Leaf Man ~ Picture Book & KID KANDY

 

 

Leaf Man

by Lois Ehlert

(Harcourt, Inc., 2005)

 

Can you see the leaf man?

 

Despite my difficulty in taking photos of library books with plastic covers, I can see him clearly. Leaf Man spreads across the book cover, composed of leaves, nuts, and seed pods. He is quite handsome for being made of things that have fallen off of trees.

 

Leaf Man is one of my favorite fall books by Lois Ehlert. With all of his vibrant colors, where does he go when the fall winds blow?

 

Leaf Man transforms into many other nature creations, compliments of the wind, colorful creative artwork by Ehlert, and cleverly cut and shaped pages.

 

Young children will be so entranced by Leaf Man, they will want to go directly and build their own leaf creation. Isn't that what we want? Readers engaged in reading books AND exploring nature is the perfect combination.

 

KID KANDY:

 

Leaf Creations

 

1. Head outside and find piles of nature things - leaves, pods, cones, sticks, rocks... Nature walks through parks and forests are perfect collecting spots.

 

2. Spread out your gatherings of nature items. What do you see? Who do you see?

 

3. Arrange your nature items into a creation.

 

Did you make a person? A dog? A cat? A tree? A house?

 

You can make anything!

 

P.S. I would love to see a picture of what you created!

A Tree for All Seasons ~ Picture Book & KID KANDY

A Tree for All Seasons
By Robin Bernard
(National Geographic Society, Scholastic Inc., 1999)

Some books you just keep. Forever. Because they are beautiful.

A Tree for All Seasons is one of those keeper books. That front yard on the cover is what I want my front yard to look like. The trees, the picket fence, the falling leaves, the children playing . . .

A Tree for All Seasons contains fabulous photos of nature in the fall. Winter, spring, and summer are also included in this book - all the seasons of a tree.

This nonfiction picture book will excite young readers to go outside and enjoy nature, no matter what the season.

KID KANDY:

Tree Journal

This is so much fun. I used to do this with my preschoolers. There was a huge, giant, enormous tree right next to our classroom. I marched them all out and took photos of each during the three seasons of school. We were not there during the summer, so I couldn't feature that season. But the other three seasons became nature books about our tree.

1. This project will take a year to complete, but it is so cool to look back and see the changes! It is worth the long wait.

2. Take a photo every season with your chosen tree (your yard, at school, at a park, or in a forest - just make sure to use the same tree each time).

3. I loved having the children sit in a wagon - one at a time - and smiling for the camera. The wagon also became a great carrier of leaves, seed pods, and pumpkins.

4. Print out each photo for the seasons. Display on the refrigerator or bulletin board. Add every new season. When you get photos from all 4 seasons, tape them to cardstock and make a book with them. Now you can check out the seasons and your tree all the time!

5. Compare that tree. What changes do you see between seasons? How did you change over one year? Which is your favorite season? Why?

Isn't nature grand? I'm so glad that God created such a wonderful world for us to enjoy.

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Fresh Fall Leaves ~ Picture Book & KID KANDY

Fresh Fall Leaves
By Betsy Franco
Illustrated by Shari Halpern
(Scholastic Inc., 1994)

Fresh fall leaves are some of my favorite signs of the season. The crunch, the smell, and the dancing are magical as leaves drift away from trees and carpet our ground.

Fresh Fall Leaves, the book, is a simple story about kids enjoying leaves in the autumn. Paper cut and paint illustrations lend themselves very well to this picture book and offer glimpses of fall beauty.

Readers will get great ideas of fun things to do while reading Fresh Fall Leaves. I can't wait to see my own leaves fall!

KID KANDY:

Make Syrup Leaves

This is one of my favorite leaf making activities! It's messy and sticky but so much fun.

Materials: cardstock, scissors, marker, food coloring, light corn syrup, wet wash cloths, wax paper

1. Draw big leaf shapes on cardstock. Cut them out.

2. Pour little puddles of corn syrup on a leaf. Help your littles squeeze a few drops of red, yellow, and blue food coloring on top of the corn syrup.

3. Use fingers to smear, mix, and spread the sticky paint all over the leaf. Repeat with other leaves, using wash cloths to wipe some of the sticky away.

4. Put leaves on wax paper to dry. This may take several days if the weather is damp.

5. Look at your beautiful, shiny, colorful fall leaves!

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Red Leaf, Yellow Leaf

Red Leaf, Yellow Leaf
by Lois Ehlert (Scholastic Inc., 1991)

Red Leaf, Yellow Leaf is one of my all-time favorite seasonal books to read to and with children.

Why? The number one reason is the totally engaging illustrations. A combination of photography, still life, paper cut-outs, painting, and I don't know what else creates a captivating collage that tells the story.

What story? Ehlert masterfully tells the story of a sugar maple tree (hence the maple leaves on the front cover). This maple tree comes from a seed tossed by the winds in the woods.

Who tells the story? The narrator, a young child, loves her tree. (Or his tree - gender neutral.) She wants to tell the reader all about her tree.

What about science? The sugar maple life cycle is a part of the story. The other part of the story is how the tree arrives in the yard of the little girl. Helpful hints on planting live trees and ideas for documenting facts about live trees are included as a part of the story.

What else? Not only is the life cycle of a tree covered, but Ehlert shares the story of how a tree in the woods is processed, purchased, and transplanted to a yard.

Every time I read this book, I want a sugar maple tree. Each fall, I walk my neighborhood, enjoying the colorful leaves and helicopter seeds. Every spring I wonder how I can make a soon-to-be-giant sugar maple tree fit into my tiny yard.

I make due with reading Red Leaf, Yellow Leaf. And I walk the neighborhood.


Three favorite leaf activities (For the kids. Of course.):

1. Sugar maple leaf art. Cut large maple leaves from white construction paper. Working on a washable surface, pour small amounts of light corn syrup on a leaf shape. Help drop a few drops of red and yellow food coloring on the syrup. Using fingers, spread and mix the syrup and food coloring until the leaf is covered. Let dry. You will have shiny colorful fall leaves.
P.S. Aprons and wet washcloths are helpful for this tasty activity.

2. Real leaf decorations. Go on a leaf walk. Gather beautiful specimens of brightly colored leaves. Take home. Layer between newspaper. Stack heavy books on top. Let dry until completely dry. Check every few days or so. Pull out the leaves. Decorate the house, table tops, windows, and everywhere else you want to display fall beauty.

3. Make a leaf mountain. Rake your own or the neighbor's leaves. Make a leaf mountain. Jump into it. Have a leaf battle. Hide each other. Burrow beneath the leaves. Rake into a pile and repeat.
Tip: I have been known to approach neighbors who have plenty of leaves and ask if I can take some of their leaves. They are delighted to share.