Badger's Perfect Garden

Badger’s Perfect Garden
by Marsha Diane Arnold; illus. by Ramona Kaulitzki
32 pages; ages 4-8
Sleeping Bear Press, 2019

theme: gardening, nature, friendship

One spring morning, Red Squirrel found Badger surrounded by dozens of jars.
The jars were filled with seeds. The seeds looked hopeful, just like Badger.

Badger wants to plant a perfect garden. That means getting the soil perfectly smooth. And planting perfectly straight rows. All of this takes a lot of time, but finally Badger’s garden is planted. All he needs is rain…. but then a HUGE storm washes away the seeds.

All is lost. Or is it?

What I like about this book: I love the idea that Badger is planting seeds that he has collected from local plants. And that his friends help him plant the garden. (As a gardener, I have yet to plant perfectly straight rows or get my soil perfectly smooth.)  Having your garden washed away by a severe storm is becoming a more likely event these days, but I was a bit astonished that Badger didn’t head back out and replant.

That doesn’t matter, though, because what happens is even more fun. As most of us know (when we stop to think about it) seeds will grow wherever they find themselves. But what I really liked was that "the seeds looked hopeful!"

Beyond the book

Plant a garden. One year a skunk dug up a section of our yard (searching for beetle larvae). My kids turned the now grassless area into a flower garden. Here are some resources for gardening with kids: How to Plant a Garden, and Gardening Basics (with lots of info).

Seek flowers that are native to your region. Check with your local county extension, or find a list of native plants at National Wildlife Federation and Xerces Society

Go on a flower walk to learn more about what’s growing in your neighborhood. Here’s a list for a scavenger hunt.

Today we're joining Perfect Picture Book Friday, an event where bloggers share great picture books at Susanna Leonard Hill's website . Review copy provided by publisher.

Green Bean!

Green Bean! Green Bean!

By Patricia Thomas; illus. by Trina L. Hunner

32 pages; ages 4 – 9

Dawn Publications, 2016

It's getting close to gardening season...

Theme: gardening, growing

Opening:

Green bean. Green bean.

And freckles and speckles.

     Freckles and speckles.

     Soon a root and a shoot 

From seed to sprout to plant, this is the story of how beans grow and survive to adult “bean-hood”. 

What I like: The structure. For example, here’s a short bit about the stems growing up a trellis of poles:

Wind roars. Rain pours.

But staked tight, stands right.

            Staked tight, stands right.

            But rabbit could grab it.

I love the way that each page starts with the last line from the previous page.

Beyond the Book:  The girl in this story planted scarlet runner pole beans. There are many kinds of pole beans - I plant rattlesnake beans. Look through a seed catalog for interesting or unusual bean names.

Bean seeds are beautiful  - some are speckled, some splattered like a"paint" pony, and some look like penguins. Cut out pictures of bean seeds and make a collage. OR use bean seeds and other seeds to make art.

Watch seeds sprout. Put different kinds of seeds on a damp paper towel. Slide that into a plastic bag (a gallon ziplock is perfect) and watch them begin to sprout and grow roots. Look at them with a magnifying lens - and draw what you see.

Grow a Book Nook – a shady place to read or nap in the heat of summer. You can grow one by making a tipi trellis of long poles. Plant pole bean seeds around the base of the tipi. As they grow, help them “find” your tipi frame.

Today we're joining PPBF (perfect picture book Friday), an event in which bloggers share great picture books at Susanna Leonard Hill'ssite. She keeps an ever-growing list of Perfect Picture Books. Review copy provided by the publisher.

Pollinators ~ books for emerging readers

 Since it's the end of Earth Week (Earth Day was Wednesday), I thought I'd feature a new series of nonfiction for emergent readers. The new series focuses on pollination, and is a "First Step Nonfiction" series published by Lerner just this year. The author is Jennifer Boothroyd, and two additional titles include "Self Pollination" and "Parts of a Flower".

theme: nonfiction, insects, animals, plants

opening (from Insect Pollinators): "This bee is busy. It is gathering food."

The books in this series show the connections between plants and animals as they depend on each other for survival. Insects and animals need the pollen and nectar from plants, and the plants depend on the animals to move pollen from one plant to another.

What I like: The photography is awesome. The text is just right for kids beginning to read, and text boxes include simple explanations. For example: on one page the main text says that an insect crawls on a flower and pollen sticks to the insect. The photo shows a monarch butterfly on a milkweed flower, but we can't see the pollen. So in a text box we read this: "Pollen often sticks to an insect's back, legs, or head."

Lest you think bees and butterflies are the only insects pollinating flowers, there are pages showing beetles, moths, and even a fly. Animal pollinators show bats, birds, and even lizards moving pollen.

These books are short - 24 pages - and small enough to tuck inside a folder or pocket of a kid's backpack. The close-up photos are bright and colorful, sure to engage a kid's attention and imagination. And there's even one section that shows humans pollinating plants - something an adventurous kid might try. (hint: it's not as hard as you might think)

Beyond the book: Pollinators are important. Without them we wouldn't have apples, pears, pumpkin pie, chocolate, blueberries... And Earth Week is a good time to think about them, because we can help pollinators out by making sure they have habitat and water and nectar sources. So, how can we do all this?

Follow a pollinator. Next time you're outside and you see a butterfly or bumblebee, follow it around to see what flowers it lands on. How far does it have to fly to find flowers? Go on a walk through your neighborhood. Are there certain areas where there are a lot of bees and butterflies? Why do you suppose the pollinators hang out there?

Make your yard pollinator friendly. You can do that by joining the Great Pollinator Habitat Challenge (while you're there, check out the rest of the site)

What would your shopping cart look like without pollinators? A food market decided to take all the insect-pollinated foods off their produce shelves to see what it would look like. They ended up taking 52% of the produce off the shelves! You can see their before and after photos here. Go on a field trip to your local grocery store and see what you normally buy that is dependent on insects for pollination. How would it change the way you eat if those foods weren't available?

Today's review is part of the STEM Friday roundup. Drop by STEM Friday blog for more science books and resources. We're also joining PPBF (perfect picture book Friday), an event in which bloggers share great picture books at Susanna Leonard Hill's site. She keeps an ever-growing list of Perfect Picture Books.  Review copy from the publisher.

Dandelion Seed Dreams

The Dandelion Seed's Big Dream
by Joseph Anthony; illus. by Chris Arbo
32 pages; ages 4-10
 Dawn Publications, 2014

 Theme: nature, life cycle

"Once a little seed took to the sky. It had a dream..."

The tiny seed soars, filled with possibilities. But the wind shifts, it nearly loses its fluffy parachute, and it ends up in the wrong place. But it would not let go of its dream

What I like about this book: While the text tells the universal story of hanging on to one's dream - a bit philosophical for any seed - the illustrations tell the "true" story of seed flight, overwintering, and germinating in the spring when conditions are just right. They also show the story of children and their adult friends coming together to clean up a bit of trash-strewn land and turn it into a community garden. I especially like the ending - and the underlying thought that dandelions are beautiful and have a place in our world.

There's also good information in the back: a detailed introduction to dandelion plant parts, and short discussion on "flower or weed" as well as some history, and some things to do.

Beyond the Book (activities and more)
Take a Sock Walk. Get a pair of old white socks that no one will miss - and that are big enough to fit over your shoes. Moth-eaten wool socks work well, too. Pull the socks on, and go for a walk through tall grass and weedy places. Seeds from dandelions and other plants may stick to your socks. When you come back home, gently pull off the socks. Take a close look at the seeds using a magnifying lens. Draw them. Can you figure out what plants they came from?

Turn your sock into a garden. National Wildlife Federation has great instructions for how to turn a seed-full sock into a living garden. Have fun!

How far do seeds travel? If you can find some parachute-topped seeds (asters, dandelions, milkweed) collect a few. Then release them and try to measure how far they float or ride the breeze. You might need a friend to help - and skip the ruler; use the length of your stride to estimate distances. Alternatively, you could use a stopwatch (or watch with a second hand) to determine how long a parachute-topped seed can stay aloft.

Check out this interview with author Joseph Anthony.

Today's review is part of the STEM Friday roundup. Drop by STEM Friday blog for more science books and resources. We're also joining PPBF (perfect picture book Friday), an event in which bloggers share great picture books at Susanna Leonard Hill's site. She keeps an ever-growing list of Perfect Picture Books. Review copy provided by publisher.

Nature's Patchwork Quilt

Nature's Patchwork Quilt
Understanding Habitats
by Mary Miche; illus by Consie Powell
32 pages, ages 4-10
Dawn Publications, 2012

Look into nature and you will see a patchwork of beauty and mystery.

topic: ecology and habitats

 Just as a patchwork quilt has many pieces that fit together to make one larger blanket, so nature has many habitats pieced together to create one planet. This book explores key concepts of ecology by looking at different habitats. Mary Miche introduces children to interdependence, niche, and food chains. She shows how animals use camouflage, explains biodiversity and touches on species extinction. Miche devotes a page to the ecologists who clean up rivers, plant trees, write books, study science, make movies and organize others to speak for the plants and animals.

Each two-page spread is a quilt of plants and animals that make up a particular habitat: forest, desert, ocean, prairie. The illustrations are rich with color and detail that invite you to look closer.

what I like: each page is designed like a quilt, with patches of animals and plants that, together, create a whole.  I like that, at the end Miche goes back to the concept of interdependence, pulling readers into the web. It is easy to understand why this book was selected as one of National Science Teachers Association's Outstanding Science Trade Book.

beyond the book:

Create your own nature quilt with photos snipped from wildlife magazines and old National Geographics.

Go out on a "nature quilt" walk and look for animals and plants that live in your habitat. How do they fit together into the larger pattern?

There are tons of activities in the back of the book; some are downloadable at Dawn Publication's website (scroll down to find the book). This post is part of STEM Friday round-up. It's also part of PPBF (perfect picture book Friday), an event in which bloggers share great picture books at Susanna Leonard Hill's site. She keeps an ever-growing list of Perfect Picture Books. Review copy provided by publisher.

The Tree that Bear Climbed

The Tree that Bear Climbed
by Marianne Berkes; illus. by Kathleen Rietz
32 pages, ages 3-8
Sylvan Dell Publishing, 2012

This is the book about a  tall tree
that was home to a hive made by the bees
who got a bit peeved when disturbed by a bear
who had no business climbing up there....

Marianne Berkes puts a creative twist on the classic "House that Jack Built" and comes up with a story that is not only fun to read - and full of wonderful rhythmic repetition - but also helps explain a whole lot about plants. Beginning with "These are the roots that anchor the tree that bear climbed."

There's soil that feeds the roots, and rain that waters the soil. Berkes builds her cumulative story from the ground up, up, up into the branches of the tree that bear climbed. Only at the end do you learn why the bear climbed the tree. For those who want more, there are four pages of activities for creative minds, including some hands-on plant experiments.

Review copy from publisher.