge-island.com.