Are you ready for warm spring days? We sure are, and you can find some great books about the season at the library. Here are four new ones that will give your children an appreciation of the awakening world around them.
In this wonderful book for beginning readers (and their Mamas), Mouse Loves Spring uses repetition ("The wind blows Whoosh!") to move the action along and introduces interesting descriptive words as Mama and Mouse meet someone fluttery (a butterfly), slimy (a snail), and feathery (a bird), among others. Buket Erdogan’s softly bright illustrations are charming and add to the telling of this happy afternoon adventure for mother and child. Mouse Loves Spring is a Pre-Level One Reader in the Ready to Read series. Books at this level are intended for shared reading and feature familiar characters and simple words. Join Mouse on other adventures also written by Lauren Thompson: Mouse's First Day of School, Mouse Loves Snow, Mouse’s First Christmas, and more.
Talking about seeds is such a nice way to introduce spring. Jennifer Ward’s What Will Grow? is perfect for curious children. Susie Ghahremani’s cheerful and luminous pictures are visual treats that surprise with some spreads that expand upwards or across to subtly convey the magic of growing things. This one teaches that different seeds grow into different plants and trees. For added fun, each image spread shows interested animals with the seeds and what they become. At the end of the book are two helpful sections. Seeds! tells about each kind of seed – when to sow it, steps for sowing it, and when it will grow. From Seed to Plant illustrates and explains the stages: roots to stem to leaves to flowers. This is one of the more successful examples of weaving science education into an enjoyable children’s book.
A warm story of friendship and changing seasons, Kazuo Iwamura's Good-bye, Winter! Hello, Spring! features three charming squirrel children - Mick, Mack, and Molly - who are amazed to see the changes taking place in their forest as snow melts into water. But, where will the water go? This rhyming story is a favorite in its author-illustrator's native Japan and is now available for us to enjoy.
Spectacular Spring by Bruce Goldstone has glowing photographs and “all kinds of spring facts and fun.” You can use this one as a read-aloud for the youngest children by just reading the big words on each page (“Days get longer … and nights get shorter”), but slightly older children can enjoy learning the related facts underneath the headlines. At the end of the book, you’ll find instructions for simple crafts and treats that would be perfect for a springtime storytime.
As cheerful as a robin’s song, springtime books are a wonderful way to appreciate the change in the seasons.
