12 Great Kid’s Environmental Books
11 Great Kid’s Environmental Books
We did a round-up of some of the best eco-conscious books for kids. Whether it’s books about nature, or with characters living in nature or ways to be an eco-warrior, these books will inspire young nature lovers everywhere.
Why eco-conscious books are important
One of the greatest gifts we can give children is the understanding that we are all connected. From the ant that crawls across your table, to the bird that flaps its wings across the sky, to the rain that falls on the trees you walk under… As the naturalist John Muir said, “when we try to pick out anything by itself, we find it hitched to everything else in the universe.”
Children see all this at eye level. When they understand that our everyday choices affect the natural world, they speak the truths we need to remember. With nothing invested in big business or out dated practices, they are the future custodians our planet needs. With Conservationist and environmentalist Sir David Attenborough’s 100th birthday, it’s also the best opportunity to inspire children to become involved in the care and love of nature.
Get outside
Start by taking your children into nature – even a walk in your neighbourhood, park or the garden will do. Let them feel the healing power of being outside. Of sitting on the grass or in trees, of looking at flowers and plants and breathing in clean air. And expose them to the books and thought leaders guiding the way.
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Eco Babies Range Age 2 +
The Eco Babies range is a series of beautiful board books that introduce toddlers to various environmental issues. While it may seem too young – just start by introducing concepts like re-using and recycling as a natural way of life. Although topics like global warming are complicated, if children grow up with awareness, they will make protecting the environment a priority. Buy them here.
2. Let’s Go Outside
By Ekaterina Trukhan and Amy Pixton (Workman Publishing)
Age babies -2 years
This little book is an invitation to go outside and play in nature! Look up at the big blue sky. Splish in the water just like a fish. Take a walk and stretch like tall, tall trees. Act out the words while you read, talk about the things you see and feel. It’s so much fun and the bright pictures and minimal words encourage dialogic reading. Some city children grow up seeing nature as foreign or a little scary, this book encourages a playful sense of enjoying the outdoors.
Do you know the Indestructibles range of books for babies and toddlers? They are built for the way babies “read” -with their hands and mouths. So they’re rip proof (made of ultra-durable tightly-woven material), light weight and waterproof. They can be chewed on, drooled on, and even washed! One of the best early literacy reading ranges.
3. David Attenborough
Written by Maria Isabel Sanchez Vegara
Discover the life of David Attenborough, the inspiring broadcaster and conservationist, at a landmark moment as the world celebrates his 100th birthday, in this book from the critically acclaimed, multimillion‑copy bestselling Little People, BIG DREAMS series.
4. Lift-the-flap Questions and Answers about Recycling and Rubbish
By Katie Daynes, Illustrated by Peter Donnelly (Usborne)
Age 4+
Usborne create beautiful books that explain concepts clearly and interestingly. This is a thought-provoking overview of what happens to our waste, from stinking problems and hi-tech sorting systems to the importance of making less rubbish in the first place. It’s an eye opener to consider just how much waste we create in a day. Includes top tips on how we can reduce and re-use. Buy it here.
5. Little Turtle and the Sea
By
Age 3-6
This beautiful picture book starts right at the beginning of Little Turtle’s life as she pushes out of her egg and pulls herself across the beach to the sea. We follow her life story as she swims around the ocean making friends wherever she goes. Her heart-warming smile will capture children’s hearts.
Then comes the day the ocean starts to change and Little Turtle comes face to face with her first plastic bag. She tries to make friends but is met with eerie silence. From there things get worse until she’s caught in a fisherman’s discarded net. The story ends well with a rescue by kind conservationists but the plight of sea creatures living in rubbish is clearly made.
6. The Extraordinary Book that Eats Itself
By Susan Hayes and Penelope Arlon, illustrated by Pintachen (Egmont)
Age 7+
Now this is an eco-project book that puts its message to practice. You’re invited to cut up, fold, tear, and reuse every single page— even the cover—to make all sorts of projects. Whether it’s making a planter, seed writing paper or creating eco-badges and eco-friendly glue all the activities teach that we can reduce, reuse and recycle. There are also eco-quizzes and nature games, growing projects, and organic recipes, bug hotels, and plastic-free diaries. The perfect gift book to keep kids busy and inspire them to see the many small and fun ways they can make a difference to environmental issues.
7. The Extraordinary Gardener
By Sam Boughton (TATE)
Age 3-8
In Joe’s real life, living in an apartment block in the city, the colours are drab and everything is rather ordinary. But in Joe’s imagination, his world is filled with beauty and colour and wild plants that reach up to the sky. What happens when Joe decides to plant a seed one day turns his world into an extraordinary delight.
The best part is that anyone can experience Joe’s magic and children will be inspired to plant their own gardens. Teach them about the concepts of ordinary and extraordinary as well as the gardening terms and get them planting their own little seeds.
In lockdown we saw people all over the world standing on their balcony’s and this makes the idea of growing a garden wherever you live, all the more real. The lesson about the importance of nature is mixed with the truth that we can achieve whatever we set our minds to.
Available from all good books stores and David Krut books.
8. The Big Book of Bugs and The Big Book of the Blue
9. Be Plastic Clever
By Amy and Ella Meek (DK Children)
Age 10 +
Join teenage activists Amy and Ella Meek on their mission to rid the world of single-use plastics in this practical book, perfect for budding eco-warriors.
Be Plastic Clever will teach young activists about the dangers of plastic pollution and climate change, but also help them find their activist voice. Sisters Amy and Ella founded Kids Against Plastic with the goal of ridding UK supermarkets of single-use plastic bottles. Their campaign has blossomed – together they’ve picked up more than 60,000 pieces of single-use plastic litter, performed their own TedX talk, and gathered together a team of kids across the UK to help them tackle the problem. They’ve spoken at the Houses of Parliament and the UN, and created the #BePlasticClever campaign to encourage schools, businesses, and festivals to be mindful of their plastic use. All on top of being school students.
The facts are fascinating no matter your age – who knew, for example, that a plastic bottle left in the sun leaches chemicals into the water? Or that putting fleeces in the washing machine flushes thousands of tiny microplastics into our rivers? Engaging images, flow charts and conversations with specialists bring the facts alive. The perfect book for anyone wanting to learn more and make a difference.
Watch their TedX talk here. And find out more about their projects and how you can do your bit.
10.What’s Inside A Flower
By Rachel Ignotofsky (Crown Books for Young Readers)
Ages 5-9
From the creator of the New York Times bestseller Women in Science, comes a new nonfiction picture book series ready to grow young scientists by nurturing their curiosity about the natural world–starting with what’s inside a flower. Budding backyard scientists can start exploring their world with this stunning introduction to these flowery show-stoppers–from seeds to roots to blooms. Learning how flowers grow gives kids beautiful building blocks of science and inquiry. Rachel Ignotofsky’s gorgoues illustrations and engaging, informative text will delight and inform both children and adults about flowers. Buy it here.
11. Save The Planet
By Alice James, Jerome Martin, Eddie Reynolds, Rose Hall, Darran Stobbart, Lan Cook and Tom Mumbray (Usborne)
Age 7+
Filled with questions that make you think about new and exciting discoveries about our planet and ways we can save her. With hints of biomimicry (the study of how we can learn from nature) the book poses question such as: Could plastic-eating bacteria help reduce waste? Can a river be given human rights? Could we generate all the power we need from the sun and the wind? How do woolly sweaters help penguins in peril? Would building a giant sunshade in space stop the world from overheating? This is perfect for curious minds and really gives hope and positivity to children feeling overwhelmed with the problem the world faces.
12. Diary of a Young Naturalist
By Dara McAnulty (Ebury Publishing or Little Toller Books)
Age 12+ (Young Adult)
This true diary written by Dara McAnulty, a fifteen year old boy with Asperger’s, is profoundly moving. Written in diary format, the book is both an ode to the beauty of nature and an insight into living with autism. Despite the bullying and the social isolation this can bring, he finds his condition a gift he wouldn’t change, because it has given him such a rich immersion in the world of nature, and increasingly, activism on behalf of the planet.
At times it’s hard to believe a teen wrote this as he skilfully weaves nature, folklore, Irish language and history together while discussing his love and need for nature. It will awaken teen readers to the power of the natural world and also inspire them to take action. Winner of the 2020 Wainwright prize for nature writing. Buy it here or here.
And one for the parents…
The Sustainable(ish) Guide to Green Parenting
By Jen Gale (Green Tree Publishers)
It can feel overwhelming to start running a more eco-conscious household when you are just managing to get the kids fed and schooled most days. The best thing about this book is that author Jen Gale is a parent like you, who is just trying to do her best. She believes in no preaching, judgement or guilt.
She offers simple, do-able tips and suggestions to pick and choose from and her encouraging and relatable tone makes her feel like a good friend sharing what worked for her. I learnt so much and have already started making little changes to our household habits and practices. It’s up to you to decide which of the many practical solutions for making lifestyle changes best suit your family. Follow her on Face Book for updates on her ‘make, do and mend life.’
Got any favourite conservation books for children to share with us? Share them here.
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