The Wonderful Wisdom of Ants -- New Picture Book Review

 

Disclosure: I was sent a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own. 

Spring begins today here! With spring we usually see a lot of ants. Today I get to share a brand new book (released today) about ants. The book is The Wonderful Wisdom of Ants by Philip Bunting. It is recommended for ages 4 to 8. I am also including an ant craft round-up to go with the book. 

Odette's Alphabet -- Review & Giveaway

 

Disclosure: I was sent a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review. I am working with The Children's Book Review and Sandrine Marlier to bring you this post and giveaway and I will receive a small stipend for writing the review. All opinions are my own. 

When you are feeling stressed out, what do you do? Do you meditate? Take a deep breath? What do you teach your child(ren) to do? According to the CDC, approximately 5.8 million children between the ages of 3 and 17 were diagnosed with anxiety between 2016 and 2019 and the numbers are going up. (Source) Our world and society is changing so quickly that we are not keeping up with helping our kids deal with it. We need to teach them methods to deal with their stress. Today's book is a perfect start for younger kids. It is Odette's Alphabet by Sandrine Marlier and illustrated by Leonardo Schiavina. 

The Natural Genius of Ants -- New Middle Grades Novel about Family, Friends, Loss, Ants & More with Ant Craft & Activity Round-Up

 

Disclosure: I was sent a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own.

Summertime always brings ants. Whether you are picnicking, gardening or have them in your house, ants seem to be everywhere in the summer. Today I am going to share a new middle grade novel about family, friends, loss, and learning about forgiveness with a little biology lesson on ants sprinkled in. The book is The Natural Genius of Ants by Betty Culley. I am also sharing a round-up of ant crafts and activities to go with the book.

Going Exploring for Ant Hills

Last week Hazel and I bought a critter cage that came with a small net, magnifying glass and tweezers and we bought a nicer magnifying glass at Michaels. They were on sale an not very expensive. Hazel has been afraid of bugs for some time so I thought it might help to get rid of some of the fear. On Sunday we pulled them out. Hazel started by gathering rocks in her net and critter cage. Then after a bit she told me she wanted to go exploring and look for ant hills. I'm not sure if she really knew what an ant hill is or what one looks like, but we did find some.

Our front yard actually had many of them. We always seem to have ants around. Hazel had the best time just looking and searching.

We discovered the magnifying glass that came with the critter cage was not very good. It was rather blurry. So Hazel kept telling me she would share the good one with me. She was having so much fun.

Getting a better look

We also of course continued using our senses like we did on Saturday. After all exploring really requires one to use your senses. We found some feathers, bees (but they moved too fast to get a picture). Hazel took the first feather to put in her critter cage. I'm not sure it ended up there though.

Hazel also noticed that an airplane left lines in the sky.

Then we went for a walk to explore some more. Daddy joined us and Hazel wanted to be pushed. But she constantly wanted us to find something to put in her net. I finally picked up a rock for her. Steve had been doing some yard work and we moved her sand box out of the garage now that the weather is turning warmer. She was very excited to have it outside. She was serving everyone dinner at her swingset picnic table.

She asked if I was hungry and of course I said yes, so she gave me the best one.

I am loving our days spent outdoors. Each day seems to bring some new adventure, exploration or game. What have you been up to outside?

Oh, I know I have mentioned this book previously, but I am trying to relate our activities to books whenever possible. Since we were exploring for ant hills, it of course makes sense that we mention one of Hazel's favorite books, Ant and Grasshopper by Luli Grey. If you visit my previous post  you will see one of the crafts we have come up with to go with the book. I still plan to make Ant's house out of tissue boxes with Hazel. Stay tuned for it.

Some other creative play we have done lately:

Blowing Bubbles

Wind Wand--finally playing with it outside!!

Stove/oven for cooking with her sand table

Yes, she told me she was grilling chicken on her table!! I love it!!


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