Signs of the Seasons

Brightly colored, kid-friendly photos illustrate this series introducing the seasons; information includes the change in amount of daylight, effects on living things, typical weather, and other signs of the seasons. Suggestions for observation, questions for critical thinking, and seasonal “treasure hunts” are highlights of the books.

[Starred review.] The titles of these books in the Signs of the Seasons series ask good questions, and then answer them with vivid illustrations, explicit language and projects/experiments to try on almost every page. In each book you will find a calendar identifying the dates which typically begin each season. A temperature activity and chart is also included showing some of the typical temperatures for the season. In addition to the text narrative, interesting factoids relating to the season appear on each double page spread. The “Science Lab” towards the back of each book includes further activities and a “Treasure Hunt” relating to each season. Each title in the series includes a table of contents, an index, a glossary of “science words” (with phonetic pronunciations) and recommended books for further reading. Diverse groups of children and their parents are shown in illustrations in each of the books. The first pages of Summer identify the season on the calendar and talk about the weather including any extremes to be encountered; there’s a wonderful picture of a summer thunderstorm. Illustrations show typical summer activities; children and their parents are shown camping, harvesting vegetables and playing. They are joined by squirrels, birds, bees and other insects in vivid color displays. The factoids on each double page spread appear on bright yellow ‘suns.’ Page numbers are encircled by colorful flowers. In Fall, a clock activity emphasizes the shortening of days. Weather includes frosty mornings and changing leaves. Parents and children are shown raking and playing in the leaves. A good transition is made from a discussion about acorns to the squirrels that gather them and stockpile food in the fall. Pumpkins enclose the factoids and leaves mark the page numbers. In Winter we are greeted by a snowy raccoon. The clock activity shows how short the days have become. Extremes of snowy weather are shown as well as fun activities in the snow. Trees are discussed in their altered states, offering an appropriate transition to evergreen trees. Animals and birds, burrowing and enduring the cold months are viewed and considered. Snowflake factoids and evergreen page numbers complete the tableau. In Spring there are lots of baby animals and birds; we see some interesting views of animal parenting. Rainy weather with mud puddles are featured and some sunny days for planting seeds. The clock and calendar activities emphasize the longer warmer days. Tan sun-shapes enclose factoids; tulips mark the pages. Appropriate for preschool through third or fourth grade, these books could be read aloud to the younger groups and read by the older children themselves. Almost each section in the table of contents could be used as a separate unit dealing with some aspect of the season: climate, calendar, animal behavior, plant life, etc. making them very useful in curriculum preparation and lesson planning for science.

This series highlights salient aspects of each season with descriptive text and a pleasant array of photos: colorful leaves, animals in snow, green buds, and bright blue skies… the books are appropriate introductions for the targeted age group. Suggested activities in each volume, such as journaling what time of day it gets dark, logging daily temperatures, collecting treasure-hunt items from nature, and measuring levels of precipitation, encourage observation, inference, experimentation, and practice of key scientific methodology concepts.