Book Review: Global Babies

Title: Global Babies

Author: The Global Fund for Children

Illustrator: Photography

Publisher: Charlesbridge Publishing; February 10, 2006

Theme: Multiculturalism, People & Places, Geography, Baby Faces

Age: 0 - 2

Summary: Appealing photos of babies from seventeen cultures around the globe are woven together by simple narration. Global Babies presents children in cultural context. Diverse settings highlight specific differences in clothing, daily life, and traditions, as well as demonstrate that babies around the world are nurtured by the love, caring, and joy that surround them.

Resources:
Ideas: Dress up clothes from a variety of countries. Music from variety of cultures. Ethnic food tasting. Multicultural coloring pages. Find the different featured countries on a map or globe.

Why I like this book:
Short and sweet, straight to the point, just the way toddlers like it. No matter who you are or where you are from, babies everywhere are loved! :D The photos are absolutely beautiful. I read this book to my toddler classroom all the time and they love it. It is great for observing and describing what they are looking at. I also keep a copy in their classroom library so that they can get it any time they want to look through the book. The photos are colorful and grabs their attention. A great book to have at home and school to introduce and promote diversity.

To see a complete listing of all the Perfect Picture Books with resources, please visit author Susanna Leonard Hill’s Perfect Picture Books.  Or click on the Perfect Picture Book Fridays  badge in the right sidebar.

Art: Hand Print Wreaths

Sorry about the angle but this here is a fun art project we did in the class with the children to send home for the holidays. The parents loved it. This one is actually missing the fun stickers the children got to pick out and place on their wreaths. It was fun to watch them stare at the sticker cards as they decided on the sticker they wanted. I let the older toddlers try their hand/fingers at removing the stickers as well. It is a great way to develop those fine motor skills though they were just happy to have the stickers. :)

Book Review: Quiet in the Garden

Title: Quiet in the Garden

Author: Aliki

Illustrator: Aliki

Publisher: Green Willow Books: Feb 3, 2009

Suitable for: 4 – 8 years

Topics: Gardens, Animals, Food

Opening: I love to go into the garden.
I sit quietly.
I see flowers and plants.
It makes me feel peaceful.
If I am very still,
I see birds, insects,
and creatures I had
not noticed before.
I can even hear them!

Book Summary: Sitting quietly in his garden, a little boy observes the eating habits of birds, butterflies, bugs, and other small animals.

Links to resources:

The book includes instructions on how to make your own garden and detailed illustrations of plants typically found in a garden

Classroom Activities from the publisher.

Garden Activities for Children 

Garden coloring pages 

Garden Critters coloring page 

Why I like this book:

Quiet in the Garden takes children on a journey through a garden. They learn about the animals that live in our gardens. It starts off with a little boy sitting quietly in his garden enjoying the peace until he realizes the garden is alive and busy. Turns out, the garden is not so quiet after all with all the munching and conversations of the different animals. In the end, the little boy has a picnic with all his garden friends. Quiet in the Garden encourages children to safely explore nature, respecting the animals that live in nature. Children will notice that the little boy does not disturb or interfere with the animals as he watches them, quietly.

To see a complete listing of all the Perfect Picture Books with resources, please visit author Susanna Leonard Hill’s Perfect Picture Books. Or click on the Perfect Picture Book Fridays badge in the right sidebar.