Tag: under the snow

Illustrator: Constance R. Bergum

Publication Info: Peachtree Publishers, 2009

Intended audience: Ages 4 through 8

Genre: nonfiction, picture book

Themes/topics: science, nature, animals, hibernation

Opening and synopsis: ”In the heart of winter, a deep layer of snow blankets fields and forests, ponds and wetlands. You spend your days sledding and skating and having snowball fights. But under the snow lies a hidden world.”

Children spend the winter playing on the snow and ice, but do they know the world lying underneath? A wood frog sleeps in scattered leaves, frozen until the warm spring thaws him. A chipmunk naps and wakes to snack, then sleeps again. Newts swim below the ice, zipping through the frigid water.

Why I like this book: Two years before Kate Messner’s much-lauded, Over and Under the Snow, award-winning nonfiction author Melissa Stewart produced this lyrical look at the winter wonderland under the snow. This book provides a strong example of how simple language and beautiful images can make nonfiction accessible to all ages.

Resources: Melissa Stewart includes a complete Teacher’s Guide on her site. You can access it…..here. She also has three activities for the book: comparing animal sizes, create a picture story and snow math, which you can find … here. Finally, she includes a “readers theater” guide for students who want to stage a dramatic reading of the book. New York State’s Conservationist for Kids has a wonderful guide to hibernation. BrainPop has an interactive overview of hibernation. You’ll need to enroll in the free trial.

Every Friday bloggers review “Perfect Picture Books.” Find a complete list of book reviews organized by topic, genre and blogger at author Susanna Leonard Hill’s site.