Nonfiction Picture Book Wednesday - new animal books - 11.11.2020

Wednesdays I join Alyson Beecher from kidlitfrenzy and other

#kidlit bloggers to share wonderful nonfiction picture books.

The intention of today's blog post is to give professionals that work in the
education field new nonfiction reading material and ideas to use 

with students to promote a love of reading nonfiction materials.

A roundup of new animal books for you this week!

Play in the Wild: How Baby Animals Like to Have Fun

by Lita Judge

I hope you have read Lita Judge's other books in her series about baby animals: Born in the Wild and Homes in the Wild.  I love how she organizes the books into clearly understood sections.  Some in this book include how animals ask first before playing, how playing helps build communities, and how sometimes when they are playing animals have to say they are sorry.  After each section intro, Judge spotlights three animals and how they use play.  In the backmatter is further information about the animals and source information.  These are must have books for your collections.  You'll find yourself reaching for them as mentor texts, as well as handing them to readers!

What Do You Do If You Work at the Zoo?

by Steve Jenkins and Robin Page

Another fantastic collaboration between husband/wife team Steve Jenkins and Robin Page.  Most kids know there are zoo workers and they take care of the animals, but what do they really do?  They might find it fascinating to know why they take care of some of the animals (for example, a manatee that was separated from its mother because of a hurricane) and who takes care of it (for example, zoo workers might introduce a golden retriever puppy as a playmate to a lonely cheetah).

As always, there are additional facts in the backmatter that should definitely be read.  I liked seeing the list and map that show some of the world's best zoos.  There is even a section that talks about the pros and cons of zoos and the three main missions zoos have.

The Truth About Butterflies

by Maxwell Eaton III

This summer I had some butterfly visitors to the flowers I had planted in my backyard.  I really enjoyed getting an up close look at these insects.  Sometimes I could get a closeup before they flittered away!

Kids really like this series.  Mixing facts about an animal - or insect in this case - with humor is always a good mixture for readers.

I've read many books about butterflies, but I always find something new to learn.

I like this format, there are pages that have more of a graphic novel layout than in the other books, but it also seems even busier than the other books.  Some pages have so much information and insects on them, it was hard to follow and know who was talking and what part do you read next.  Regardless, because of the topic, you'll have readers for this one.  Just make sure they take their time and pour over all the information so nothing is missed!

Hope you can find some of these animal books for your readers.