Children's Books

Our School Garden by Rick Swann is a book that starts off with Michael’s first day at a new school in a new city. He is immediately amazed with the school’s garden and meets Julie, who knows everything about the garden. They try to pull out an enormous “weed”, which turns out to be a huge carrot and they talk about all the underground plants. They learn how to make “School Garden Stone Soup” (recipe is included in the book!). They discuss Harvest Day, pill bugs, and food banks. They write poems and riddles about the garden. They talk about compost and when it’s best to plant seeds. The school garden is discussed in every class including art, science, math, and health. It’s better than a playground!

Why Should I Eat Well? by Claire Llewellyn, illustrated by Mike Gordon is a story that answers questions that children may have regarding healthy eating and exercise, this book aims to inform children of the importance of healthy eating and moving your body to live a long and satisfying life. Llewellyn introduces various food options to open children's minds to all of the possibilities when it comes to eating, allowing them to gain curiosity when it comes to eating. This book will cause children to think about their choices as opposed to mindlessly eating without understanding the possible consequences.

Ripe for Change: Garden-Based Learning in Schools by Jane S. Hirschi is a book that discusses the current state of gardening in schools as well as how gardening in the school can be a positive movement for various aspects of both teaching and learning alike. Hirschi provides the reader with several case studies to prove her statement that there is a correlation between gardening at school and improving lessons in the more urban areas of our country. Hirschi's book is essential for teachers who are considering integrating gardening into their curriculum, as she not only provides examples but also gives the readers ideas on the most ideal ways to introduce this new idea to students.

I Will Not Ever Never Eat a Tomato by Lauren Child, illustrated by Candlewick Press, is a classic brother-sister tale. Lola’s brother, Charlie is given quite the task to make sure his little sister eats everything on her plate. Lola is known in the household for causing a fuss over eating her “gross” vegetables. Charlie is a determined brother with a bright idea to get his sister excited about eating veggies. Charlie decides to create clever quirky nick names for the vegetables to encourage Lola to not only eat her vegetables but also have fun while doing so!

Good Enough To Eat by Lizzy Rockwell is a simple, kid-friendly, and engaging guide all about nutrition, food, and healthy eating. This book touches on how food is digested, how different foods can help our bodies, and also gives a guide to the food pyramid. Rockwell features children and families in her colorful illustrations throughout the book, and explains calories, carbohydrates, protein, fat, vitamins, and minerals using funny speech bubbles. At the end of the book, Rockwell has included some family-friendly recipes! This book is a wonderful, easy to read guide to nutrition and food for children.

How Did that Get in My Lunchbox?: The Story of Food by Christine Butterworth and illustrated by Lucia Gaggiotti takes readers on a fun tour inside of a lunchbox. Most children aren’t too sure what they'll open up to at the cafeteria since someone at home usually does the packing. This story takes readers on a fun, informative, journey through the eyes of a child wondering just how that sandwich or those oranges got into his or her lunchbox. Instead of telling the tale of how mom makes the sandwich the story goes into much more detail about how each item came to be. Whether that’s the story of a fruit starting from a seed or bread starting from a small grain, the story is full of informative and tasty facts!

The Garden in Our Yard written by Greg Henry Quinn and illustrated by Lena Shiffman is a rhyming picture book that shows the process of planting seeds in a family garden and watching the seeds grow into plants and vegetables. The story describes what the family must do to tend to their garden in order for the seeds to grow into plants. This book follows the garden through the seasons, and shows the family's joy in planting and growing vegetables.

Indigo Blume and the Garden City by Kwame Alexander and Illustrated by Jahsun. In this fun rhythmic story, Indigo Blume build a rooftop garden and helps her urban neighborhood GO GREEN! The book has a glossary that provides definitions for words used in the text and associated with gardening, going green, and the outdoors like nectar, recycle, and potting soil.

Growing Vegetable Soup written and illustrated by Lois Ehlert is a children's book that gives a step-by-step simplified guide to planting and growing your own garden. The story demonstrates how a father and son can create their own food from preparing the soil, seeding, weeding, watering, digging or picking them, cleaning them and making a meal out of them. The book demonstrates how rewarding the process is starting with small seeds and turning them into vegetable soup!

On Meadowview Street is a beautiful picture book by Henry Cole. The story is about a family that moves to a new picturesque neighborhood. The young girl in the family saved a single family in her yard and built a small reserve around it. From there she added a birdhouse, planted a tree, a small pond and saw new wildlife and nature coming into her garden. She was able to create a home for everyone and all animals in this new garden and show her neighbors that such was possible. The book is a great example of the pathways various flora and fauna need to exist and how humans can help!

The Tiny Seed is a short children's book written and illustrated by Eric Carle. The story is depicts the voyage of seeds and how they land in various locations but can only grow in certain environments and seasons. The one seed that makes it into the proper growing environment must wait for the cold of Winter to end and it must fight the weeds and the shade to reach the sunlight and water to grow big and strong! It must fight the trampling feet of passerbys and the pickings of tiny hands to make it to Summer where it blossoms into the most beautiful flower. When Fall and Winter come again the circle starts and the wind blows the flowers seeds to find a new place to grow big and strong!

Planting a Rainbow is a colorful story that is written in a daughter's point of view, explaining how she and her mother grow their ‘rainbow’ garden each year. It is a simple read for younger children, with vibrant illustrations showing how they plant the bulbs in the Fall, wait for the Spring to warm the soil and sprout the bulbs, and pick the bloomed flowers in the Summer. The author and illustrator, Lois Ehlert, shows the fun in gardening and the basic life cycle of a plant.

Oliver’s Vegetables written by Vivian French and Alison Bartlett, is about a boy named Oliver who only likes potato chips. His grandfather has a beautiful vegetable garden, but Oliver said he doesn’t eat vegetables, his grandfather made a deal with him that he would need to eat what he finds in the garden. Throughout a week, Oliver discovers wonderful vegetables in the garden and ends up loving all of them!

Plants Feed Me by Lizzy Rockwell is about a child who shares what she eats from the garden. She discusses the parts of the plants that can be eaten. The story states where plants grow, for example in the ground, on a bush or from a tree. Through the realistic illustrations, students can see the different forms seeds take, the roots in the ground and the life cycle of plants.

The Onmivore's Dilemma: Young Readers Edition by Michael Pollan highlights for young readers the behind the scenes story of how food ends up in the grocery store and then on their plate. The book is organized into four major sections: The Industrial Meal: Food from Corn, which explains how corn became America’s number one dependency for food. The Industrial Organic Meal, which covers the history of organic food and the process food goes through to be labeled “organic” in the supermarket. The Local Sustainable Meal: Food from Grass, analyzes the benefits of consuming grass fed meats. The Do-It-Yourself meal: Hunted, Gathered, and Gardened Food, provides readers with stances on eat meat and being a vegetarian, as well as tips on gardening and hunting. Pollan’s kid friendly version aims to hold the attention of young readers by providing graphs, charts, and pictures, as well as easy to follow food rules to encourage them to be mindful of the food they are eating.

Our Organic Garden by Precious McKenzie is a beginners guide on organic gardening. It highlights the benefits of having your own organic garden and ways it helps preserves the environment. It then continues to give a step by step guide on how to begin your organic garden and focuses on the emotional and community aspect or maintaining a garden with your family or community. It also provides students with a “Try This” section with numbered steps to create your own compost pile, as well as additional websites for further learning.

The Science Behind Food by Casey Rand analyzes the scientific aspects behind the food we eat and how it affects our bodies. This book guides readers through the different types of nutrients found in food such as protein, carbohydrates, vitamins, minerals, and fats. It then explains why we need these nutrients to live a healthy lifestyle. The book ends with an extension providing readers with step by step instructions to make their own ice cream.

The Drop goes Plop by Sam Godwin describes the water cycle at a basic level. The story is told through a conversation between a baby seagull and its mother. The story follows a rain drop through the water cycle. The book is a great starting point for learning about the water cycle. Students can follow the process of the rain drop throughout the colorful pages!

The Curious Garden by Peter Brown. Living in a dark, depressing city, little Liam finds an abandoned garden and decides to care for it. After giving it the care and attention it needs, Liam’s city becomes bright and full of life. “The Curious Garden” is a great book to show the benefits of caring for a garden, showing that it can improve not only your life, but where you live.

Miss Milli's Adventure by JW Cayce, KT Guy, & Elyse Moore (Illustrator) shows children the many creatures that live in a garden. By exposing children to the creatures of a garden, children are motivated to go out and see them for themselves. The author and illustrators do a great job of giving a story that educates children and keeps their attention.

So You Want to Grow a Taco? by Bridget Heos gets the reader to think of all of the ingredients that go into a food. This book gives children an appreciation for the basic foods in our world that can be grown in a garden. Author Bridget Heos goes step by step, showing the reader that it is important to start small in ingredients and then work up.

The Ugly Vegetables by Grace Lin is a story about a little girl who grows a garden with her mother. Throughout the story she asks her mother several questions about their garden because their garden is a little different. Her mother tells her that their garden is filled with Chinese plants. The little girl isn’t too happy when she sees the neighbors have beautiful, colorful flowers and plants in their gardens because all she sees in her garden are ugly, dark green leaves. When the vegetables grow and her mother makes a soup out of them, the little girl doesn’t seem too disappointed after all. This story is great to share with students to show that there are different kinds of gardens and vegetables that people grow.

Food Fight by Kelly Brownell is a book that discusses the obesity epidemic in America, how the food industries operate and possible solutions to the issue at hand. Brownell informs the reader by sharing shocking facts regarding unhealthy eating in America, and how other countries are following directly in America's footsteps. Brownell has included both the biological and marketing sides of the issue at hand, he informs the reader of the fact that the food industries specifically target children with fun, cute characters to make them crave unhealthy foods, while the same cannot be said for healthy choices. Many issues are discussed throughout this book including accessibility to healthy foods, the cost of living healthy in America versus the cost of health care when individuals inevitably become ill due to their poor eating habits and sedentary lifestyle as well as possible solutions to the epidemic that we continue to struggle with.

Muncha! Muncha! Muncha! by Candace Fleming and G. Brian Karas is about a man trying to grow a garden that he has always dreamt of having. This sounds easy until he has three little unexpected, furry creatures that keep eating all his vegetables. The old man grows angrier through the book and keeps trying ways to keep these three little bunnies out from his garden. He eventually outsmarts them and is happy! This story is great when teaching students to stay determined while growing a garden because it isn’t always easy!

Diary of Worm by Doreen Cronin is an entertaining story about the life of a worm. Worm leads us through what a day of a worm would look like. The day of a worm may be a little different than many children may think. At the end of the day Worm makes it very clear that they do have a main purpose and that is to keep digging tunnels to “help the Earth breathe”! The tone of Worm and the pictures will definitely have your students laughing and talking about this story!

Mrs. Spitzer’s Garden by Edith Pattou is a book about Mrs. Spitzer, who knows a lot about gardens and children and how similar they both are. They both flourish if loved tenderly. The book walks through the process of Mrs. Sptizer planting her seeds in the school garden, watering, and feeding them, and making sure they get plenty of sun. when the seeds sprout, she watches them closely and checks for weeds and pests. She knows that different plants need different things and each plant has its own shape. Some grow anywhere and some need gentle care. When the school year is over, her job is done but the plants will keep growing. Next year she will plant more seeds and a new garden will begin. A beautiful book to celebrate teachers who help children grow and blossom!

Facts on Pesticides and Fertilizers in Farming by Ron Taylor focuses on the controversial issue of the use of pesticides. Pesticides are used to reduce the amount of damage done to crops and stores by insects, fungal species, and other plant species. One of the main concepts stressed was the long term effects pesticides on the food chain with bioaccumulation. As the use of technology increases, the methods of spreading fertilizers and pesticides have changed. The topic of nutrient runoff from fertilizers was discussed and the effects on the water systems.

Microscopic Life in the Garden by Brian Ward describes a multitude of organisms that inhabit a garden. While some organisms are very beneficial for plant life like nitrogen fixing bacteria, some can be very detrimental effects like mildew on roses. The book provides colorful illustrations and descriptions of bacteria, fungi, viruses, and assorted inserts.

Hydroponics Soilless Gardening The Beginner’s Guide to Growing Vegetables, Houseplants, Flowers, and Herbs without Soil by Richard E. Nicholls discusses an alternative form of farming; farming without soil. This beginner’s guide outlines the process of starting an entire hydroponic garden designed specifically for the selected type of plant. From vegetables to herbs, regardless if starting from seed or a cutting, the guide can help any individual start a garden. The guide includes a troubleshooting chapter, highlighting the most frequent challenges and obstacles that may occur while designing and operating a hydroponic garden.

If You Hold a Seed by Elly MacKay talks about how planting seeds is magical. MacKay tells her readers that with plenty of love and patience, they can blossom into an extraordinary gift. This book is a special read. Whatever is planted is to be shared with those you love and those with big dreams, this book encourages the readers to never give up.

Flip, Float, Fly: Seeds on the Move by JoAnn Early Macken teaches us about how seeds are spread by wind, water, animal and human agency. The author Macken discusses the definition of the word “seed.” A gust of wind lifts a maple seed, sending it spinning like a shiny green helicopter throughout the sky. The question is, Where will it land? Throughout the book it shows us different pictures of how the seed is getting transported through either the air, water, human’s clothes. It shows us that seeds can travel all over and lands somewhere and begins the cycle all over again.

Flowers Are Calling by Rita Gray is about flowers that are calling to all the animals of the forest, screaming, Drink me! This book is written in rhyming poetic form with resplendent artwork. The book teaches the children that pollinators are the ones that feast on their nectar not all animals. It also shows us readers the teamwork between plants, animals, and insects as they each play their part in the forest’s cycle of life.

Messy Bessey’s Garden, written by Patricia and Fredrick McKissack and illustrated by Dana Regan is a great way to engage young readers when introducing them to gardening. It tells the story of Messy Bessy who decides to plant some seeds at the start of spring. Each page takes the reader step by step, from planting the seeds in the dirt, covering them up well, weeding, watering, to maintaining the garden. The book encourages readers to garden, practice patience, and take good care of the garden so your plants can grow!

I Heard it From Alice Zucchini: Poems About the Garden is a book geared for kindergarten to seventh grade level students. With charming rhythm and magical illustrations, author Juanita Havill and illustrator Christine Davenier bring this book full of poems to life. The book starts with poems on when to plant seeds and how seeds emerge, and shifts to stories about gardening that engage the reader. This book full of poems proves that writing about gardening and plants can definitely be creative!

A Place to Grow written by Soyung Pak and illustrated by Marcelino Truong tells a story about the importance of finding a good ‘home’ for a seed to grow. The author compares the seed to her family’s journey, and how the wind ‘blows’ them from place to place. The book navigates through their journey, while relating it to what plants need to grow and what they need to grow as a family. Good land, sunlight, rain, and love and care is what a seed needs to grow, just as these things helped the family grow as individuals. This book encourages readers to compare their self-growth to seeds that emerge from the soil into beautiful flowers.

Oh Say Can You Seed written by Bonnie Worth and Aristides Ruiz is a rhyming book that shares the importance of seeds and plants. For instance, children learn that trees give us the paper that we use for books. In addition, the cotton on their clothes comes from seeds. Worth and Ruiz also introduce how plants also give us the food we eat as well as medications. Overall, the book does a great job of showing the various benefits of plants. My favorite aspect of the book, though is the glossary at the end!

How A Seed Grows written by Helen J. Jordan and Illustrated by Loretta Krupinski is a book which shares the science behind how plants grow and start from seeds. The book does a great job showing children that there are various types of seeds. The illustrations add to this affect. The children also learn the timeline behind seeds and see that some plants, such as the bean, can grow in a matter of weeks.

Once There was a Seed is a book written by Judith Anderson and illustrated by Mike Gordon. The young girl in the book is planting a seed with her Granddad. Not only does the book demonstrate way that gardening can bring people together, but the author also incorporates different science lessons as well. For instance, readers learn with the young girl that plants need food from light, air and water (introducing photosynthesis). The book introduces the life cycle of a seed and could be used along with a "science experiment" of students growing their own seeds.

Plants and Seeds by Collin Walker This is a “big book” for young readers that has amazing photographs of vegetables and different plants. It is a great introduction book to planting and gardening. Readers will be able to see what different plants and seeds look like.

A Book of Vegetables by Harriet L. Sobol Photographs by Patricia A. Agre This book has great photographs that show different kinds of vegetables. Fourteen different vegetables are described in detail. It explains where they grow, how they grow, and the different parts of the plants. The information is detailed and describes everything you would want to know about these vegetables!

Night of the Veggie Monster by George McClements describes the horrors of a young boy attempting to eat an infamous food item during dinnertime, peas. By the end of the story, his parents notice how his reaction of eating a single pea differs from the beginning of the story. As a mentor text for personal narratives, students recognize strong writer’s craft as McClements breaks down such a tiny moment into an entire picture book. His use of ellipses, pop-out words, and action words models to young writers how to make such a small memory become an entire story. Relating this book to a school garden will help students to try new things. As new foods grow, children can use this example to help them be more open-minded.

This Year’s Garden by Cynthia Rylant and illustrated by Mary Szilagyi follows the life of young children season-by-season as they work in a garden. The pictures and words describe the effort all participants place on the garden. Together, they all make a difference. Students who read this story will begin to identify the different foods, tools, and tasks needed to make a successful garden. By the end of the story, they will be inspired to grow and maintain a garden all year long. Utilizing Cynthia Rylant’s text in reading lessons could help young-learners to sequence events through the garden’s cycle or synthesize small details into main events.

My Father’s Hands by Joanne Ryder and illustrated by Mark Graham shares the lovely story of a father and daughter working in a garden. With the young girl as the narrator, readers see, hear, and feel all aspects of being in a garden. The relationship between the father and daughter demonstrates the positive experience of spending quality time in a garden. This book is a great mentor text in Language Arts to help describe a single experience during narrative units. It ties in the benefits of partaking in a community garden. Mark Graham’s work helps promote the positive aspects of working together and cherishing special times with people in the community.

My Backyard Garden by Carol Lerner is book for beginners to learn about gardening. This is directed to all readers whether they have a love for gardening or not. Carol Lerner is a botanist and her book is a simple guide to vegetable gardening! She talks about all things from planting seeds to harvesting crops. It is an easy to read book and there are plenty of illustrations to help make gardening fun and easy.

City Green by DyAnne DiSalvo-Ryan is a great children’s book about making a difference in the community. The main character Marcy loved to garden in coffee cans until one day the house next door was demolished. The empty lot made Marcy sad every time she looked at it. One day her and her neighbor, Miss Rosa, had an idea to plant a garden in the empty lot. The whole community comes together to make a beautiful garden.

In the Garden with Dr. Carver by Susan Grigsby is a historical fiction book. It is about a day when Dr. George Washington Carver helped a little girl Sally and her friends learn how to plant. The story takes place in Alabama. Throughout the book there are drawings of insects, plants, animals, etc. It is a touching book about an old man teaching children about the beauty of gardening.

How to Grow a Garden by Tom Greve is an informational book about how to grow a garden. It gives a step by step instruction on what to do when you want to grow a garden. It starts out by telling the readers to gather supplies to start a garden and then explains what you need to do grow your garden. This book is suitable for younger students because it is very easy to read and it also has before and reading activities to do with the students. It has text features like a table of contents, glossary, and index.

Exploring Seeds by Kristin Sterling is book about how seeds transforms into plants and fruits. This book has a diagram of parts of a plant and how a seed grows. This book explains how seeds move and there is a glossary along with a seeds facts page. This book is very easy to read which will help young readers know about how seeds become plants.

Garden by Robert Maass is book about how gardens transform from spring to fall. It shows the different kinds of gardens-from flower garden to vegetables garden-this book shows how each garden needs a lot of watering a care so the plants can grow. This book has photographs which shows people from all ages helping out to plant a garden and the different types of gardens that people grow.

Food Rules by Michael Pollan is an easy to read guide on all things food. There are 64 "rules" and they are all different pieces of advice from people's mothers, grandmothers, doctors, nutritionists, anthropologists and even those from other cultures. It is broken down into three sections: What Should I Eat? (Eat Food), What Kind of Food Should I Eat? (Mostly Plants), and How Should I Eat? (Not Too Much). It is great for anyone getting to know the basics of nutrition, trying to lose weight and be healthy or just being knowledgeable about food. Pollan is a genius and this book is great for anyone to read.

Eating The Alphabet: Fruits and Vegetables from A to Z by Lois Ehlert is a fun and colorful book for children learning their ABC's as well as their fruits and vegetables. Ehlert provides pictures and names of food from different countries so that children can see examples of different foods grown all over the world. The glossary at the end provides interesting facts about each food! This quirky and educational book opens the doors of healthy eating and nutrition at an early age.

It's Our Garden: From Seed to Harvest in a School Garden by George Ancona follows an elementary school in Santa Fe, New Mexico on their year long experience with the garden. As the children race outside for recess, they all check to see what's new and what's happening in the garden that day. From choosing what seeds to plant in the spring, to the release of butterflies in the summer, to harvesting in the fall and protecting the beds in the winter, every student has their own job and learns a great deal along the way.

The Vegetables We Eat-Gail Gibbons. The Vegetables We Eat by Gail Gibbons is a children’s book about vegetables, gardening, and much more. Gibbons shows readers a variety of vegetables such as leaf vegetables, root vegetables, stem vegetables, fruit vegetables, seed vegetables, and etc. She highlights what parts of the vegetables you eat, and illustrates various forms of them. Gibbons also discusses how readers can grow vegetables, showing what a garden might look like, and ways to grow vegetables other than in gardens. She also shows how people can shop for vegetables in places like farmers markets. This book would be great for a school garden curriculum. It is a great way to get young students aware of vegetables, gardens, and most importantly where people can buy healthy produce. The parts about how to care for a garden as well as the farmers market were two parts of her book I really enjoyed.

The Gardener - Sarah Stewart

The Gardener by Sarah Stewart is a story of a young girl who leaves her parents to stay in a city with her Uncle Jim. Lydia, goes to stay in the city and at first is not thrilled with her glum surroundings. While living with her uncle, she decides to brighten up his world. Her parents send her seeds and bulbs during her stay. Slowly she discovers a secret area at the top of his building (the rooftop) that no one knows about. Throughout her time there, she works diligently on the rooftop to create a beautiful array of flowers and vegetables as a surprise for her uncle. This story is one that will impact inner city students (such as Bridgeport) because in the story, Lydia makes references to bringing beauty to a city. It shows that even though she is now living in a place with no yard or soil, she can still brighten up her surroundings with a garden.

Old Manhattan Has Some Farms - Susan Lendroth- Illustrated by Kate Endle

Old Manhattan is a fun story that is to the beat of the nursery rhyme “Old MacDonald.” This story explores various different cities as well as different forms of gardening. The book explores root gardening (no soil needed), beekeeping, rooftop gardening, as well as compost bins. This book explores various different terrains, most importantly cities. This book is another great example of how students can garden in environments where soil and yards are not available.

Secrets of the Garden: Food Chains and the Food Web in Our Backyard by Kathleen Weidner Zoehfeld

This children's fiction picture book tells the story of young Alice and her family during the spring when it is time to plant their annual family backyard garden. Alice takes note of everything that is planted in the garden and the care it requires. She also observes the many different insects, birds, and animals that visit the garden. This book is perfect for early elementary classrooms to teach and inspire students to create your own garden. It also serves as an introduction to higher level science concepts like food chains and food webs.

Water, Weed and Wait by Edith Hope Fine

This children's fiction picture book tells the story of an elementary school class that decides to plant a garden in their school yard. At first they are uncertain because there isn't a promising plot however, with the help of their teacher and community they are able to transform a patch of hard ground into a blossoming vegetable garden. This book can inspire students to believe that anyone can grow a garden. It also shows the power of having help from community members which can encourage students to reach out to friends, family, and neighbors to come together and be a part of the garden. Water, Weed, and Wait also includes real life photographs of school gardens as well as tips and tricks to start your own garden!

Lily's Garden by Deborah Kogan Ray

This children's fiction picture book tells the story of Lily who lives in Maine, and her grandmother who lives in California. Lily misses her grandmother dearly but finds comfort in tending to her garden, a joy her grandmother and her have in common. This book is written in letters between the two each month as they talk about what they see and do in their respective gardens. This book is fabulous for teaching students about the different fruits and vegetables that harvest throughout the year. It also shows students that different things grow in different places around the world. Students can relate to this book if they are missing someone close to their heart and encourage them to write letters to those loved ones about their gardens. Included in this book are real life tips about gardening and recipes to make with the harvest from your garden.

Book Information and Resources Compost Stew, written by Mary McKenna Siddals and Illustrated by Ashley Wolff, is an A-Z rhyming book that gives students ideas of what to put in a compost pile in a school or home garden. The pictures are well illustrated and the gives an example for each letter of the alphabet. Some of the ingredients for the stew are known to be placed in a compost pile like grass clippings. But, other ideas are unique, like dryer lint or seaweed strands. The beginning and end of the book gives students a description of what the compost will do for mother earth and how this is a great way to recycle.

Book Information and Resources Up in the Garden and Down in the Dirt, written by Kate Messner and Illustrated by Christopher Neal, is about a girl and her nana who are gardening in the springtime with beautiful illustrations and rich vocabulary. The book describes the activities occurring above and below the garden that prepare the soil for growing. The illustrations do a great job showing wha goes on in the soil of a garden. Messner describes the growing seasons and the preparations that are taken place by gardeners and by insects. She explains how the system works together in a kid friendly way that will get the students engaged and curious.

Book Information and Resources From Seed to Plant by Gail Gibbons is a nonfiction text used to show students the relationship and process of a seed growing into a plant. The book breaks down each part of a plant by including the explanation and a visual so the students have a strong understanding using labels diagrams. The book goes on to describe how different plants have different life cycles but they all start off as seeds. Gibbons also touches upon the process of pollination and the connection to flowers and seeds.

Grow Flower, Grow! By Lisa Bruce and illustrated by Rosalind Beardshaw is a bright and silly children’s book that explores what a flower needs to grow. A little girl named Fran found a flowerpot with a budding flower and she brought it home with her. She experiments with various ways that will help her flower grow, including giving the flower a cheeseburger and a chocolate chip cookie. After trying to feed her flower everything that she could think of, she threw her flower pot outside with frustration. This book is beautifully illustrated and creatively shows the necessities of a flower to grow.

Flip, Float, Fly: Seeds on the Move by JoAnn Early Macken is a cheerful, engaging poetic children’s book. Pam Paprone charmingly illustrated this book that captures the life of a maple seed blown in the wind. This books takes its readers on a journey and shows the significance and wonder of seeds in nature. Readers learn about seeds that thrive in various seasons and different climates. This book also takes a look at the importance of seeds and how they are an important part of animal and human life.

Eddie’s Garden: and How to Make Things Grow by Sarah Garland provides a fun gardening learning experience. This book follows a little boy named Eddie as he plants a garden with his sister and mom. Readers will learn important gardening essentials with Eddie as his mom guides him through the gardening process. Garland vibrantly illustrated the plants and flowers in Eddie’s garden as they grow over time.

Flower Garden, by Eve Bunting, is a children's book that shows the effects of a colorful garden. This book follows a young girl and her father purchasing a small flower garden in a box and bringing it home to their apartment. The illustrations successfully show how just a small colorful garden can brighten up an entire street. The reader learns a few names of flowers throughout the book, as the young girl and father quickly put the garden together on the window sill for the mom's birthday.

A Teen Guide to Eco-Gardening, Food, and Cooking, is a book aimed at children between the ages of thirteen through eighteen. The goal of the guide is to educate students on how they can lead a healthier, more “eco-conscious” life style. The guide informs teens on the benefits of energy and water conservation, as well as how to garden in small spaces, such as apartment complexes. This book is also aligned with Common Core standards, so it is a useful tool in the classroom.

Isabella’s Garden: This book creatively explains the cycle that must undergo for a garden to grow and be created. Starting simply with the young girl Isabella’s seeds in the garden, the story continues to gradually describe every step. The cycle is completed as it begins with the birds and the wind blowing the seeds, for the rain soak them in the soil, leading to the blooming of a beautiful garden. This book is geared towards 3 to 6 year old children as it uses repetition to show the theme of cycles.

Lola Plants a Garden, written by Anna McQuinn and illustrated by Rosalind Beardshaw, tells the story of curious Lola who, after reading a collection of garden poems, decides to plant some flowers of her own. Lola begins her gardening endeavor by researching plants through books gathered from her local library. Lola and her mommy then begin to plant and grow her marvelous garden! With Beardshaw’s illustrations depicting the garden at each stage, this book will surely encourage children to get excited about reading, as well as gardening!

A Seed is Sleepy, written by Dianna Aston and illustrated by award-winning artist Sylvia Long, introduces children to the diverse world of seeds in an informative. Simple, yet poetic, sentences accompanied by Long’s beautiful watercolors, serve as a wonderful introduction to seeds and plants. Children, and adults alike, will be charmed by this book while uncovering a number of intriguing facts about the life of seeds and plants.

The Little Gardener, written and illustrated by Emily Hughes, tells the beautiful and magical tale of a little gardener who loved his garden like nothing else. Although the little gardener worked so very hard, he often felt he was just too little. Hughes brilliantly depicts a world children are able to recognize as their own, while magnificently highlighting a touch of magic. The book embraces the beautiful wonder of gardening and plants, while conveying the valuable life lesson of perseverance.

Rose’s Garden by Peter H Reynolds is a book about a little girl that is traveling the world and collecting seeds from all different plants on her journey and putting them in her teapot. Once her teapot was full of seeds, Rose went into the city and found a spot to plant all of her seeds. Unfortunately, all of her seeds were eaten by birds so she took the few that remained and planted those. For almost a year, the plants didn’t grow so all the kids in the town made fake flowers and gave them to Rose to grow her garden. When her garden was full with beautiful flowers, she saw a bee land on one of them and realized it wasn’t a fake flower. Her garden was finally growing.

Olivia Plants A Garden by Rachel Ruderman and Laurie Israel is a book about a little big that gets seeds from her teacher to plant at home. The teacher doesn’t tell the students what kind of seed they are getting so they will be more excited to plant it and find out. When Olivia plants her seed, she stays and watches it until it grows but it hasn’t yet. Then one day her dog dug up her seed because he was looking for his bone which was below it. Olivia had to plant another seed and when it grew it was a Venus fly trap.

A Tree is a Plant by Clyde Robert Bulla is a book about the beginning life of an apple tree and how an apple trees grow. Starting out with the seeds from the apple being planted into the ground, the little buds coming up and every step along the way until the apple are grown and fall off the trees. The book also goes through the seasons and shows how the tree adjusts to the different seasons. It also explains each step and why it happens

Inchworm and A Half, by Ellinor J. Pinczes, is a book about measuring all the different vegetables in a garden. The puzzled inchworm enlists the help of her friends, 1/2-inch, 1/3-inch, and 1/4-inch worms, to measure all the different vegetables in her garden, such as eggplant, snow peas, peppers, etc. The book also presents fractions and measurements in a fun way, while also introducing children to vegetables they may never heard of before.

Seedfolks by Paul Fleishchman This Newberry Medal-winning chapter book tells the story of a community garden in an immigrant neighborhood. 13 diverse people tell of their garden in Cleveland, Ohio. There are old and young neighbors that come together through this garden. This is a tale of a neighborhood that unites to build a garden while learning about the people around them.

Farm Anatomy, by Julia Rothman, is a chapter book that is perfect for educating young adolescents in any subject area. The book has detailed chapters on all the aspects of farming, such as the soil, nutrients, planting seeds, measurements in the garden, tools, and windbreaks. Rothman goes in so much detail about all the aspects of farming that you do not cover in the basics of farming. The book really takes you into the daily life of rural living and really explores all the vocabulary terms used in farming that many people never hear about.

What Did I Eat? by Lori Barker, is a book about the ingredients and nutrients of various foods. While learning about nutrition labels and a variety of foods, the book emerges the readers in mathematical operations such as fractions, decimals, and percentages. This book helps readers practice these common mathematics skills in a way that can be used in their life everyday.

Think Like a Scientist in the Garden by Matt Mullins is a non-fiction book that introduces curious children to the methods a scientist may use. This book sets forth the scientific procedure of writing a hypothesis, designing an experiment to test the hypothesis, writing down what happens and making a conclusion. It encourages children to ask questions in order to learn about how plants grow. Some experiments from this book are comparing growing the same plant indoors hidden from the sun and outdoors and shielding part of a leaf that is in the sun to see what happens to the part of the leaf that is blocked from direct sunlight. This book does a nice job of exciting children to be scientists and come up with their own experiments.

Plants Make Their Own Food by Julie K. Lundgren is an exceptional book to introduce children (and adults that need a little refresher on the details) on how photosynthesis works. The book answers these 3 main questions: what do plants need to make their own food? why are plants important to life on Earth? and how do the gases that animals and plants produce benefit each other? Besides teaching the children about how plants make their own food it can also open up discussions on the importance of taking care of our planet.

“Henry Helps Plant a Garden” by Beth Bracken is an illustrated picture book that is written for kids aged from 2-6. It is a recipient of the Mom’s Choice Award for it’s family friendly message and pictures. The book is about a young boy named Henry who helps out in his family’s garden. He plants the seeds of flowers and vegetables in the garden. He also helps water and weed the garden daily. This book is very simple for young children. It has colorful illustrations and simple sentences to help them follow along. It is a great book for young children just getting into gardening and having responsibilities.

“Little Seeds” by Charles Ghigna is an illustrated picture book that is written for kids aged from 3-6 years old. The book is actually written as a poem. There are fun rhyming sentences throughout the book. It makes it engaging in fun for young children, especially when it is presented in a fun and energetic way for them! It follows a little girl through her sequencing of planting seeds! It is a book from the My Little Planet series. It is a series that encourages environmental awareness to young children in a fun and unique way. This book does that and with its colors and rhymes it will definitely hold young children’s attention.

"Up, Down, and Around” by Katherine Ayres is an illustrated picture book that is written for kids aged from 2-5 years old. This book takes a different look at the planting of a garden. While the book follows children from planting seeds and watching them grow. However, it shows vivid pictures of plants as they grow underground and it incorporates the different animals that interact with the plants. The book is just as vivid with illustration and description as the others. Making it a fun read for young readers to keep them entertained!