Fun With Nature (Take Along Guides)

Update 8/2018: I stand by my review. This book has been awesome! Kiddo is almost 3 now, and we still regularly pull this one off the shelf and he will pour over it. It inspires him to ask soany questions and get interested in how things grow and work. This is also a frequently requested bedtime book when we are low on new library books. We've also brought this out with us a time or two and used it to look up things we've found and seen and it's been pretty useful. This is one of my favorite children's books out of our own massive personal library. This would also make a fantastic gift for the young nature enthusiast. Six books in one from this series, great value for the money. Cover is high quality, old school textbook thick (but not as large or heavy, easily fits in my toddler's backpack) and the pages are thick and shiny, very high quality. I've included some photos to help you decide on if this is the book for you. While I wish that there was more actual content included in this book, this is a great backyard guide for the young explorer to cover a majority of topics one may find on their local hikes, camping, or backyard trips and so I couldn't knock a star for that. This would pair beautifully with more comprehensive guides to local insects, wildlife, or plants for example. I bought this book to give to a 2.5 year old who's recently become interested in earth science for his Easter basket (will update back after he receives it and uses it). Each section is wonderfully outlined and easy to read through for both child and parent, including different life stages of the plant/animal, where to find these things, and what they should look like. Although the images aren't real photographs and are instead high quality drawings of habitats and animals, they are highly attractive. I imagine an older child could get just as much out of this book as the younger child, especially since this book includes room for scrapbooking artifacts, drawing space, or photos after each topic as well as a solid activity to get the child involved in the activities. Some of the suggested activities are classics I did as a child in Indian Princesses/Guides, and other activities are new to me. I'm going to really enjoy going through this with my son, and I know that he's going to love the animal topics especially. I'm excited to eventually acquire the next volume in the series, More Fun with Nature, which includes five more volumes of practical, nature study books. I did find it kind of funny though that one of the more rare and deadliest lizards in the United States was included in this book, the Gila Monster. As we used to live in an area where this creature inhabited, I would highly advise someone not to encourage their child to approach this animal if they actually see it, but I still find it cool that it's included. Although more common species would be of more benefit to be included in this volume (I guess if you brought this book the zoo it may be more beneficial as you might see a Gila there). I saw a lot of reviews giving this book to an older child, but I wanted to include my review because I think this is totally suitable for the preschooler/toddler who's starting to understand and get interested in the outside world around them.

I bought this book along with Carson Adventure Pak Containing 5x30 Binocular, Lensatic Compass, Flashlight, & Whistle/Thermometer so that we could start bird-watching and taking nature walks as a family. This book does not have much on birds, but the companion book Birds, Nests & Eggs (Take-Along Guides) can be purchased separately for bird watching. Although this book is hardbound and heavy, it is still compact enough to insert into a backpack and take along on a nature walk or hike. This book is actually a compilation of six different books: two written by Mel Boring, three written by Diane L. Burns, and one written by Leslie Dendy. Illustrations for all six books by Linda Garrow. We have already completed the "Make a Pinecone Snackbar" activity, and my daughter wants to complete the "Make a Toad House" activity next. This book is great and will keep children and adults entertained as a family for some time. I like the scrapbook that is provided at the end of each book for notes and observations. FIVE STARS!! Here is a break-down of the book: Caterpillars, Bugs and Butterflies (Mel Boring) - Introduction, a sub-section on Caterpillars, a sub-section on Bugs, a sub-section on Butterflies and Moths, an activity at the end of each sub-section, and a scrapbook at the end. Frogs, Toads and Turtles (Diane L. Burns) - Introduction, a sub-section on Frogs, a sub-section on Toads, a sub-section on Turtles, an activity at the end of each sub-section, and a scrapbook at the end. Snakes, Salamanders and Lizards (Diane L. Burns) - Introduction, a sub-section on Snakes, a sub-section on Salamanders, and a sub-section on Lizards, an activity at the end of each sub-section, and a scrapbook at the end. Rabbits, Squirrels and Chipmunks (Mel Boring) - Introduction, a sub-section on Rabbits, a sub-section on Squirrels, a sub-section on Chipmunks, two activities at the end of the Rabbits sub-section, one activity at the end of the Squirrels sub-section, two activities at the end of the Chipmunks sub-section, and a scrapbook at the end. Tracks, Scats and Signs (Leslie Dendy) - Introduction, a page on safety, a sub-section on The Forest, a sub-section on The Field, and a sub-section on The Pond, an activity at the end of each sub-section, and a scrapbook at the end. Trees, Leaves and Bark (Diane L. Burns) - Introduction, 16 sub-sections on various trees, four activities, and a scrapbook at the end.

Just received this book today and we already love it! I spent a lot of time looking for a nutare book like this that my son (2.5yr old) could enjoy now and for years to come. He loves animals and recently became semi obsessed with animal tracks so I was originally looking at just the scat, tracks and signs book but with this book you get that and so much more! We also went ahead and ordered the More fun with nature book at the same time so now we have almost all of this series of books in just two beautifully bound hard cover books. I had wanted more of a true field guide but this is a great start with beautiful illustrations, great for children! I included photos so you can see examples of the layout. Each page is for one animal and gives you a brief description; where they live, what they eat, etc. it is certainly Not comprehensive but it’s a nice reference for us to have at home. It also has 1-2 cute activities at the end of each section, I would say preschool and elementary aged students would enjoy like planting a tree from pine cone seeds or a turtle paper weight craft.

Exactly as described. While the book is great for all ages, it is best suitable for PreK to 6th. We rented it so many times, I thought best to purchase it as our family and bookshelf grew! All the books in the series are excellent and I highly recommend! Thank you for exceptional quality, timely shipping and affordable pricing. Will continue to order books through your store!

We already owned Birds, Nests, and Eggs from this series and had the others from the series on our wish list. I was very pleasantly surprised to find this gem which has several books from the series packed into one volume for less than half the price of buying all the single editions, and in hardcover no less! We bought both this one and its sister book More Fun With Nature, but the boys loved this most. With lots of accurate pictures and descriptions of lizards, frogs, bugs, squirrels, and (sigh) yes, hilarious scat (boys), it has proven a great educational tool and just a plain ol’ interesting book to look through. Easy little projects interspersed throughout are a fun bonus.

I bought this book for my granddaughter, to go with a pair of binoculars. I wished I'd bought it sooner as I didn't have time to read through the entire book myself, which I enjoyed as much as I hope she will. I can foresee many hours of enjoyment from this, with it's many projects. I ordered this, along with "Birds, Nests & Eggs" for another grandchild & I much preferred "Fun With Nature" to the other.

I bought this book as a beginning nature reference guide for my 3 1/2 year old son who loves nature walks and just discovering science things in our suburban neighborhood backyard. I'm a fairly picky children's book buyer, and I really love this book. The illustrations are beautiful and detailed, the level is simple enough to read to my preschooler, and yet detailed enough to still be used with an older child (I would say up to 11 years old), and there are nice nature project ideas at the end of each chapter that we actually DID! I really like how the information is divided into different sections by topics (Caterpillars, Bugs, Salamanders, Trees, Scats, etc) for easy reference. The only thing I would note is that it is too heavy to put in his little nature backpack, so it is more of a 'home' book.

This book is one of a series that helps kids look a little more closely at the animals, insects and nature in general around us. Each section has the where's, why's and what's of dozens of animals, trees and foliage, insects, small creatures and lizards. The ones in this book will most likely be encountered by children in their daily outdoor activity. This particular book is a good one to start with, especially with younger children. The other books expand on one chapter and have many more examples of their particular subject. For instantance, in CATERPILLARS, BUGS AND BUTTERFLIES, there are more examples of each catagory. I especially like that there is a place after each chapter for your child to put their own discoveries, in the form of drawings, photos, poems or stories of their adventures. Book was well packed with another book and arrived on time.