Monday, July 30, 2018
Friday, July 20, 2018
20 Great Books for a Pumpkin Unit
Here are some great books for a pumpkin unit! Take a look and click on the titles or the books for more information!
1. Seed, Sprout, Pumpkin, Pie
Pumpkins! Who can resist the sight of big, round, orange pumpkins ripening in a field? Children piling off school buses to pick one out. Carving out funny faces, smiles, or scary frowns to illuminate Halloween doorsteps. Making room for that last piece of pumpkin pie after a delicious Thanksgiving feast. In this book, pumpkins aren’t just a fruit, they’re a symbol, a scent, a flavor of the entire season.
Celebrate the flavor of fall on every page of this beautifully photographed picture book. Follow along as National Geographic takes you from seed to sprout, pumpkin to pie. Envelope yourself, your family, or your class in the season by reading and learning all about pumpkins.
2. The Biggest Pumpkin Ever
Desmond and Clayton must work together to win the Biggest Pumpkin competition, in this popular bestselling picture book.
Once there were two mice who fell in love with the same pumpkin....
Desmond the field mouse wants to carve the biggest jack-o'-lantern in the neighborhood with his pumpkin. Clayton the house mouse wants to win the Biggest Pumpkin contest with his. But when they discover that their choice pumpkins are actually the same one, Desmond and Clayton decide to work together to grow the biggest pumpkin ever!
3. From Seed to Pumpkin
In the fall, pumpkins are everywhere: in the garden, in the supermarkets, and on doorsteps. But do you know how they grow from a tiny yellow seed to a pumpkin? In this classic Level 1 Let's-Read-and-Find-Out picture book, Wendy Pfeffer's lively text combines with James Graham Hale's beautiful watercolors to bring readers into the pumpkin patch to show them how little seeds transform into big pumpkins.
Now rebranded with a new cover look, this book includes a find out more section with activities such as an experiment to show how plants use roots to drink water from the ground and a recipe for roasted pumpkin seeds. Both text and artwork were vetted for accuracy by Barbara J. Bromley, Mercer County Horticulturist.
This is a Level 1 Let's-Read-and-Find-Out, which means the book explores introductory concepts perfect for children in the primary grades and supports the Common Core Learning Standards and Next Generation Science Standards. Let's-Read-and-Find-Out is the winner of the American Association for the Advancement of Science/Subaru Science Books & Films Prize for Outstanding Science Series.
4. Splat the Cat and the Pumpkin-Picking Plan
Take a trip to the pumpkin patch in this funny Splat the Cat tale by New York Times bestselling author-artist Rob Scotton. This is a festive fall 8x8 storybook complete with more than 30 stickers, just right for Halloween.
When Splat goes to the pumpkin patch with Seymour, he’s determined to find the biggest pumpkin ever. But when he finally does, Splat finds out the real challenge isn't the pumpkin picking—it's how to get the pumpkin home!
Read all about Splat’s autumn misadventures in Splat the Cat: Pumpkin-Picking Plan, another sure-to-be-a-classic story by Rob Scotton.
5. Pumpkin Circle: The Story of a Garden
We can be sure of this: It's a circle without end. It'¬?s pumpkin seeds to pumpkins To pumpkin seeds again! This treat of a picture book comes cloaked in the colors of fall. Bouncy verse and glowing photographs show a backyard pumpkin patch move through its natural cycle -- a bug'¬?s eye and a bird's high view of seeds sprouting, flowers blooming, bees buzzing, pumpkins growing . . .and then going back to earth. An author's note explains how to grow your own pumpkin. Educators, please visit our Resources section, above, for teaching guides and curricula. Awards1999 Parent'¬?s Guide AwardReviews"If you weren't a pumpkin lover before, you will be after checking this neat book out." -Fast Forward magazine "Eye-catching full-color photography and rhyming text. . . . An excellent choice for fall pumpkin studies."-Public Schools of North Carolina's Infotech"Your books will help us put an emphasis on early reading and help improve the stereotypes and misconceptions surrounding farmers and agriculture."-American Farm Bureau Foundation for Agriculture
6. Pumpkin Jack
The first pumpkin Tim ever carved was fierce and funny, and he named it Jack. When Halloween was over and the pumpkin was beginning to rot, Tim set it out in the garden and throughout the weeks he watched it change.
7. Too Many Pumpkins
Rebecca Estelle has hated pumpkins ever since she was a girl. When an enormous pumpkin falls off a truck and smashes in her yard, she shovels dirt over the pieces and forgets about them. But those slimy pumpkin smithereens sprout up in autumn, and Rebecca Estelle finds herself with a sea pumpkins. What will she do with so many pumpkins, when she can't stand the sight of even one?
8. The Pumpkin Book
Big, small, round, tall -- pumpkins come in all shapes and sizes. Here one learns the marvels of the growth cycle of these incredible plants -- from flat seeds, to thick vines covered in golden flowers, to brilliant orange pumpkins! Gail Gibbons also relates the special role pumpkins played in the first Thanksgiving. Simple and clear directions for drying seeds, planting and tending pumpkin patches, and carving funny or scary faces are included in the book, along with a fascinating section on pumpkin facts and lore.
9. How Many Seeds in a Pumpkin?
Here is an adorable picture book for curious kids, which explores skip counting and estimation in a fun pumpkin-themed classroom experiment. This book makes a wonderful read-aloud companion to any math or science curriculum, and it's a fun way to reinforce counting skills at home.
"How many seeds are in a pumpkin?" Mr. Tiffin asks his class as they gather around the big, medium, and small pumpkins on his desk. Robert, the biggest kid, guesses that the largest one has a million seeds; Elinor, sounding like she knows what she's talking about, guesses the medium one has 500 seeds; and Anna, who likes even numbers better than odd ones, guesses that the little one has 22. Charlie, the smallest boy in the class, doesn't have a guess.
Counting pumpkin seeds is messy business, but once the slimy job is done, to everyone's surprise, the smallest pumpkin has the most seeds! As Charlie happily exclaims, "Small things have a lot going on inside of them."
10. Pumpkin Pumpkin
Jamie plants a pumpkin seed in the spring and, after watching it grow all summer, carves a face in it for Halloween! But best of all, he saves some seeds that he will plant again next spring. "Truly a book for all seasons."--Horn Book.
11. Pete the Cat: Five Little Pumpkins
Five little pumpkins sitting on a gate. The first one said, "Oh my, it's getting late."
Join Pete the Cat as he rocks out to this cool adaptation of the classic Halloween song "Five Little Pumpkins".
12. The Roll-Away Pumpkin
On a windy autumn day, Marla Little comes running down the hill, yelling, “Help! My giant pumpkin is rolling away! Onward it goes, rolling and turning, with no sign of stopping! Diddle-dee-doo! Oh, what shall I do?”
A little girl chases her giant pumpkin all over town with some help along the way. It’s the perfect bedtime story to read with your little pumpkin.
The author uses repeating sentence structures to capture young listeners’ attention and give early readers confidence.
The book is exquisitely illustrated by award-winning Italian illustrator, Daniela Volpari. Every page is a beautiful work of art and is one of those picture books whose images will linger long after you’ve turned the page.
13. The Itsy Bitsy Pumpkin
This gently spooky twist on “The Itsy Bitsy Spider” makes a favorite nursery rhyme just perfect for Halloween!
The itsy bitsy pumpkin
rolled down the spooky street.
He passed a ghoulish ghost
and some stinky goblin’s feet.
A little pumpkin is trying to find his way back home! And with a little help from a friendly witch, he is soon safe and sound, back on his porch—where there are no spiders to be seen! Little ones will love this fresh fall spin on a classic nursery rhyme!
14. Pinkalicious and the Pink Pumpkin
Pinkalicious is on a search to find a pink pumpkin in this pinkerrific new lift-the-flap book! With thirteen flaps that open to reveal hidden surprises on every page, Pinkalicious fans will be perfectly pleased!
15. Pumpkin Soup
Deep in the woods in an old white cabin, three friends make their pumpkin soup the same way every day. The Cat slices up the pumpkin, the Squirrel stirs in the water, and the Duck tips in just enough salt. But one day the Duck wants to stir instead, and then there is a horrible squabble, and he leaves the cabin in a huff. It isn't long before the Cat and the Squirrel start to worry about him and begin a search for their friend. Rendered in pictures richly evoking autumn, Helen Cooper's delightful story will resonate for an child who has known the difficulties that come with friendship. Included at the end is a recipe for delicious pumpkin soup.
16. The Very Best Pumpkin
Growing up on Mimi and Papa’s farm, Peter knows a lot about caring for pumpkins. One summer Peter finds a lonely pumpkin all by itself in the field, and with his tender care, the pumpkin flourishes. By autumn, it’s the very best pumpkin of all, and Peter wants to keep it for himself. But when a young girl shows up at the farm in quest of a perfect pumpkin, will Peter pass on his prized pumpkin and gain a friend? From the bestselling creators of Reindeer Christmas and A Snowman Named Just Bob, this enchanting story is filled with the magic of autumn and friendship.
17. Apples and Pumpkins
A young girl spends a glorious fall day picking apples and searching for the perfect pumpkin in this refreshed classic.
"When red and yellow leaves are on the trees," a little girl goes with her parents to a farm where they pick apples and choose "the best pumpkin of them all." Back home, she helps to carve a grinning jack-o'-lantern face on the big orange pumpkin, which guards their doorstep on halloween night while her mother hands out shiny red apples and she and her father go trick-or-treating with the neighborhood ghosts and goblins.
Bold, autumn-colored paintings and a simple but lively story capture a little girl's joy and satisfaction as she shares in the excitement of the fall season.
18. How Big Could Your Pumpkin Grow?
Every year, giant pumpkin contests take place at fairs across the country—the 2012 record-holder weighed over a ton! The latest craze is to carve the most enormous pumpkins into racing boats. But what’s next? Why not think really big? Award-winning artist Wendell Minor does just that as he imagines larger-than-life pumpkins decorating some of America’s favorite places—as immense as the Capitol dome, Mount Rushmore, the Brooklyn Bridge, even the Grand Canyon! This celebration of famous landmarks and landscapes plays with concepts of size and scale and is full of fun facts.
19. Pumpkin Town! Or, Nothing Is Better and Worse Than Pumpkins
What happens when a town has an accidental abundance of pumpkins? What do José and his well-intentioned brothers do with a mountain of pumpkins? An EXPLOSION of pumpkins? Step into Pumpkin Town and see!
As a teacher, Katie McKy saw many children make mistakes. She also saw many children want to make their wrongs right.
As a gardener, Katie once planted too many pumpkin seeds. She was that a good thing can be a bad thing when the vines start to grow every which way.
20. We Gather Together: Celebrating the Harvest Season
Looking at both the science of weather and the history of how the fall equinox has been celebrated by various cultures throughout the world, this book will inspire a new understanding of autumn and the harvest season.
Sunday, July 8, 2018
25 Great Books about Fall
Are you looking for some great read alouds for Fall and about Fall? Well here are 25 great books to get you started. Click on the links for more info!
1. Fletcher and the Falling Leaves
Do you know what it is? Join Fletcher and find out. . .
2. We're Going on a Leaf Hunt
There are lots of beautiful fall leaves to find! Three friends have a big adventure hiking over a mountain and through a forest to collect leaves of all kinds and colors. What will they do with all their leaves at the end of the story? Jump and play in them, of course!
With easy rhyming text and fun sound effects, children will delight in this rollicking autumn story.
3. Leaf Man
With illustrations made from actual fall leaves and die-cut pages on every spread that reveal gorgeous landscape vistas, here is a playful, whimsical, and evocative book that celebrates the natural world and the rich imaginative life of children.
4. The Fall of Freddie the Leaf: A Story of Life for All Ages
This story by Leo Buscaglia is a warm, wonderfully wise and strikingly simple story about a leaf names Freddie. How Freddie and his companion leaves change with the passing seasons, finally falling to the ground with winter's snow, is an inspiring allegory illustrating the delicate balance between life and death.
The Fall of Freddie the Leaf is a warm and thought-provoking story and both children and adults will be deeply touched by this inspiring book. This 20th anniversary edition of this beloved classic has helped thousands of people come to grips with life and death.
5. The Fall Leaf Dance: A Rhyming Fall Season Picture Book for Children about Fall leaves and a Fall leaf dance featuring a squirrel
Excerpt from the Book: "They paint the wind like a canvas, new and bare." "The wind is a stage where leaves dance with care." "The leaves jump, circle, bend and bow." "The windy dance Fall Season does allow." It is time to celebrate the festive and fun season of Fall! A squirrel enjoys the dance that the leaves do as they glide whimsically to the ground. Join this squirrel as he delights readers with what he calls the "Leaf Dance". This book has a fun rhyming style making it perfect for engaging young readers during seasonal storytimes and read alouds.
6. Leaves Fall Down: Learning About Autumn Leaves
Autumn is time for the leaves to change colors. Get out your rake and help gather the fallen leaves. Find out why leaves change color. And take a running leap into that huge pile of leaves!
7. Mouse's First Fall
One cool day Mouse and Minka venture out to play. From leaves of all colors -- red, yellow, orange, and brown -- to leaves of all shapes and sizes -- from pointy to round -- Mouse learns that fall is a season full of fun! And before the day is done he just might take the biggest "leap" of all.
8. The Busy Little Squirrel
The leaves have started to fall. The air is cold. Squirrel needs to get ready for winter. He cannot nibble with the mice. He does not have time to hop with the frogs or run with the dogs. But there is one thing he can do!
9. Because of an Acorn
Because of an acorn, a tree grows, a bird nests, a seed becomes a flower. Enchanting die-cuts illustrate the vital connections between the layers of an ecosystem in this magical book. Wander down the forest path to learn how every tree, flower, plant, and animal connect to one another in spiraling circles of life. An acorn is just the beginning.
10. Goodbye Summer, Hello Autumn
As trees sway in the cool breeze, blue jays head south, and leaves change their colors, everyone knows--autumn is on its way!
Join a young girl as she takes a walk through forest and town, greeting all the signs of the coming season. In a series of conversations with every flower and creature and gust of wind, she says good-bye to summer and welcomes autumn.
11. In the Middle of Fall
“This exquisite picture book will inspire youngsters to get outdoors and observe the world around them.”—School Library Journal (starred review)
From Caldecott Medalist and Newbery Honor author Kevin Henkes and acclaimed painter Laura Dronzek, the bestselling and award-winning creators of Birds and When Spring Comes, this sturdy board book edition of In the Middle of Fall is perfect for the very youngest readers.
In the middle of fall, it takes only one gust of wind to turn the whole world yellow and red and orange. Caldecott Medalist and award-winning author Kevin Henkes’s striking text introduces basic concepts of language and the unique beauty of the fall season. Laura Dronzek’s expressive paintings illuminate pumpkins, apples, falling leaves, busy squirrels, and the transformation from colorful autumn to frosty winter.
12. Full of Fall
Discover the magic—and the science—behind fall leaves with this companion to the celebrated Raindrops Roll and Best in Snow.
With gorgeous photo illustrations, award-winning author April Pulley Sayre explores the transformation trees undergo in fall. The book takes readers through the leaves’ initial change from green to red, yellow, and orange, the shedding of the leaves, and the leaves crumbling as winter approaches. Extensive back matter explains the science behind this process to the youngest of budding scientists.
13. Wonderfall
This beautiful and informative picture book follows a single tree through the fall season, from the end of summer to winter's first snowfall. A great read-aloud for home and the classroom by the New York Times-bestselling creator of My Heart Is Like a Zoo and Red: A Crayon's Story. Wonderfall follows a single tree through the changing of the seasons. People, animals, and vehicles pass in front of the tree, celebrating holidays, playing in its leaves, and getting ready for winter. Fifteen combined words (thankful + fall = thankFALL, plentiful + fall = plentiFALL) underscore the themes and concepts of the season, while the main attraction-the beautiful tree-drops acorns, loses leaves, and provides food and a home for a pair of scurrying squirrels. Two full spreads at the back of the book offer additional information about the animals featured in the book, as well as the science behind squirrels, acorns, and saplings.
14. Hocus Pocus, It's Fall!
Leaves on trees
are green and bright
Abracadabra!
What a Sight!
Eleven gatefolds open to re-create the excitement and surprise of fall’s arrival, revealing what happens when the leaves turn. Fall is a season of transition: apples are picked, and animals prepare for winter. Summer days are coming to an end, and there's a hint of winter in the air. Hocus Pocus, It’s Fall! celebrates the magic of that in-between time.
15. Yellow Time
Lauren Stringer celebrates the coming of autumn in this exuberant, joyful ode to that magical time when the leaves are changing color and the animals are preparing for winter.
Children and animals alike excitedly anticipate yellow time, when the trees release their colorful leaves to blanket the earth, crows raise their voices joyfully from the bare branches, and squirrels busy themselves preparing their nests for winter. This lyrical celebration of the beauty and fun of autumn is sure to become a perennial fall favorite.
16. Fall Mixed Up
"Every Septober, Every Octember, Fall fills my senses with scenes to remember." "Bears gather nuts. Geese hibernate. Squirrels fly south in big figure eights." Fall is all mixed up in this silly book from Bob Raczka! Can you find his mistakes in the words and pictures?
17. Awesome Autumn: All Kinds of Fall Facts and Fun
Autumn is awesome! Leaves change color. Animals fly south or get ready to hibernate. People harvest crops and dress up as scary creatures for Halloween. And then there are pickup football games to play, Thanksgiving foods to eat, leaf piles to jump in―all the amazing things that happen as the air turns crisp and cool.
With colorful photographs, lively explanations, and classic craft ideas, Bruce Goldstone has created a festive and fascinating exploration of autumn's awesomeness.
18. Red Leaf, Yellow Leaf
Lois Ehlert uses watercolor collage and pieces of actual seeds, fabric, wire, and roots in this innovative and rich introduction to the life of a tree. A special glossary explains how roots absorb nutrients, what photosynthesis is, how sap circulates, and other facts about trees. “Children will beg to share this book over and over.”--American Bookseller
19. It's Fall (Celebrate the Seasons)
Simple text and bold, beautiful paper sculpture convey the animal life, plant life, weather, colors, clothing, and feelings associated with the fall season.
20. Animals in Fall: Preparing for Winter
Explore how wild animals migrate, hibernate, or change in the fall to get ready for winter. This book features monarch butterflies, gray whales, Canada geese, black bears, rattlesnakes, snowshoe hares, and white-tail deer.A blubber glove activity at the endteaches young readers how an extra layer of fat keeps ocean animals warm.
21. Fall Weather: Cooler Temperatures
Brr! It'-s starting to get chilly! Find out how weather changes during fall. See how people and animals get ready for cooler temperatures. Let's grab our coats and mittens! What happens in fall? Find out in the Fall's Here! series, part of the Cloverleaf Books(TM) collection. These nonfiction picture books feature kid-friendly text and illustrations to make learning fun!
22. Fall Leaves: Colorful and Crunchy
Look at all the brightly colored trees! Fall weather causes leaves to change colors. Follow a leaf as it grows, changes color, and falls to the ground. Let's grab a rake! What happens in fall? Find out in the Fall's Here! series, part of the Cloverleaf Books™ collection. These nonfiction picture books feature kid-friendly text and illustrations to make learning fun!
23. Fall Harvests: Bringing in Food
Fall is a time to celebrate food. Farmers and gardeners work hard to grow crops all spring and summer. In fall, we harvest pumpkins, pecans, corn, potatoes, and more. Mmm! What happens in fall? Find out in the Fall's Here! series, part of the Cloverleaf Books™ collection. These nonfiction picture books feature kid-friendly text and illustrations to make learning fun!
24. Why Do Leaves Change Color?
t's fall! The leaves are changing color. This Let's-Read-and-Find-Out picture book explains the magical process of how leaves change their color in autumn.
Now rebranded with a new cover look, this classic picture book features graceful text and simple, fun diagrams to explain concepts like photosynthesis and the different types of leaves. This book also includes simple activities to do with leaves like leaf rubbings. Both the text and art were expert-vetted for accuracy.
This is a Level 2 Let's-Read-and-Find-Out, which means the book explores more challenging concepts perfect for children in the primary grades and supports the Common Core Learning Standards and Next Generation Science Standards. Let's-Read-and-Find-Out is the winner of the American Association for the Advancement of Science/Subaru Science Books & Films Prize for Outstanding Science Series.
25. There Was An Old Lady Who Swallowed Some Leaves!
Our favorite old lady is back and swallowing autumn items!
That wild old lady is back swallowing fall-themed items. What can you make from leaves, clothes, a pumpkin, and rope? That's right, a scarecrow!
Perfect for back-to-school time.
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