In a unique blend of caricature and realism, five adorable cartoon bluebirds - a band in search of a different song for their upcoming concert - go birdwatching (and bird-listening) across the continent. Along the way they see remarkable (real) birds from the bald eagle in Alaska to mallard ducks in Boston, and discover the joys of birdwatching. The book is chock full of information about the birds, in the form of field guide pages, journal entries by the BLUES, and birding tips.

In a unique blend of caricature and realism, five adorable cartoon bluebirds - a band in search of a different song for their upcoming concert - go birdwatching (and bird-listening) across the continent. Along the way they see remarkable (real) birds from the bald eagle in Alaska to mallard ducks in Boston, and discover the joys of birdwatching. The book is chock full of information about the birds, in the form of field guide pages, journal entries by the BLUES, and birding tips.

Introduce kids to the critters that make their home in a decaying old tree with this beautifully illustrated and accessible picture book. Perfect for preschool and kindergarten classrooms and science curriculums for the study of nature, forests, trees, and life cycles. An ancient oak is hit by a lightening strike, and tumbles to the ground! But don't worry—the tree is now home to all kinds of critters. Introduce young readers to termites, salamanders, garter snakes, and more animals and insects that make the rotting tree their home with a lighthearted building rhyme and realistic illustrations. Backmatter includes: Field Notes: information and fun facts about each animal mentioned in the book Activities and Projects: outlines for education projects for classrooms and families such as a day-in-the-life of an animal journal exercise, creating a picture collage of animal cut-outs from magazines, and a photo journal

Learn about the life cycle of a green sea turtle and its coral reef habitat in this beautifully illustrated picture book. With backmatter on coral reefs, sea turtles, activities for teachers, and more, this book will be staple in your child's library or elementary classroom. Follow a tiny baby sea turtle named Kiki as she scrambles across the sandy beach and into the sea! Floating far out in the ocean, Kiki grows to become a gentle giant, and soon finds her new home in a beautiful coral reef. There she discovers fish and coral of all sizes, and learns how every creature helps out each other, along with a few other surprises: a gang of tangs helps clean the algae growing on her shell, anemones help hide clownfish from predators, seahorses use camouflage, and even more. But something calls Kiki back to the beach . . . and soon she lays her own set of eggs! Soon, she will be a mother to a new group of baby sea turtles. Backmatter includes: Additional facts and information: about coral reefs, kinds of coral, how sea creatures like clownfish and anemones work in symbiosis, kinds of sea turtles, and more Activities for teachers: including creating Venn diagrams for different species of turtles, a coral reef scavenger hunt, and more Additional resources: for further reading and classroom exploration, including the Sea Turtle Conservancy website, NOAA Coral Reef Conservation website, a biography of scientist Archie Carr, and more

In this second of the BLUES Go Birding series, five adorable cartoon bluebirds go on another bird watching adventure. This time they follow in the footsteps of the famed Roger Tory Peterson, and see birds on every coastline of America. Filled with both information and fun, the BLUES are a delightful introduction to birdwatching and the major shorebird species.

Whether used for thematic story times, program and curriculum planning, readers' advisory, or collection development, this updated edition of the well-known companion makes finding the right picture books for your library a breeze. Generations of savvy librarians and educators have relied on this detailed subject guide to children's picture books for all aspects of children's services, and this new edition does not disappoint. Covering more than 18,000 books published through 2017, it empowers users to identify current and classic titles on topics ranging from apples to zebras. Organized simply, with a subject guide that categorizes subjects by theme and topic and subject headings arranged alphabetically, this reference applies more than 1,200 intuitive (as opposed to formal catalog) subject terms to children's picture books, making it both a comprehensive and user-friendly resource that is accessible to parents and teachers as well as librarians. It can be used to identify titles to fill in gaps in library collections, to find books on particular topics for young readers, to help teachers locate titles to support lessons, or to design thematic programs and story times. Title and illustrator indexes, in addition to a bibliographic guide arranged alphabetically by author name, further extend access to titles.

An owl swoops down to lay her egg in a coal yard a dangerous spot for a fragile egg! Rescued by Walter, a bird expert with a big heart and a warm shirt pocket, the egg miraculously hatches and is aptly named Coal. Thus begins a tender story of rescue, rehabilitation, and most of all, friendship. After meticulously researching the facts, Michelle Houts tells Coal's story with warmth and humor. The connections between Coal and the people whose lives he touches are captured by Deb Hoeffner's illustrations, done in her unique style of soft realism. "Explore More for Kids" answers children's questions with facts and photos of Great Horned Owls and Walter Crawford "The Man Who Saved Coal." Parents and teachers will appreciate literacy connections and STEM activities that extend the learning of the story.