Current topic: Relationship with the Earth
This topic explores our planet, the environment, and some of the ways humans impact the earth. For younger children, we have selected books that illustrate an appreciation for the earth and its inhabitants, while the books for older children explore ways to care for the environment such as recycling and reusing.
Books for children 0 – 3
In My World by Lois Ehlert
Lois Ehlert's In My World is a simple book for young children about some of the wonderment and awe found in our natural world: creeping bugs, wiggling moths, leaping frogs, and singing birds, just to name a few. Instead of illustrations, each page is a die-cut on boldly colored pages, making this book an interesting experience to flip through for any young children. What in our world is fascinating to you and your child?
The Earth Book by Todd Parr
What can young children do to help protect the planet? Parr offers examples of how each child can make a difference by turning off lights, using less water, throwing away trash and recycling. With bright and bold illustrations this book is appealing to toddlers and preschoolers as they begin to learn about the world around them.
Books for children 0 – 6
Let’s Save the Animals by Frances Barry
Let's Save the Animals is an attractive book with paper collage images and flip-the-flap pages that invite children to think about a variety of animals whose populations and habitats are at risk. It encourages the reader to think about what they can do to help the earth and its inhabitants and offers interesting facts about wildlife.
Big and Small, Room for All by Jo Ellen Bogart
In Big and Small, Room for All, Jo Ellen Bogart charms the young reader while answering the universal question, “Where do I fit into the world?” Through the colorful watercolor illustrations of Gillian Newland and poetic text the reader takes a voyage, from exploring the vast universe to things too small to see. This books illustrates wonderfully that it’s all relative, what is big and what is small.
Questions, Questions by Marcus Pfsiter
Questions, Questions encourages children to take notice of and ask questions about the earth’s natural wonders and living creatures. The author-illustrator creates unique images with paint and metallic ink, producing a beautiful backdrop to accompany the wonder and curiosity the words encourage.
Books for children 3 – 6
Living Sunlight by Molly Bang
Living Sunlight explains how our planet and all its life forms are connected to and dependent upon the sun and its energy. Colorful illustrations and detailed text bring to life the concept of photosynthesis and the important life cycle between the sun, earth, plants, water, humans, and animals.
Make It! by Jane Bull
Make It! offers many fun and creative ways to reuse paper, plastic, fabric, and metal in art projects with young children. Save magazines, catalogs, and newspapers and make weavings, papier mache bowls, or jewelry. Reuse old pieces of plastic or metal to make collages or mobiles. The bright and colorful photographs throughout this book are both captivating and inspiring! This book is great for projects on rainy days, weekends, or school breaks.
The Three R’s: Reduce, Reuse, Recycle by Nuria Roca
The Three R’s: Reuse, Reduce, Recycle teaches children and parents alike many things we can do to help make our planet a good place for us to live. It offers creative, new ways to keep the land where we live clean and the water that we drink fresh.
Our Earth by Anne Rockwell
Our Earth has a way of making geography accessible and relevant to children. Anne Rockwell’s gentle, rhythmic text is a pleasing introduction to basic earth science concepts as she describes hot deserts, snowy mountains, steamy rain forests, and vast oceans.
Love Your World by Dawn Sirett
Love Your World, written by Dawn Sirett, demonstrates fundamental ways in which preschool-aged children can take part in helping our planet. Written for children and parents to explore together, Love Your World is comprised of pictures and text that everyone can enjoy. Detailed photographs of animals, colorful recyclable materials, and young children engaging in fun, environmentally helpful activities keep children interested in learning about how to care for their environment, while examples of resourceful crafts and activities provide parents with ideas to help their family become more involved in supporting our earth.
Parents’ literature
The Everything Kids’ Environment Book by Sheri Amsel
Children are curious about the environment and learning ways to preserve and value the world around them is the focus of The Everything Kids' Environment Book by Sheri Amsel. Throughout the book, Amsel provides information, simple experiments, and a variety of activities that children and parents can do together, creating an appreciation and understanding of our planet and how it is affected by our everyday lives. This is an easy read with a wealth of practical ideas and meaningful facts.
