by Cindy Jenson-Elliott; illustrated by Carolyn Fisher (Beech Lane Books, 2014)
“Weeds find a way to live where other plants can’t grow”, begins Cindy Jenson-Elliott. They send their seeds into the world on parachutes or velcroed onto animal fur. The seeds find a way to wait until the conditions are just right for growing. They grow and flower, providing insects with food and us with beauty. Whatever they need to do to survive, weeds find a way.
I like the way this book follows the season. I like the repetition of “weeds find a way”, and the celebration of how weeds solve problems they encounter. The illustrations are wonderfully bold, and the “meet the weeds” section at the back is like a mini-field guide complete with drawings and notes about weeds that we might find in and around our homes. What I especially like is the tone: weeds make the world a prettier place one blossom at a time.
Head over to Archimedes Notebook for an interview with the author and some hands-on activities to celebrate weeds in your neighborhood.
It’s STEM Friday! (STEM is Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics)
Copyright © 2014 Sue Heavenrich All Rights Reserved.
March 7, 2014 at 7:35 am
I’ve thought about writing a book about weeds- it’s already done! And it looks like it’s beautifully done 🙂