Tag Archives: nature

Collecting Sunshine by Rachel Flynn and Tamsin Ainslie

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A collection, by definition is both the action of collecting something or a group of things.

Children love collecting things and we often get caught up with their desire to collect stuff we need to buy – but this book Collecting Sunshine – shows that collections are everywhere we look, and do not cost a single cent.

Mabel and Robert are out for a walk collecting anything they can touch, smell, hear, taste and see. Their senses are alive with wonderment as they count their collections, play in the rain and collect things that cannot fit into pockets.

Reading Collecting Sunshine makes you realise how much joy children get from being outside and taking the time to look closely at the world around them. A simple 5 minute walk can turn into an hour but they joy they find in their collecting, is second to none.

Collecting Sunshine will be enjoyed by young children and inspire them and hopefully their adults to start collecting things from the natural and outside world around them rather than the shopping centre!  

The illustrations are vibrant and full of detail, giving the simple story so much more. Young eyes will love the tiny details of the cats up in trees, budgerigars watching closely and rainbows dancing on the grass.

In the classroom

Numeracy

Take your class outside and collect things. Record this on a sheet and create graphs to show the different types of collections and the amounts of things we can have in a collection.

Science

Use this book to look at the five senses and how we can look at different things differently through a sense. E.g : We can touch a collection of rocks but can we taste rocks? Hear rocks? Smell rocks? See rocks?

Activity Pack : https://www.penguin.com.au/content/PRH_FLYNN_PBOTM_PACK_HR.pdf

Teacher notes: http://www.lamontbooks.com.au/media/126706/september-2018-ec-collecting-sunshine.pdf

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Where happiness lives by Barry Timms and Greg Abbott

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Where does happiness live? How do you find it and hold onto it?


This delightful picture book Where happiness lives by Barry Timms and Greg Abbott is not only a cleverly rhymed story but the illustrations are intricate and the peep holes through to the adjoining pages make the story lots of fun.

The story begins at Grey Mouse’s house. It i safe, roomy and filled with friends and family. Grey Mouse thinks he has a wonderful life until he spies a much bigger house far off in the distance.

Thinking that a big house with many beautiful things must mean happiness, little grey mouse and his friend White mouse go on a journey to find what they think will make them happy.

But it is along the way that the reader can pick up on the things that the little mice are not noticing – the fluttering butterflies, the singing birds and the sweet smelling flowers – and wonder why they think that a big house with lots of treasures will somehow give them more.

It isn’t until they meet the brown mouse that they realise what true happiness is.

This book will spark conversations about what makes us happy and why we feel that things make this happiness. We live in a society where we are told to buy more and spend up to feel good – but we need to start to teach our children that this is not the pathway to be taken.

Where happiness lives by Barry Timms and Greg Abbott is a great springboard to inspire young children to stop and look at what they have, appreciate the goodness in the simplicity of life and the beauty that friendships can bring.

Buy here today

Who dresses God? Written by Teena Raffa-Mulligan and Illustrated by Veronica Rooke

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Children have so many thoughtful questions that not only do they want answered but encourage us, as the adults, to think about the responses. 

Who dresses God? Written by Teena Raffa-Mulligan and Illustrated by Veronica Rooke is a softly written story that explores a child’s wonderment and awe of the concept of God.

With genuine interest the child wants to know who looks after God, where does he live, how does he see or even hear? 

And the parent’s response is genuine. 

Through rhyme, the concept of God is explained. His beauty, love and kindness are everywhere and in everything. God is linked to everything the child knows and wonders about and perhaps by the end of the book the concept of who God is makes a lot more sense. 

Talking about who God is can be difficult not only to explain, but to understand.  This book – Who dresses God? Written by Teena Raffa-Mulligan and Illustrated by Veronica Rooke  – is a perfect way for any perplexed adult to explain God to their child. 

Rhyming words curl through the pages, flowing beautifully to explain how God is special – just like us.  The illustrations help the younger reader to see the story and add that extra detail to why God has created the world we love and care for. 

I highly recommend this delightful picture book for any family wanting to explain who God is, what makes our world so special and what makes us, as people special members of the world that has been made for us. 

Make sure you take part in the rest of this wonderful Blog Tour and check out my facebook pages for extra discussions about books and environmental stewardship!

Growing globally and socially conscious children: https://www.facebook.com/groups/sociallyconsciouschildren/about/

Educate Empower: https://www.facebook.com/educateempower11/

Jasper Juggles Jellyfish by Ben Long and David Cornish

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Do you know a child who just can’t sit still in the classroom? Or would rather move about instead of sitting down? Or perhaps you have an interest in creatures with eight legs or even those who blob around the ocean?

Well this book is just for you!

Jasper Juggles Jellyfish by Ben Long and David Cornish is a fun filled rhyming picture book that tells the story of young Jasper, an eight legged student who is having trouble learning how to count.

Learning how to count without doing the act of counting can make things tricky so young Jasper decides to juggle his numbers instead – but this proves to be just as tricky!

Instead of giving up, Jasper learns to take his time and slowly build up his juggling skills. Starting with one willing jellyfish before he moves onto two then three then all 12.

Colourful pictures and easy to read rhyme make this story quite a lot of fun but also provide many different talking points.

After we read this book we researched about different octopi, different types of jellyfish and of course tried to juggle ourselves.

We were also able to explore rhyme and the different types of ways words can rhyme in sentences to tell a story.

Jasper juggles jellyfish is a great story for young children who are learning how to count as it shows that persistence, practice and hands on learning are all key to understanding the great big world of numbers out there! It might also inspire parents and teachers to ensure that whenever learning takes place we make sure it is fun, hands on and linked to the real world!

So what else can you do with this book?

Numeracy

  • Explore different ways of counting to 12.
  • Explore different patterns in counting
  • Explore how many legs were in that counting pattern!

Literacy

  • Look at the different rhyming words used in this story and try to create your own sentence or two.

Science

  • What are the different types of jellyfish that reside in oceans or surrounding waterways near you?
  • Learn more about octopi and their intelligence.
  • How can you juggle? is there a science behind juggling different types of objects?
  • Can jellyfish always be this helpful? Look in the news for times jellyfish haven’t been too helpful.

International Mud Day

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Today is International Mud Day.

Is this your worst nightmare or a wonderful idea of fun?

International Mud day began in 2009 at a World Forum when Gillian McAuliffe from Australia and Bishnu Bhatta from Nepal got together to talk about ways to encourage feelings of community and appreciation for the world around us. They discussed the challenges children face when playing together in the mud. On the plane returning from the Forum, McAuliffe contemplated the obstacles that stand between many children and their ability to enjoy the simple, natural act of playing in mud. Challenges such as cultural preferences for cleanliness, lack of access to “disposable” clothing that can be dirtied and proper cleaning supplies, or dry, sandy geography not conducive to muddy conditions. So this is where Mud day grew from the idea that we should all be able to get down and dirty and have fun in mud, no matter where we live in the world.

SO —

The one thing you need to do on International Mud Day is: GET DIRTY!

It doesn’t have to be mud; it could be also be dirt or sand but just one way we can get down and play with the simpler things in life.

So what can you do on this day of mud?

 – Find some mud and stomp in it!

– Find some sand and build castles in it!

– Use your imagination and build something with your hands out of natural material.

– Read some books about mud

Read some books about nature play such as:

Cicada by Shaun Tan

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Another brilliant book by Shaun Tan – Cicada is a book with subtext for both older children and adults but with illustrations that young children will enjoy too.

Cicada is a story about a cicada who works in a dreary office building, performing the same task day in, day out with no recognition or appreciation of the effort he puts in.

Cicada is treated poorly, ignored by colleagues and constantly calls out ‘Tok, Tok, Tok”, which could represent the noise of a keyboard, the clicking of a clock, the noise cicadas make or perhaps even the monotone thoughts of the office workers. Whatever you take it to mean, it shows the bland existence of humans and this cicada.

But all this changes on Cicada’s last day of work, where instead of having a farewell party or a thank you handshake he simply packs up his desk and ascends the stairs.

The stairs to say farewell to this greyscale existence.

The stairs to something much more wonderful, so much so that the cicada wonders why the humans haven’t worked it out yet.

I won’t spoil it here – you’ll have to read it yourself!

So what else can you do with this book at home and at school?

Younger readers.

Younger readers may not see the subtext of this book but other issues can be explored such as:

– Explore the life cycle of a cicada and the time the spent underground compared to the time above.

– Think about what you would do if you had to live in a world without colour, creativity or fun. How would you feel?

– What does ‘Tok, Tok, Tok” mean to you? What sound would you make if you worked in a world like this?

– Why do the humans think he is worse than them? Why do they ignore him or make him go to the toilet out of the building (this can be linked to some women’s prejudice issues of the past).

– Why do you think the cicada never left his job?

– What is the importance of getting out into the world around us and exploring more than just making money?

– Why do we need nature? Why do we need to explore?

– Is money really that important? (Big idea – take time to discuss this)

And here are some more in depth ideas if you wish to study this book for older readers:

Notes from Hachette, click here.  

Join my facebook group – growing globally and socially conscious children to swap ideas to help young children tackle the big issues!

The perfect Leaf by Andrew Plant

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But the leaves were so beautiful they had to be shown, they had to be shared.

 

Have you ever wondered at the colours of the autumn leaves? HAve you ever looked so closely to see the different colours of each individual leaf?

 

The Perfect Leaf by Andrew Plant will help you to see the wonder that is nature.

 

Each leaf that falls to the ground during autumn is so different – whether it be in colour, shapes or texture. Whether is is damaged, unmarked or broken – each leaf tells a different story.

 

In The Perfect Leaf, two girls meet and play. They search for the most perfect leaf of gold, red and crimson. They dive deep, throw leaves into the air and swim around in search of the most perfect leaf there could ever be.

 

But soon they discover that nothing is perfect and that everything can be beautiful – we just have to look at it in the right way.

 

The Perfect Leaf explores not only the beauty of nature but also friendship and love. It explores the idea that nothing in this world is perfect and everything has flaws – but these flaws don’t have to be a negative thing, they can be something that makes an object or a person even better.

 

The Perfect Leaf is a lovely book to share as the seasons change and we start to crunch through the leaves on the ground. It is one that will help you to discuss why we shouldn’t strive for perfection but instead strive for what makes us truly happy.

 

So what else can you do with this book?

 

SCIENCE

  • Explore the changes in leaves over the seasons.
  • Explore different shapes of leaves around your home and learning areas.
  • Get outside during those cold winter months and find beauty despite the lack of colour and warmth. See what grows in winter and ponder why.
  • Explore symmetry through leaves

 

LITERACY

  • Explore the adjectives used throughout the book to describe leaves. Write your own description of a leaf.  

 

THINKING

  • What is perfection?
  • Can something be perfect?

Teacher notes: http://fordstreetpublishing.com/ford/images/stories/teachers_notes/The-Perfect-Leaf-Teachers-Notes.pdf

JOIN MY FACEBOOK GROUP FOR PARENTS AND TEACHERS WHERE WE EXPLORE BIG ISSUES AND HOW TO BEST TALK ABOUT THEM WITH KIDS.

https://www.facebook.com/groups/362368594250457/

 

What changes are you making this week?

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What changes are you making this week at home or at your workplace to lessen your eco-footprint?

I can change the world

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What can we do?

Worry we aren’t doing enough when all we do is perhaps compost or perhaps you buy your food in bulk?

Do you cook from scratch? Say no to plastic bags?

Or perhaps the best thing you are doing now is educating your children through books and discussions?

 

How can we make the world a better place to live in?

From so many different sources the message is very clear.

Every small sustainable difference we make, every small change we make, every small thing we show others – all makes a difference.

What are you doing to make a difference? How are you showing this?

How are you educating children? Would love to hear what you are doing or what you would like some help doing!

You can buy this great poster at The Global Guardian Project and try my discount for a further 10% off!

GGPVanessa

Making with Living things: Build amazing projects with inspirational scientists, artists and engineers by Anna Claybourne

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Have you ever wondered how a spider spins it’s web? How a movie is created or how to colour your boring white shirts?

Making with Living things: Build amazing projects with inspirational scientists, artists and engineers by Wayland Books, is an excellent resource for parents and teachers alike as it will inspire young minds to try something they may have thought impossible!

There are ten different activities to choose from and each activity is presented with step by step instructions, accompanied by illustrations. Alongside each activity is a scientist, artist or engineer spotlight – showing children that these simple experiments can actually lead to something big!

We love spiders in our house (true – perhaps not the funnel webs) but the others fascinate us and I am proud to say we are not spider squashers – but spider rescuers.

With this fascination in mind, we wanted to find out the steps spiders took to create their intricate webs so we turned to page 18 and read about some artists who create life like spider webs out of string in various public spaces.

We also learnt that animals are architects who have inspired many human structures!

The instructions in this book were easy to follow yet gave us room to be creative.

Learning to experiment about the world around us is really important if we are to expect our children to love the natural world.

We need more scientists, engineers and artists to solve the problems of the world so that it will be a wonderful place to live for many more generations to come.

Making with Living things: Build amazing projects with inspirational scientists, artists and engineers, is a must have for any home and classroom – be inspired and get out in the natural world today!

The wild robot by Peter Brown

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Clouds scudded through the sky

Spiders spun intricate webs, Berries beckoned to hungry mouths, Foxes stalked hares, Mushrooms rose up from leaf litter, turtles plopped into ponds, moss spread across tree roots, vultures hunched over carcasses, ocean waves beat against the coastline, tadpoles became frogs, caterpillars became butterflies. A camouflaged robot observed it all. 

The Wild Robot by Peter Brown is my latest read and one which has had many positive reviews. I loved the premise of this novel – a robot living on an island amongst nature, learning to live in the wild and learning about the cycles of life.

But did I love the book – after a slow hump in the middle, I did.

Author Peter Brown involves the reader right from the start, telling us all about how the robot came to be on the island and often asking us questions about what we think might happen next. We watch as Roz, the mechanical robot,  learns to live in nature by observing daily activities by animals, watching the subtle changes in the cycle of seasons and day/night and of course through making friends.

We learn about the daily activities of Roz, which I found interesting but a little slow at times. However, the pace picked up again and the growth of love between Roz and her adopted son made the story so much more rich.

The Wild Robot explores the intricate details of nature and how everything effects each other. We learn, in a subtle way, about the impact changing seasons and human development are having on animals and the possibility of life with robots.

Younger children will love this book if it is read to them as they can explore how Roz learns about animals and the natural world. The last few chapters are confronting – but so are many aspects of the current world we live in.

The Wild Robot is an excellent read, broken up into little chapters with simple illustrations, it will reinvigorate your desire to get out in nature and possibly become a little wild yourself!

Children over 11 will enjoy reading this alone and I would even recommend this book as a class study as so many different topic areas are covered

  •  Climate change (how it effects animals habitat, survival in the changing seasons)
  •  How living things work with each other (life and death, building materials, symbiotic relationships)
  •  Animal habitats (how they create them and where they live)
  •  Robots in our lives – do we really need them? (What do we use them for now?)
  •  Migration patterns in birds (Map patterns of your local migratory birds)
  • Geography (uninhabited island in the world)
  •  Literary technique – breaking the fourth wall.
  • How do we communicate with animals?

I love this tree by Anna Claybourne

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Come and climb up a tree, sit on it’s branches and admire it’s leaves, seeds and fruit.

Wonder no more about the secrets a tree holds as you will find out so many things in this informative non-fiction text about trees – and why so many people love them! 

In this colourfully illustrated non fiction book for children you will discover the world of trees that perhaps you did not know about.

Each page is filled with detailed explanations of trees from how it grows from a seed, how old they can be and who needs them.

The readers will discover that there is so much more to a tree than it’s leaves, bark, fruit and seeds. They will see that trees provide so much for many animals and humans and that they cleverly work so that they can survive in testing conditions.

Not only will readers learn facts about trees, they will also learn about how myths have been created about trees and their importance in different cultures and times.

I love this tree is filled with drawn illustrations and real photographs. Diagrams are labelled clearly, timelines give adequate description and there is even a pie chart! Exposure to different methods of factual information is important for young readers so that they know that reading and writing are not the only ways we can see facts.

Trees from all around the world have been included in this book as well as animals and insects that need them for survival. Perhaps this book would be a great lead into learning more about one tree in particular once you have covered the ground work through the chapters in this book.

How can I use this book at home?

This is an easy one as trees surround us – even in the cities and they are often a focus point of parks and walkways.

 —————–  > Go and investigate trees that are in your area.

——————————- > Look at different leaves that have fallen onto the ground and collect them to make a collage, basket display, sketch or chalk rubbing.

——- > Look for seed pods or flowers and try to work out which tree they have fallen from and the purpose of each one is.

Where would you use this book in the curriculum?

Literacy

– There are so many ways to base factual knowledge into persuasive texts, imaginative texts and informative. 

Outdoor Learning

Check out this link on how you can learn outside and meet curriculum standards https://www.australiancurriculum.edu.au/resources/curriculum-connections/portfolios/outdoor-learning/

Science:

Explore different parts of trees, how they help us to survive and how we can help them to survive.

  • Living things have a variety of external features (ACSSU017
  • Living things can be grouped on the basis of observablefeatures and can be distinguished from non-living things(ACSSU044
  • Living things depend on each other and the environment to survive (ACSSU073)
  • Living things have structural features and adaptations that help them to survive in their environment

Unplugged by Steve Antony

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But one day there was a power cut…

Can you imagine? A life without your computer? phone or tablet?

What would you do if you had to go outside, talk to people around you or explore the unknown outside the safety of your device?

Steve Antony has answered these questions in his creative picture book – Unplugged.

Blip, a little robot loves her computer and all of the different things she can do on it. She can play games, learn new things, sing, draw and go on adventures – what more could she want?

She thinks she has it all until the power is cut and it is only then that she realises how much more is outside and how much more colour it brings to our lives.

Blip loves being outside and with real friends  and even though she loves her computer she realises just how great outdoor play is and the need to do it more often.

Simply told through words and pictures, children can see the similarities and differences between computer games and the outside world. But they can also see how much better playing outside is. Most children I have read this to have agreed that outside is so much better but they still like their computers – which is fine but as adults we really need to get motivated and take our children outside, explore with them, play with them and teach them just how much more is out there.

Computers are great but they can breed jealousy (when viewing those perfect pictures) time wasting, inappropriate content, narrow view of the world, time wasting and loss of imagination and creativity.

Perhaps it is time to see what you and your children are doing when you are plugged and unplugged. Perhaps it is time to become just like Blip and see how great it is to be unplugged!

So what else can you do with this book?

LITERACY

  •  Write a letter to yourself persuading you to get unplugged more often.
  •  Write a letter to your parents, encouraging them to get unplugged
  • When Blip plays all day long there are no words between the friends. What do you think they might be saying to each other?
  • If you were to spend a whole week with your family without screens what would you do? Where would you go? Write some ideas down to share.

NUMERACY

  • Work out how much time you spend in front of a screen and work out a way you can spend less time in front of it.
  • How often do you move? Investigate your daily movement and how taking time off the screen can help your movement and health.

INQUIRY

  •  How are you like Blip? Create an advertisement to show a person, before and after being unplugged. You can choose a perspective to take this from – health and wellness or computing company.  Look at how advertisements can persuade us to do things that aren’t great for our health and see how you can create your own.

Meeka by Suzanne Barton and Anil Tortop

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Some dads cook sausages.

Some dads cook pasta.

My dad cooks spicy, dicey stew.

And then our adventure with the delightful Meeka begins.


Meeka the sweet blue bird, hangs around with a father and daughter who cook at the market.

Meeka not only loves helping cook the heavily scented tagines through his magical song but he also loves making friends and tasting the delights from the other market stalls.

But we soon learn that perhaps all of these treats are not so good for a little birdy body…..

—-

Meeka is a delightfully told story by Suzanne Barton about not only a father-daughter relationship but also about the care we can give to natures’ smaller creatures. Throughout this story we also feel the care of the market stall owner community when little Meeka cannot be found.

Community love is something that perhaps many of us do not experience in our inner city life or perhaps even rural isolation but within this story it just shows that by taking part in small community activities such as the markets, we can make friends and feel a sense of belonging just through simple activities such as cooking, eating and chatting.

The father and daughter show love through cooking and cleaning together, talking to other stall owners, customers and singing with Meeka.

Anil Tortop’s illustrations are done in pastel colours full of love. We can feel the happiness oozing from the pages, we can sense the love the father and daughter have for each other and the care they have for Meeka. The illustrations really bring this story to life and show not only the immediate characters but all of the extra people who make their lives complete.

Meeka is a self published book by Bluebell books and was crowdfunded by around 100 people. Without the support of these people I may have never been able to share this lovely story which just goes to show that as budding authors, writers should never give up on a story that they feel will make a difference to our world.


Meeka by Suzanne Barton and Anil Tortop is a heart warming read and one to share. The qualities of care, kindness, helping others and joy are all the traits we want to see in our children and through this story we can show our children how important they are.

So what else can you do with this book?

– Are there any market places near you? Plan a family outing to a farmer’s markets.

– What do you love to cook? Choose a favourite recipe and cook this with someone you love. Explore the senses that light up as you cook – smells, tastes, sounds, sights and touch.

– Take a walk into your backyard or local park and see the different birds that live nearby. Can you watch what they eat? How might humans be effecting the birds diets?

– Take part in the national bird watch count.

– Explore how to make Tagines, crusty bread, donuts and toffee!

– Suzanne Barton uses rhyme to describe the father’s cooking, toffee and nectar. Can you create your own rhymes to describe your favourite food?

 

And check out Bluebell books to buy your own copy!

 

 

That’s not a daffodil by Elizabeth Honey

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Does your child know how flowers grow?

Do they know that all flowers were once seeds?

That’s not a daffodil is a beautiful story about a young boy’s relationship with his next door neighbour. The neighbour, Mr Yilmaz, shows the boy a daffodil – but to the boys surprise it is only a bulb (which Tom – the young boy –  thinks is an onion)


Not understanding the time it takes for a seed to grow into a flower or the things you need to do to nurture the seed so it grows, young Tom is always bewildered when Mr Yilmaz refers to the pot of dirt with the bulb inside, as a daffodil.

As we see the bulb slowly grow, we also read creative similes, metaphors and figurative language that cleverley describe the daffodil in each state of growth.

The relationship between Tom and Mr Yilmaz also blossoms as the daffodil grows, just showing how simple acts of kindness can lead us to learning about someone we may not have always chosen to know.

That’s not a daffodil by Elizabth Honey was a CBCA shortlisted book in 2012 and is definately one for the home bookshelf. It not only teaches children about plant growth but also the importance of patience, kindness and the ability to see beyond the simple picture.

 

So what can you do at home?

 

  • Grow some seeds. Find some pots and plant seeds and watch them grow. If you can, keep a seed diary so your child can monitor when the seed is watered and how long it will take to grow into a plant.
  • Learn about the life cycle of a plant or an animal, discover how long other things take to grow and what they need for survival.
  • Imagine a world without regular rain or temperatures that are too cold – what might happen to plants that rely on rain and warmth?
  • Enjoy some green space and digging – it is a wonderful activity for the soul.

Two Rainbows by Sophie Masson and Michael McMahon

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Red and Yellow and Pink and Green, Purple and Orange and Blue….

 

Two rainbows by Sophie Masson and Michael McMahon is a stunning picture book for readers to learn to explore colour in their every day lives. Published by Little Hare books, Two Rainbows explores life in the city and in the country and how colours that are in one place can be completed different in another.

Colour is all around us and every moment of the day the colours can be different. As we read we see that the same colour can be seen in different places and the comparison between city and country colours shows that the same hue can be seen in many different ways-both built and natural .

Everyone loves a rainbow – no matter where it is people always stop to admire, take a photo or just ponder that mythical pot of gold at the end must be out there, somewhere.

This story also allows us to show our children that colour is everywhere, even when days seem dark, lonely, sad or hopeless – there is always colour even in the greyest of cities.

Michael McMahon’s illustrations are simple yet powerful. The simplicity of each picture highlights the colour in our world. Perhaps it shows us how much of a role colour can play in our lives – even when are all so small in terms of the space we each take up. The illustrations also show the beauty and freedom of the countryside and the dull, busy city life many of us lead. Perhaps this story might encourage city dwellers to get outside of the city boundaries more often – and see how those colours become so much more alive when they are in their natural state.

Take the time to read this book with your child and learn to appreciate how even though different  may form the same shade, they can give us a different feeling.

So what can you do at home?

SUSTAINABILITY

  • Get outside into a natural environment and explore colours. Compare the different green leaves on the same tree, Look at the different shades of flower petals and feathers on birds.
  • How can you add more natural colour to your home or local environment?
  • Explore the use of natural colours – make your own and create your own Two Rainbows style book. Use beetroot, potato, clay, spinach and carrot!!  Using natural colours ensures that less chemicals are going down the drain.


 

Being a bee by Jinny Johnson and Lucy Davey

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Discover the secret life of bees from queens to the waggle dance, hives and honey. 

Have you ever wondered about how your flowers grow so brightly or perhaps how tomatoes grow so rapidly or even how weeds seem to appear all over your garden without the slightest hint of a breeze?


Well, wonder no more – Being a bee by Jinny Johnson and Lucy Davey explains the many facets of a bee through simple explanation and colourful illustrations.

In this lively book  children will love learning about bees. They will be introduced to the delightful queen bee and then shown how the babies are fed and grown in the hive alongside where honey is kept for safekeeping.

We learn how and why bees to a waggle dance and how important it is for them to work together as a team.

The section on beekeeping was eye opening and helped us to really appreciate the tub of honey we have sitting in our cupboard.

The flat design illustrations abound with green and yellow and flashes of colourful flowers – which without bees would be no more.

Being a bee is a great way to introduce your young reader to the importance of bees and the valuable role they play in our society.  There is a lot of news in the media at the moment about the need to bring bees back.

So what can you do at home or at school with this book?

Sustainability

  • Have a look around your home and see what would entice any type of insect to your area? all insects are beneficial and attracting them to something they can live off or eat is important. It’s better they live off the plants than things in your house!
  • PROJECT: How can we provide the best home for attracting bees? Investigate what the bees (local to your area) need. Draw up a plan of what the hive would look like, where it should be placed, what conditions it needs to attract bees and to survive. (This project includes outcome links to mathematics, literacy, science and geography)
  •  Herbs are an easy plant to start with as they can be grown in small planter boxes on windowsills – give rosemary, thyme or mint a go.
  • It is important that you find out about the beneficial flowers that help bees in your area too. Australian stingless bees love:

 

Abelia x grandiflora Abelia
Buddleja * Butterfly Bush
Callistemon  Bottlebrush
Eucalyptus  Gum Blossom
Grevillea Spider Flower
Lavandula Lavender
Leptospermum Tea Tree
Melaleuca Honey Myrtle
Westringia Rosemary
Many Varieties Daisies

Literacy

  • Find some more books that have bees in them – you’ll bee surprised! Do these stories all have a similar message to tell?
  • Compare scientific literature to children books that are on the topic of bees. Why do we need both types of literature out there to understand the need for bees in our world? Create your own bee themed picture book based on some scientific literature.
  • Create your own story about your adventure with a bee. Which flowers would you like to visit? Divide a page into four sections and draw a series of pictures that show what you would like to do with a bee to make sure there are enough flowers, fruits and vegetables in the world.

SCIENCE

How is honey used in our lives apart from to eat? Investigate the different properties of honey and how it is used in a myriad of products!

GEOGRAPHY

Where are bees located? What type of environment do they need to thrive? Create a honey bee and a stingless bee map of Australia.

NUMERACY

Why are honey bee hives made out of hexagonal shapes?

Why do stingless bee hives spiral shaped?

Investigate the different shapes of bee hives across the globe and why they are this shape. Could they be another shape? Investigate if there is a better way to keep honey in a hive.

https://www.hachette.com.au/jinny-johnson/being-a-bee

 

The Patchwork Bike by Maxine Beneba Clarke and Van T Rudd

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It has painted on lights and a bark numberplate that keeps falling off and we have to remake it.


The Patchwork Bike by Maxine Beneba Clarke and Van T Rudd is a fun book filled with onomatopoeia, vibrant adjectives and outside active play.

As you read through this story the energy seeps out of the pages as the children tumble through the streets, run up and down hills and zoom along on their homemade bike.

Set in a small village on the edge of the No -Go Desert, the children need to make their own fun. The children get inventive and create their own bike made from old bits and pieces (and perhaps some things that mum might need…). They create wheels out of wood, a number plate out of bark and handlebars out of branches. These children use their imagination and problem solving skills to create a bike that can shicketty shake them over sandhills and winketty wonk them through fields.

This book is lots of fun to read and really makes you think – that if you didn’t have access to toys, televisions and screen then perhaps more of this would take place in our backyards and parks. Perhaps more children would be outside playing, thinking creatively and using up their extra energy.

The Patchwork Bike is a celebration of children and play and the joy of owning a bike. The artwork in this story is superb and more can be seen here. Each page exudes energy, we can see the children playing at all times of the day and all over the village. We can feel the joy and smell the freedom these children have despite the fact they do not have much more.

The Patchwork bike is Shortlisted for the 2017 CBCA and I’m thinking it has a good chance of winning!

So what can you do to link this to Sustainability? 

  1. Look at some ‘junk’ you have at home and create a bike, pushcart or scooter! Draw up plans first and then create. What extra things do you need? How will it work?
  2. Can any of the toys or things you don’t need anymore go somewhere else apart from the bin? Charity? Garage sale? Repair cafe? A friend?
  3. Explore local repair cafes and see how they fix up things that many people think are useless junk.
  4. How can you create less waste in your life? Do you really need to latest toy? Can you make do with simple things and still have fun?
  5. Try to pick up less free things just because they are free. This especially includes toys that are given as part of store giveaways – you can sign my petition here to stop this.

 

 

Dangar Island. Birds, Barrows, a ferry and me written by Joanne Karcz and illustrated by Jacqui Selby.

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Can you imagine living in a place where there are no cars, a cave with hidden secrets and wheelbarrows waiting to be used by weary home comers?

Perhaps a visit to Dangar Island is on the cards for you! And if you can’t get there you need to read this delightful picture book – Dangar Island. Birds, Barrows, a ferry and me. (and perhaps after reading you will be inspired to visit the island!)

Joanne Karcz adores her home – Dangar Island – and has written a whimsical story about the life the children of Dangar Island lead from catching the ferry to school, pushing wheelbarrows home full of groceries and getting muddy on the beach searching for crabs.

Joanne has cleverly used rhyme and rhythm throughout the story which really helps to ignite imagination in readers. The illustrations by Jacqui Selby have been done in watercolour and gently complement the story. The colours and lightness of the illustrations give the story a light and happy feel as we move through the day of a Dangar Island child.

The life Joanne describes seems idyllic for any young child. Imagine being able to explore an island, free of cars and full of nature? Imagine walking out towards the edge of the island and seeing the occasional turtle, dolphin or jellyfish float by?

Perhaps these children find fishing a little boring but as they have so much freedom they must have an abundance of energy, creativity and imagination.

Dangar Island, Birds, Barrows, a ferry and me is a must read for any sydney sider and I hope that it will inspire not only a day trip to this magical island but also encouragement of more outdoor play time for your young reader.

So what can you do at home? 

Playing outside with sticks, caves, dirt and rocks is so important to all children. Get outside more often with your child. Whether it be at the park, oval, beach, river or bushland. We all need to get outside more and play!

Take a trip to Dangar Island – encourage your child to plan the day. How will you get there? Drive to the ferry stop or catch a train to Brooklyn? This is a great opportunity to teach children about timetables.

Look at the map in the picture book and compare to maps online of Dangar Island. Plan your day on the island and see what you can do!

Encourage some geography skills – How far is Dangar Island from Sydney? How large is Dangar Island. What is the river called and where does it flow to and from?

Encourage some history skills – Did Indigenous Australians live on Dangar Island? When did white men inhabit the island?

Check out the Dangar Island website: http://www.dangarislandleague.net

Python by Christopher Cheng and Mark Jackson

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It’s morning in the bush.
Python stirs and slithers out from her shelter.
She warms her head and smells the air
with her forked tongue.
Python is a beautiful snake,
but also dangerous
– and she is looking for a meal

Python by Christopher Cheng and Mark Jackson is a captivating picture book that takes you along for a ride as snake looks for her next meal.

Illustrator Mark Jackson brings the danger of the snake to life through his descriptive illustrations of snake sneaking up on her next meal, camouflaging amongst rocks and basking in the warm sun with her brood.

Christopher Cheng not only writes an enchanting story of the snake and her meal seeking adventure, he also adds in some great facts along the way that even the youngest reader can engage with.

Python teaches the reader about Pythons, their habitat and behaviour. Many of us are petrified of snakes and perhaps would rather throw a rock at it than let it run away. When we read stories like this to our children we are building their awareness of creatures like snakes, who are dangerous, and allowing them to know more about them to realise that the snakes are probably a lot more scared of us!

Did you know that pythons might only eat once every four weeks? And that they can unhinge their jaws?

The world of pythons is dangerous yet intriguing and this CBCA shortlisted picture book is a book for all to enjoy.

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Battle of Bug World by Karen Tyrrell

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Superstorms destroying back gardens, Disappearing bees, record temperatures causing heat waves across the country and a strange looking tornado forming above the house next door. Who can save the earth from doom and destruction?

That’s where our superhero, young Rosie comes in!


Rosie is a superhero, she possesses superpowers that come alive when she sings but in Songbird Book #2, The Battle of Bug World, she has lost her voice and is up against a super terror!

I have not read the previous song bird book so it took a little while for me to get into the story and the characters, perhaps a chapter dedicated to getting me in the zone would have been handy but I figured it out and once I did, I really enjoyed this novel written for 7-12 year olds. (To tell you the truth I read most of the book in one evening as I just couldn’t put it down!!)

Rosie is the hidden eco hero in all of us. She is normal girl, just going to school and hanging out with her friends, but she has worries about the state of the planet and the total disregard so many people seem to have.

As the story begins we discover that Rosie’s sister, Raven, is missing and it is up to her to find out where she is and save her! The Battle of Bug world is jammed full of non-stop adventure which makes it a difficult book to put down as you just need to find out if Rosie and her friends can save planet Earth!

Songbird, The Battle of Bug World really brings up the issues of how complacent many of us are in terms of looking after the world we live in. Many of us just assume we can keep going on with our daily lives without any consideration for the future. We can’t, and through this story it is only the superheroes who can save the day – but I’m sure many of us can be superheroes and start to make small differences now, before the bees disappear, the weather becomes erratic and natural life is just inside a bubble.

Songbird, The battle of Bug world is written from Rosie’s perspective and in her youthful language so young children will find it easy to identify. Many children will also enjoy the constant references to songs that Rosie has to sing in order to unleash her powers.

Songbird, the battle of Bug world is an inspiring story for young readers. They will see that they can make a difference in the world they live in and don’t always have to rely on the adults to solve problems or to take action.

Inspire your little eco warrior today!

So what can you do at home?

Karen Tyrrell has some excellent resources here http://www.karentyrrell.com/free-teacher-resources-free-kids-activities/

 

 

 

 

How to raise a globally conscious child

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There is so much temptation in the world and it is so easy just to sit back and not think outside our own little bubble.

There is life beyond our bubble and the things we do effect those both in and out of our bubble.

So how do you raise your children to think outside of their little bubble?

  1. Read to your child. Reading the books that I have suggested throughout this blog allow your child to see how others live and how they can live a better life for the sake of the world they live in.
  2. Promote empathy. Ask them to consider how others might feel. Empathy is a skill that many people in the world lack so building this up in your child is important if you are to raise a globally conscious child.
  3. Get outside – Create new experiences – play.
  4. Stand up for what you believe in and involve your children – send money to a cause, write a letter to a politician or sign a petition. Encourage your child’s passion.

 

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