in the garden – explore new worlds with a book
As a companion to our selected “in the garden” enrichment classes, we have provided a list of selected garden themed books. We have included fiction and non-fiction books to keep the children’s imaginations going in magical and realistic ways. We hope you enjoy them!
The Earth Gives More
Author: Sue Fliess / Illustrator: Christiane Engel
From leaves falling to become fertilizer, to raindrops helping to bring plants to life in the spring, the cycle of every season has something to enjoy. While delighting in all nature has to offer, we need to remember to respect and treasure the world around us. This charming rhyming story follows the change in seasons and illustrates how we can all be good stewards to the Earth.
A Nest is Noisy
Author: Dianna Hutts Aston / Illustrator: Sylvia Long
From tiny bee hummingbird nests to orangutan nests high in the rainforest canopy, an incredible variety of nests are showcased here in all their splendor. Poetic in voice and elegant in design, this carefully researched book introduces children to a captivating array of nest facts and will spark the imaginations of children whether in a classroom reading circle or on a parent’s lap.
This book is also part of the Read for Success collection from Reading is Fundamental. Here you can find free literacy tools and book resources to help support your child’s love of reading or to get them excited about reading. A couple of their supporting materials include A Nest Is Noisy word search and parent & family activity. To find out more about these amazing resources from RIF, click here: https://www.rif.org/literacy-central/book/nest-noisy
You can find this book at your local library.
Tiny Seed
Author and Illustrator: Eric Carle
Dazzlingly colorful collage illustrations and a simple but dramatic text tell the fascinating story of the life cycle of a flower in terms of the adventures of a tiny seed.
Personal Review: This book has been in our library for a long time. I picked up a copy at my local thrift store and my kid’s loved it from day one. Eric Carle’s collage illustrations and story of perseverance through amazing journey of a seed makes this book magical.
What If There Were No Bees?
Author: Suzanne Buckingham Slade / Illustrator: Carol Schwartz
Grassland ecosystems can be found on nearly every continent. Countless animals and plants live in them. So what difference could the loss of one animal species make? Follow the chain reaction, and discover how important honey bees are.
Just Ask!
Author: Sonia Sotomayor / Illustrator: Rafael Lopez
Feeling different, especially as a kid, can be tough. But in the same way that different types of plants and flowers make a garden more beautiful and enjoyable, different types of people make our world more vibrant and wonderful. In Just Ask, United States Supreme Court Justice Sonia Sotomayor celebrates the different abilities kids (and people of all ages) have.
Using her own experience as a child who was diagnosed with diabetes, Justice Sotomayor writes about children with all sorts of challenges–and looks at the special powers those kids have as well. As the kids work together to build a community garden, asking questions of each other along the way, this book encourages readers to do the same: When we come across someone who is different from us but we’re not sure why, all we have to do is Just Ask.
