Text Set: Books for Earth Day

 Texts for this Text Set have been posted daily on Instagram. Follow @TextSets there to get daily updates! 

I'm not a big theme teacher. I don't usually pick books because of a holiday or an event or a celebration.  But recently, I've discovered so many great books that match the Earth Day theme that I figured..Why not?  These books would definitely fit into this week if you are looking for texts to share for Earth Day. But they are also incredible books to use any time during the year for a variety of reasons. 

Having just won the Caldecott Medal, We are Water Protectors is a perfect book to share this week as we think about taking care of our Earth. I would pair this book (now or anytime during the year) with other books about water access and water protection. A connected book my 5th graders learned a great deal from is Young Water Protectors by Aslan Tudor and his mother. Water is such an important issue and there are so many other books to add but these are two of my favorites. 

I discovered Zonia's Rain Forest this week and love it so much. This is the story of Zonia who lives in the Amazon Rainforest. It is a beautiful story that celebrates all the beauty and wonder of the rainforest. And it also addresses threats. I remember rainforest units of the past that never acknowledged the people of the rainforest. This book does that and the back of the book gives us more information about the Asháninka, the largest Indigenous group living in the Peruvian Amazon. 

 

I have always had several books about Wangari Maathai in our classroom library. I love her story and the way she cared for the Earth. Mama Mita is one of my favorites but I think her story is one that needs to be explored through several books.(So look for the other picture book biographies about Wangari.)  This month, I discovered a book I could pair with the stories of Wangari. The Wisdom of Trees: How Trees Work Together to Form a Natural Kingdom. This nonfiction book is incredible and I learned so much. The combination of poetry and short informational blurbs work together to explore the connectedness of trees. It is packed with information that was new-to-me. There is more information at the end of the book, including information about the future of forests and ways we can help.

Plastic. So many problems caused by plastic. These are two very different books that focus on the impact of plastic in our world. The Last Straw is a poetry/nonfiction text that highlights ways kids everywhere are working to help the problems caused by plastic. And this book is filled with fabulous features at the end--timelines and more. Ocean Soup is more of a narrative that focuses on the impact of plastic on our oceans. The combination of these books helps readers understand how big the problem of plastic is as well as what we can do. 

I love books that have stand-alone pages. These books are both made up of two-page spreads that can stand alone for readers. Each two-page spread is essentially its own infographic. Each page gives readers so much information and it is all organized in ways that make the information accessible. What a Waste focuses on trash and recycling and Our World Out of Balance focuses on climate change. Both books include ways readers can help.

This week's books were linked at Cover to Cover Children's Bookstore. If you are looking for a fabulous children's bookstore to support, this is an amazing one. We are lucky to have them in Central Ohio!

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Poetry Friday -- This is the Earth

This is the Earth
by Diane Z. Shore and Jessica Alexander
illustrated by Wendell Minor
HarperCollins Children's Books, 2016
review copy provided by the publisher

If you just read the visuals in this gorgeously illustrated book, you will trace the historical impact Americans* have had on the earth. In the first spread, there are no humans, in the second, a single canoe on a wild river. The sky dominates the third spread, but there is a group of teepees in the lower left corner. European settlers, railroads, steamships and airplanes appear in rapid succession, then modern cities, smoking landfills and waste spewing into the ocean. Before our eyes, a rainforest is leveled and glaciers melt into the ocean as polar bears look on. Just in the nick of time, we see recycling, commuters on bikes, a community garden, sea turtles being helped across the sand to the ocean, trees being planted, reusable grocery bags being carried. Finally, humans become a small part of the big picture again, as a group of four hike across a mountain meadow while alpine wildlife look on. Any grade level with a standard that teaches students to attend to the tone or mood created by the visuals in the media could use this book to spark rich discussions.

The text is rhyming, with the pattern, "This is the..." Mirroring the images, the book begins with "This is the earth..." then "This is the river..." and "This is the sky..." before changing to "This is the spike..." and This is the steamer..." and "This is the plane..."

Here is a sampling from the hopeful ending of the book:

"This is the Earth that we treat with respect,
where people and animals interconnect,
where we learn to find balance between give and take
and help heal the planet with choices we make."

Linda is hosting the Poetry Friday roundup at TeacherDance.



*I originally typed "humans," but then realized that this story is predominantly that of the United States' impact on the environment. We're not the only ones, but we're huge, and if this giant would take a positive stand to make sweeping changes, we could lead the way toward a healing and healthy Earth.

Happy Earth Day!

by Hugh Macleod at GapingVoid

Three For Earth Day

Get Outside: The Kids Guide to Fun in the Great Outdoors
by Jane Drake and Ann Love
illustrated by Heather Collins
Kids Can Press, 2012
review copy provided by the publisher

This guide is organized first by season, and within each season by these categories of activities: Nature Lover, Outdoor Fun and Games, Snug Inside, and Look to the Sky.

Kind of sad that the sort of "mucking about inventing our own fun and games" stuff we did when I was a kid needs categories and step-by-step instructions, but we need whatever it takes to get this generation of kids outside!

This is a good book for kids, but also a good book for Environmental Club leaders (me), Girl Scout Leaders, Day Camp Leaders, Home Schoolers, and parents.

Energy Island: How One Community Harnessed the Wind and Changed Their World
by Allan Drummond
Frances Foster Books/Farrar Straus Giroux, 2011
review copy provided by the publisher

This picture book is good for many ages. The main text is embedded in engaging illustrations, but the sidebar information about energy is good for 5th grade and up.

The Danish island of Samso is very windy. This book chronicles the long process the residents of that island went through to make the transition to being almost completely energy-independent by harnessing the power of the wind.

Meadowlands: A Wetlands Survival Story
by Thomas F. Yezerski
Farrar Straus Giroux, 2011
review copy provided by the publisher

This gorgeously-illustrated picture book reminds me of A River Ran Wild by Lynne Cherry. They both are environmental histories about places in nature that humans came really really close to completely destroying...but didn't...and the slow and hopeful recovery process. Both have border illustrations that extend or elaborate on the main illustration or information on the page.

Just in Time For Earth Day

AN INCONVENIENT TRUTH: THE CRISIS OF GLOBAL WARMING
Adapted for a New Generation
Viking (Penguin Group)
2007

The text is accessible. The photographs are vivid. The charts and graphs are compelling. Al Gore clearly spells out the crisis, but he begins and ends the book by saying that it is not hopeless. In the beginning he says, "I like the fact that in Chinese, the word 'crisis' is made up of two characters...The first one means 'danger.' But the second one means 'opportunity.' " In the end he points out, "Another big problem with global warming is that an astonishing number of people go straight from denial to despair, without pausing at the step in between. Yes, there's a crisis...but we can do something about it."

So what are YOU going to do? Switch to fluorescent bulbs? Turn down the thermostat? Turn off your computer rather than just putting it to sleep? Buy a Prius? Take shorter, cooler showers? Check here if you need ideas. There's a pdf poster of 10 things we can all do.

Just today, I got an invitation from Gather.com via American Public Media to join the "Go Green On Gather Contest" for Earth Day 2007.

This Earth Day, April 22, make a commitment to live today without compromising tomorrow. Living a sustainable life is easier than you might think—take one step at a time, incorporating eco-friendly lifestyle changes that will make our planet healthier for future generations. It’s never too soon to start!