April 1st- May 10th
With Smokey Bear turning 80 this year, we can expect a lot of great activities, events, and ways to help celebrate. This Spring, we are participating in the Smokey Bear Reading Challenge! This challenge is geared for kids 4-10, but all ages are welcome! The goal is to engage youth to read and learn about wildfire prevention, forests, and natural resource careers while exploring their local environment!
Participating is simple:
Just log in to readsquared with your summer reading username and password (if you need help, feel free to come into the library, call (203) 312-5682 or email childrenslibrarian@newfairfieldlibrary.org). Log 3 books to earn a small prize! If you want to learn about wildfires and the environment in honor of his birthday, you can check out the reading list below.
The Natural Inquirer provides free, peer-reviewed science for individuals of all ages. The Natural Inquirer Reader Series provides early readers with the opportunity to learn about scientists, what they do, and their research. These are a great way to get young learners excited about science and scientific careers! Readers are available free online or in print.
Some children are unaware that in order to reduce tree hazards, protect other trees, or to get wood, it is necessary to cut trees. So the recently published book “Why Would Anyone Cut a Tree Down?” is intended to raise awareness of the issue. The book, which primarily targets first to third grade students, also features tips for planting a new tree. Available free online.
Learn all about wildfires—how they happen, why they're important, and when they're dangerous—in this fascinating level 3 reader. It's sure to ignite your interest, with color photographs, interesting facts, and more.
Filled with exciting pictures, a riveting book for young readers follows the smokejumpers, a group of highly trained airborne firefighters, as they parachute into remote areas to stop wildland and forest fires, rescuing our environment from devastation and saving lives.
Three intrepid young female explorers set out to conquer the outdoors in their local forest, enjoying the process in their own different ways. They get lost and use maps to find their way. They draw wildlife, spot deer tracks, and see a deer before it startles and disappears, all before they finally and joyfully reach their destination.
What do scientists do all day? Find out in this beautifully illustrated book that features more than 100 scientists at work. Little ones can explore 14 different colorful scenes, turning the page after each to learn about 8 special scientists you will find there.
This captivating book explores the real connection and communication that runs underground between trees in the forest. The well-researched details about trees' own social network will help readers see that the natural world's survival depends on staying connected and helping others―just like us!
Join the Earth Patrol! Written to help parents begin conversations with their children about a challenging and important topic, “Something Happened to Our Planet” describes the narrator’s efforts to help the planet with her friends, by advocating for reusable plates at her school. This book will inspire kids to make a difference in their own schools and communities.
Because of an acorn, a tree grows, a bird nests, a seed becomes a flower. Enchanting die cuts illustrate the vital connections between the layers of an ecosystem in this magical book. Wander down the forest path to learn how every tree, flower, plant, and animal connect to one another in spiraling circles of life. An acorn is just the beginning.
Ernestine is beyond excited to go camping. She follows the packing list carefully (new sleeping bag! new flashlight! special trail mix made with Dad!) so she knows she is ready when the weekend arrives. But she quickly realizes that nothing could have prepared her for how hard it is to set up a tent, never mind fall asleep in it, or that swimming in a lake means that there will be fish—eep! Will Ernestine be able to enjoy the wilderness, or will it prove to be a bit too far out of her comfort zone?
Rodney is that kid who just can’t sit still. He's inside, but he wants to be outside. Outside is where Rodney always wants to be. Between school and home, there is a park. He knows all about that park. It’s that triangle-shaped place with the yellow grass and two benches where grown-ups sit around all day. Besides, his momma said to stay away from that park. When Rodney finally gets a chance to go to a real park, with plenty of room to run and climb and shout, and to just be himself, he will never be the same.
When forest fires blaze, the airplanes at Nif-C spring into action! Some swoop low to spray water on the flames. Others drop bright red fire retardant. Little Smokey hasn't quite figured out her job yet, but she wants to help. . . . And when a fire like no other flares up—a fire that none of the other planes can control—it's Smokey's turn to show what she's made of.
The “Over and Under” book series by Kate Messner & Christopher Silas Neal includes the books “Over and Under the Snow”, “Up in the Garden and Down in the Dirt,” “Over and Under the Pond,” and several more. Each book takes readers on a journey to explore a new area.
After a hard rain douses the family fire, a brave young boy sets out to search for more fire to bring home before the cold season sets in. Along the way, he’ll face many challenges, from perilous mountains to fearsome predators to raging rivers, and find something wholly unexpected: a friend.
At the edge of the forest a spider spins her web, while nearby, a hummingbird uses strands of spider silk to build her nest. These are just two of the many animals who live side by side, sharing the resources they need to construct homes, traps, or places to store food. The earthy exploration culminates in a breathtaking final spread showing all the neighborwood creatures together.
This nonfiction book describes the main environmental features of the prairie and the types of animals that live there, including rattlesnakes, burrowing owls, and American bison.
An ordinary subway trip is transformed when a young boy happens upon a book about redwood forests. As he reads the information unfolds, and with each new bit of knowledge, he travels―all the way to California to climb into the redwood canopy. Crammed with interesting and accurate information about these great natural wonders, Jason Chin's first book is innovative nonfiction set within a strong and beautiful picture storybook.
This comprehensive and beautifully illustrated introduction to trees and the important role they play is part of the essential “Nature All Around” series. The book first explores the parts of trees, their life cycles, the difference between deciduous and evergreen trees, leaf types and the processes of photosynthesis and respiration. Then it takes readers through a year in the life cycle of trees, describing what happens during each of the four seasons.
CJ thinks that what his Uncle Ryan does for a living as a wildfire fighter is all fun and games—hiking up steep mountains, camping out under the stars, not to mention the excitement of fighting a forest fire! But when a huge fire is burning close to CJ's house and he can see, hear, and smell the raging fire, he begins to understand how dangerous his uncle's job really is.
A young girl and her family go hiking up a nearby mountain for the very first time. As they climb up and up the path, they see everything from a friendly toad to a prickly porcupine, tall leafy trees to tiny red berries. With simple, lyrical text and bright illustrations that jump off the page, “Hiking Day” brings the joys of spending an afternoon outdoors to life.
Natural Inquirer offers over 250 cards profiling scientists, engineers, and other Forest Service careers. Learn about what they do every day, how they got interested in their careers, and some of their most interesting experiences. All cards are free to order or download.
Natural Inquirer Investi-gators are free science journals written for upper elementary students. Investigators cover a variety of scientific topics, like animals and ecosystems of the Southwest or climate change. Copies are free to order or download.
Young nature enthusiasts will learn these and many other fascinating facts about the wonderful world of trees in “Treecology.” This fun and interactive resource includes plentiful full-color photos and drawings and clear, kid-friendly discussions of tree structures, families, and foods; the interaction between trees and the wildlife that depend on them; tree and forestrelated jobs and preservation; and much more
When she’s sent to spend the summer with her grandparents in northern Minnesota while her sister heals, Maia discovers that her anxieties and demons are intent on following her wherever she goes . . . unless she can figure out how to overcome them. But what if she can’t? But Maia will soon learn that nature is a powerful teacher, and sometimes our greatest strengths show themselves when we have to be there for someone else.
Readers will learn about the ecological impacts of wildfires, the ins and outs of fire science, cutting-edge technology used to track wildfires and predict fire behavior, and about the impressive skill, survival tactics, and bravery required to control a wildfire.
This book explores how wildfires start, how they spread, and how researchers are studying wildfires in order to keep people safe. The book includes a hands-on activity, a timeline, photos, diagrams―and explains how specially trained firefighters fight the flames. Enjoy surprising TRUE facts that will shock and amaze you!
This entry in the "First Reports" series describes the climate, landscape features, plants and animals, and human activity that are found on grasslands. The discussion begins with what happens on grasslands.
Formatted as questions and answers, this book provides information about forest fires and how they occur.
This book gives instructions for exploring different aspects of nature by recognizing and interpreting a variety of clues and signs.
Natural Inquirer offers over 250 cards profiling scientists, engineers, and other Forest Service careers. Learn about what they do every day, how they got interested in their careers, and some of their most interesting experiences. All cards are free to order or download.
Natural Inquirer currently offers 26 journals and 26 monographs on a range of scientific topics, like wildfire, freshwater, caves, pollinators, and more. Based on peer-reviewed Forest Service research, each journal and monograph follows the format of a scientific paper and is written for middle and high school audiences. All journals and monographs are free to order or download.
Every summer, wildfires spread through the forests of the western United States, threatening homes and entire communities in their paths. Hundreds of firefighters work tirelessly to control this extremely powerful and unpredictable force of nature. Despite the seemingly devastating effects of wildfires, they also play an essential role in forest ecosystems. For anyone who has ever been fascinated by the awesome power of fire or intrigued by the courageous and carefully coordinated efforts of firefighters,
What drives some people to stand in the path of a wall of flame? Who are these brave, visionary firefighters? This intimate look at the elite groups that fight wildfires explores the trials, tragedies, and triumphs of these courageous few as they battle wilderness blazes from Alaska to Maine. From the grueling training of a smokejumper class in Montana, through harrowing fights with some up-close-and-personal wildfires, to a group of inspired conservationists who use fire as a tool for preservation, Karen Magnuson Beil takes readers into the heart of one of nature’s most destructive and unpredictable forces: fire.
On a hot summer day in 1910 a teenage soldier assembled his rifle. A girl argued to save trees on a mountain homestead. A young man set out to fight fire. None knew that soon the many blazes burning across northern Idaho would blow up and send a wall of flame racing their way. Portraying a natural disaster that would dictate how the United States would fight wildfire in the 20th century, “The Big Burn” brings to life a turning point in fire science, forestry, and history.
On the afternoon of August 20, 1910, a battering ram of wind moved through the drought-stricken national forests of Washington, Idaho, and Montana, whipping the hundreds of small blazes burning across the forest floor into a roaring inferno that jumped from treetop to ridge as it raged, destroying towns and timber in the blink of an eye. Forest rangers had assembled nearly ten thousand men to fight the fires, but no living person had seen anything like those flames, and neither the rangers nor anyone else knew how to subdue them.
Get Out! is chockful of ideas to get families, classrooms, and groups outside learning about nature, experiencing the world in new ways, and taking a hands-on approach to the three Rs (reduce, reuse, recycle). Chapters on being a green consumer and green eater, as well as on choosing an issue and taking a stand, make for a well-rounded yet easy-to-use handbook for making a difference indoors and out. Open to any page to find something to do today.