I have been out of the elementary classroom for 2 years now and I rarely use picture books anymore. Today as I was preparing for a science workshop with primary teachers I was reminded of the power of picture books and thought I would post a couple of my favorites here. I hope to make this a regular part of this blog.
Wings of Light is a non-fiction book with beautiful watercolor images, poetic text with excellent word choice, and a wonderful story of the migration of the yellow butterfy.
How to use this book: There are multiple opportunities to use this book to teach writing traits, art techniques, and science concepts.
The Caldecott Medal winning Snowflake Bentley is a true classic. The true story of an amateur scientist and his relentless pursuit to capture images of snow crystals is touching, well written, and a great source for teaching about inquiry and the nature of science. Check out snowflakebentley.com also.
How to use this book: I love to use this book “on the fly’- I wait for the first snowflake to fall during a school day, punt on whatever lesson we were doing, read Snowflake Bentley, view some of his real images online, and go out to observe some snow. Makes me feel ready for winter just thinking about it.
Supporting Resources: The book Picture Perfect Science Lessons
Science for All 