We get a lot of press releases and review copies of children’s environmental books; however, I don’t get very excited about many of them. Either they try to put too much information in or they try to be creative to appeal to children but instead misinform children. 10 Things I Can Do to Help My World: Fun and Easy Eco-Tips by Melanie Walsh is different: it is both developmentally appropriate and informative.
Made from 100% recycled material, 10 Things I Can Do to Help My World has delightful illustrations and cut out pages. Each page features a tip with a simple explanation of why the tip is important for our environment. For example, “I try…to turn off the tap when I brush me teeth. Every time you do this, you save eighteen glasses of water.” The 10 tips are:
- Turn off the light when I leave the room.
- Turn off the tap when I brush my teeth.
- Throw my trash away.
- Feed birds in winter.
- Use both sides of the paper.
- Remind my parents to unplug the TV when we are not using it.
- Make toys from things around the house.
- Walk to school.
- Plant seeds and help them grow.
- Sort the recycling.
These are tips children can actually do and understand, and I like they way the author uses the word “help” instead of “save the world”. Saving the world is more than one child can do and is a heavy burden to bear, but we can all help. The simple text and illustrations are perfect for children, and this book would be great inspiration for children to write their own 10 Things I Can Do To Help My World books. What would your child’s tips be?
I’m always on the hunt for great children’s books and have recently discovered Bayard and their series of StoryBoxBooks, AdventureBoxBooks and DiscoveryBoxBooks.
There’s lots going on too:
This Month Storybox has guest illustrator Helen Oxenbury fetured (http://storyboxbooks.com/helen-oxenbury.php).
There’s a Readathon happening in the Ireland region – http://discoveryboxbooks.com/readathon.php
There’s a Ghost Drawing competition in AdventureBoxBooks assiciated with the Polka Theatre (http://www.adventureboxbooks.com/competition.php)
We LOVE this book! 🙂
This book looks great. I’ll have to look for it.
One of my daughter’s top ten would be putting a jug of drinking water in the fridge instead of letting the tap run until it’s cold.