It’s Nonfiction Picture Book Wednesday! 

There is something about a farm that is just a one stop shop when it comes to learning and observing nature. Fences, stalls and chicken coops might keep the animals safely in but they don’t keep the learning out! Baby animals. Food production. Farmyards. So many things to see. Many city kids get few opportunities to visit farms. But they are always interested in farm animals and love learning more about farm life. Books about the farm are always popular in my primary classroom.

When I discovered Real-size Farm Animals (DK Publishing 2013) at the public library, my family had just been to a farm and spent time with goats, pigs, horses, a donkey and many farm cats. All of these animals and many more are featured in this book.

This title profiles fourteen animals including the fox, the owl and our favourite, the farm cats! Many pages fold out to reveal life size animals or the true size of ‘parts’ of an animal. Each page has various drawings, photographs and headings to organize specific information. There is a fact box on each two page spread with three or four pieces of interesting facts about each animal. There is also a comparison box featuring the image of a four foot tall child next to the animal described.

Some interesting facts I learned:

• A jersey cow can provide up to 80 glasses of milk a day (6 gallons/20 litres)
• Only female ducks quack; male ducks make a whispery sound.
• Sheep have a split in their upper lip which helps them to collect their food when grazing.
• A donkey’s bray can be heard more than 2 miles/3 k.m. away
• There are more chickens in the world than any other type of bird!

There is a two page glossary of new words in the back and the book even comes with a pull out height chart to post on the wall. An ideal book about farm animals for preschool/early primary.

My students also love the Farm book – one of Scholastic’s Discover More titles. Farm animals are certainly featured in this book but there are also pages that describe how certain farm equipment works and details about food production such as orchards and grain silos.

These titles have many nonfiction features that make them ideal for independent reading in my Grade 2/3 classroom such as bright colourful photographs, lifecycle diagrams, a detailed glossary and an index. We have all of the Discover More titles in our nonfiction library.

Another beautiful title about life on the farm in Elisha Cooper’s Farm.

What a book! Details of what happens on a farm day in and day out. Who lives there? The farmers, the cattle, the chickens, countless cats, etc. What do we find? Barns, sheds, tractors, trucks, plenty of equipment . . . And what exactly happens? Enough great details to fill a book that you have to really settle into to finish reading. A great read aloud but also a great book to explore with a friend. Elisha Cooper‘s Farm is a must for the primary classroom.

My original goal was 60 nonfiction picture books for 2013. Progress: 45/60 complete

Thanks to Alyson from Kid Lit Frenzy for the inspiration to read and share more nonfiction picture books in 2013! Follow the link to Alyson’s blog to read about more nonfiction titles.