Arnosky Read Alouds

Probably the first time I heard about Jim Arnosky's books was when I read one of Mary's posts at Homegrown Learners.  She was sharing about Crinkleroot.  Whether it was the character's odd name or remembering Mary's recommendation, I recognized the name immediately when I saw Crinkleroot's Guide to Giving Back to Nature in the library's new books section.  I snagged it right away.  Then, when the children were done logging their summer reading hours with the librarian, I moved with my littlest to the picture book section.  I was determined to find more books by Arnosky.  Though the library had no other Crinkleroot books, there were plenty of other Arnosky books.  We checked out five more titles. 

Three of our favorite Arnosky titles {so far}:

Beaver Pond, Moose Pond - In the mountains a pond created by the beaver's dam is visited by many animals.  Each animal 'sees' the pond as his special place.  We enjoyed how each animal had their own perspective, ownership, and use for the pond.  Also, it was neat to read about the different animals interacting or avoiding one another at the pond.   My youngest son liked this one the best, so I listed it first.

A Manatee Morning - Told in a lyrical style this book flows through the manatees experience.  Set in the Crystal River, a group of manatees swim, eat, nuzzle, and rest.  The book focuses on a pair of manatees, a mother and her calf, as they swim through the river past dangerous alligators and boats to a calm part of the river.

At This Very Moment - Perhaps this one is my personal favorite.  The entire book pairs a school aged child's typical activities with activities of animals around the world that are happening simultaneously.  It starts in the morning and moves through an average day.  Waking, breakfast, getting ready for the day, being at school, playing in the afternoon, and dinnertime are some of the child's activities mentioned.  Each one is paired with one or more animal activity that could be happening somewhere in the world.  Fascinating way to teach a child that more is occurring in the world then what they can see before them!

The other two Arnosky titles we picked up and read were Turtle in the Sea and Babies in the Bayou.  Both were good reads. 



Linking to Read Aloud Thursday at Hope Is the Word.