Little Wonders

Andy and the Lion is about a curious boy named Andy who can’t stop thinking about lions. He reads about them, hears stories of lions in Africa, and dreams all night long about these ferocious creatures. To his surprise, he meets a real lion in need of help and befriends him. Andy’s lion adventures continue when a circus comes to town. This book celebrates both friendship and gratitude. Some of the activities in this Book-A-Week unit are making lion toast, building a small scale circus, and making a friendship poster.

Adventurer, photographer and author Chris Burkard and esteemed illustrator David McClellan paired up to write a beautiful book about cultivating a loving relationship with the Earth. We curated a collection of activities to pair with the book which prompts readers (both children and adults alike) to explore nature and journal thoughtfully.

Chrysanthemum is a charming story about a little mouse who loves her name. But upon beginning school, the other children point out the many disadvantages of a name like Chrysanthemum. Through the love and kindness of her teacher, Mrs. Twinkle, the other children begin to appreciate the beauty of Chrysanthemum’s name. In this book-a-week unit, you will find activities such as flower sorting, making Chrysanthemum toast, and flower stamping.

The Gardener is a rich, heartwarming story about a young girl named Lydia Grace who is sent to live with her uncle in the big city. Set during the depression era, the book is written as a series of letters from Lydia Grace to the family she had to leave back home. With a few bulbs and seed packets, she transforms her uncle’s bakery and rooftop patio into a lush garden and cheerful place through her determination, green thumb, and generosity. The Gardener is a 1997 New York Times Book Review Notable Children's Book of the Year and a 1998 Caldecott Honor Book. Some of the activities in this Book-A-Week unit are building a block flower shop, seed sensory play, and writing a friendly letter.

Anna Ingalls brings Diane Stanley's beloved retelling of Goldilocks and the Three Bears Goldie to life with instructions on how to make a "Wonder Box" - a family of painted wooden peg doll characters.

A small charming inchworm, who is proud of his ability to measure anything around, including a flamingo’s neck and the legs of a Heron, is one day threatened by a nightingale. The nightingale has demanded that the inchworm measure her song, or she will eat him for breakfast. At first, the inchworm is not quite sure how to do such a thing but quickly comes up with a clever idea to solve the quandary.

Some of the activities in this Book a Week unit are painting with worms, making a collage, and investigating worms.

This Caldecott Honor Book is a humorous tale where a stubborn king refuses to get out of his bubble filled tub. His page, along with other members of his court, try to persuade him out with ideas such as battling, feasting, fishing, and dancing. But, to their surprise, none of the ideas succeed. It isn’t until the plug is pulled by the page that the king finally finds his way out of the tub. In this unit, you will find activities such as making ribbon wands, having lunch in the tub, and making bubble art.

Young Alice Rumphius dreamed of visiting faraway places, living beside the sea, and making the world a more beautiful place, just as her grandfather had done. As she grew older, her dream of traveling and living by the sea came true, but she was still unsure of what she could do to make the world a more beautiful place. Until one day when Miss Rumphius, now much older, realized that the flower seeds she had sowed the previous summer now filled her garden, the hillsides and the fields with Lupines. She knew from that point on what she needed to do. She filled her pockets full of seeds and sowed lupines throughout her town. Her gift to the town led her to be called the Lupine Lady. Some of the activities in this Book-A-Week unit are nature weaving, making a suncatcher, and making thumbprint lupines.

Nana in the City is a beautiful story of bravery and triumph. A boy comes to the city to visit his Nana but finds it a bustling, busy, and frightening place. He decides it’s no place for a nana to live, but she knows just what to do to change his mind about her new home. This Book-A-Week unit contains activities such as creating a watercolor illustration, listening to city sounds, and making a weaving with red yarn.

Piccolo, a carefree tomcat, who lived along the canals of Venice, thoroughly enjoyed his independence. One day as he was out exploring the canals, he discovered two young abandoned kittens. Although he knew they needed care, he certainly did not want to be the one caring for them. That is, until he discovered his own tender heart. In this heartwarming book-a-week unit you'll find directions for painting with spaghetti, making homemade mini pizzas, and drawing a cat.

The Rag Coat won the New York State’s Charlotte Award for Best Picture book as well as several other awards for esteemed author and illustrator Lauren Mills. In this beloved story, Minna needed a winter coat before starting school, but her family could not afford to purchase one. One day Minna mentioned this to the Quilting Mothers group, and without delay, they began to make Minna her very own coat using a variety of fabric scraps, each of which had their own story. Once the coat was ready, Minna happily wore it to school where she was immediately made fun of by her classmates as they chanted “Rag Coat! Rag-Coat!” But it wasn’t long until Minna was able to engage, captivate, and win over her classmates through friendship as she shared the stories and memories associated with her coat. Some of the activities in this Book-A-Week unit are making snow globes, mixing snowy playdough, and sewing on stitch cards.

Rosie Revere dreams of one day becoming a great engineer. Shy and uncertain of her ability, she hides the gadgets and gizmos she’s made in her attic or under her bed. Afraid to fail and be laughed at, Rosie is hesitant to share her amazing ideas. Great-Great-Aunt Rose helps her to see each fail as one step closer to making her inventions a success. Some of the activities you will find in this book-a-week unit are building building a snack tower and doing an egg drop experiment.

Marion called it Roxaboxen. It was a special place; it was a town made out of rocks, old wooden crates, and a lot of childhood imagination. There was a town hall, a bakery, a jail, a cemetery, many houses, and so much more. Wars occurred and speeding tickets were given. The story is a retelling of the author’s mother’s childhood days spent with neighborhood friends in this special imaginary town, Roxaboxen. Some of the activities in this Book-A-Week unit are building a mini Roxaboxen sensory tub, making ice cream, and playing mud pit bakery outside.

The Snowy Day is a book about discovery, wonder, and friendship. Young Peter wakes up one day to a wintery world outside his window. There is so much for Peter to discover about snow, but it’s best to have a friend to enjoy it with. Some of the activities in this Book-A-Week unit are creating a winter scene collage, making shaving cream snow, and practicing snowflake scissor skills.

In this beautifully worded and illustrated version of the tale of Stone Soup, three Chinese monks are on a journey to understand what makes a person happy. The monks visit a mountain village where the villagers are guarded and unwelcoming. Cleverly, they build a fire and begin making a soup made from stones. From this experience, the curious villagers all learn to open their hearts and to give as they come together and contribute to the stone soup. In this unit, you will find fun activities to pair with this beloved book, such as building stone patterns, making sensory rocks, and eating with chopsticks.

It was with his fellow New Englanders that Robert Frost (1874-1963) first became known for his poetry. Over twenty years later Frost published his first book. He went on to win a record of four Pulitzer Prizes and became one of the most well-known poets of his era. The illustrator of Stopping by Woods on a Snowy Evening, Susan Jeffers, worked on this book from her studio that is surrounded by woods and animals, which she loves to draw. Susan has worked for many publishers and has authored a few books of her own, including Three Jovial Huntsmen, a Caldecott Honor Book. These illustrations in Stopping by Woods on a Snowy Evening were done with pencil, pen, and ink.

It is interesting to note how much the illustrations play into the story of this book. With the text, the imagery of the illustrations fill in the blanks and bring life and detail to the words. Whether this is the exact meaning that Robert Frost had in mind, we do not know. For the children, this influence that the illustrations have to the book creates a story and fills it with life. As the adults, this is also a powerful influence that we must just remember was added by the illustrator. On the darkest night of the year, a man, his sleigh, and his horse head into the woods. The man stops for some time to watch the snow falling through the trees. His horse becomes anxious to keep going as there is not a farmhouse near. Regardless, they stay awhile as the man observes and plays amongst the trees and animals. Before long they continue on as the man has obligations to meet and there are miles to go before they sleep.

Some of the activities in this Book-A-Week unit are making popcorn snowballs, mixing up and using "snow" paint, and pine cone weaving.

Once upon a time, there was a bull named Ferdinand. Unlike the other bulls who ran and jumped and butt their heads together, Ferdinand liked to sit just quietly under a cork tree and smell the flowers. One day, five men from Madrid came looking for the biggest, fastest, and roughest bull for the bullfights. They left with one. Was it Ferdinand who liked to sit and smell the flowers or one who ran around snorting, butting, leaping, and jumping?

Some of the activities in this Book a Week unit are bleeding paper tissue art, making a measuring chart, and a guessing scents game.

"The Tale of Peter Rabbit" is the story of a mischievous little bunny who cannot resist the temptation to steal vegetables from Mr. McGregor’s garden. He is ever so lucky when he manages to escape the wrath of Mr. McGregor with only a case of the sniffles and a lost jacket! In this book-a-week unit, you will find activities such as making Mr. McGregor’s Salad, seed sorting, and learning a bunny rhyme.

"The Three Bears" is a fairy tale about a little girl named Goldilocks who stumbles upon a cottage in the forest belonging to three bears. While they are out on a walk, the little girl musses up their belongings and eventually falls fast asleep in the baby bear’s bed. When she is discovered by the three bears, she leaps from a window, never to be seen by the bears again. Some of the activities in this book-a-week unit are doing a porridge taste test, finding animal tracks, and building the three bears chairs out of blocks.

Tops and Bottoms is a hilarious story about a crafty hare who outwits a lazy bear. Bear spends his days sleeping—he has plenty of money and land, but he wishes only to sleep. Nearby, the clever, but poor, Hare resides with his large family. With many children to feed, Hare and Mrs. Hare go into business with Bear only to trick him into getting all of the good parts of the crops. Janet Stevens has authored and illustrated many books, and she won a Caldecott Honor for "Tops and Bottoms." Some of the activities in this Book-A-Week unit are exploring Edible Tops and Bottoms, doing a celery experiment, and making Lettuce Leaf Prints.

Tuesday is a wordless picture book that ignites the imagination with curiosity and wonder. It begins in a quiet pond one Tuesday evening as frogs are lifted into the air on lilypads, much like flying carpets. It is a shocking sight for those who are awake to view this mysterious phenomenon. As morning breaks, however, the flying frogs leap back to their pond, and the dozens of lilypads they leave strewn in the street leave the townspeople dumbfounded. David Wiesner received the 1991 Caldecott Medal for "Tuesday". Some of the activities in this Book-A-Week unit are making Wax Paper Frogs, creating a Pond Sensory Bin, and studying the Frog Lifecycle.

A young boy dresses in his wolf suit, and his mischief gets him into trouble. He is sent to his room without supper where his imagination unfolds, and an adventure in the land of the wild things begins. Some of the activities in this Book-A-Week unit are creating messy monster art, boat building with blocks, and making Wild Things masks.

Yoko the kitten has gone off to school with her willow-covered cooler filled with sushi. She is looking forward to her day! But her classmates tease her about what she has brought for lunch. Her wise teacher organizes an international food day, and a very hungry raccoon bravely tries Yoko’s sushi. Timothy the raccoon and Yoko the kitten become fast friends and in the end create their very own restaurant that serves their favorite things: tomato sandwiches and sushi rolls! In this book-a-week unit, you will find activities such as painting a cherry blossom branch, writing Japanese Numerals, and making playdough sushi.