A wonderful nonfiction picture book that encourages elementary age school children to become young scientists.
The illustrations are colorful and fun but the biggest value of the book is the amount of information crammed into its short length. Readers not only learn about the types, habitats, and daily lives of bees but they are contrasted with many different types of insects. Children will learn about the likenesses and differences as well as learning about both bees and insects.
The author includes the scientific names for each and provides an interactive activity for matching pictures with information. They are also given a bee survey chart that they might complete by exploring bees in their own neighborhood.
A wonderful resource for parents and teachers to place in their home or school libraries.
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Publisher’s Book Summary: Snail and Worm are having a dispute. It’s causing quite a ruckus in their home. Many of the other inhabitants of the garden are affected by their fight. Will they be able to put their differences aside when they learn the garden’s existence is threatened?
An earthworm churns away in the garden doing his job. He disturbs the snail, the bees, and the butterflies. Each of the garden creatures wants to get his job done, but they cannot seem to get out of each other’s way. When a monster appears, they scatter until the danger is gone.
Will the garden’s inhabitants learn to work as a team for the benefit of all? Is it possible to overcome individual differences for their mutual benefit?
This adorable picture book speaks volumes about friendship, cooperation, teamwork, and empathy for all kinds of life. Endearing characters and large text create appeal for the youngest audience as well as a beginning reader.
Highly recommended for preschoolers and elementary school age readers. A perfect choice to welcome the Spring season.
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Publisher’s Synopsis: Every morning at seven o’ three, I wake up just in time to watch Grandpa play with Bizzy Bzzz the Bee.
Bizzy Bzzz the Bee and Grandpa’s Tea is reading made fun. Told through the eyes of a child, this is an entertaining story about a boy who gets a good laugh watching Grandpa’s encounter with a bee every morning while trying to enjoy his cup of tea. Teetering on the edge of frustration, Grandpa has a heightened escalation with Bizzy.
The boy comes up with a quick solution that allows Grandpa to enjoy his morning tea and lets Bizzy stay. It’s safe to say, the Grandson saved the day. This story has playful rhyme, problem solving, and is sure to put a smile on faces of children every time.
Bizzy Bzzz zips around Grandpa’s head three times and makes him dizzy. It’s funny when his eyes cross. He looks so silly.
Travis Peagler is a unique individual, being the youngest of seven kids, raised partially in low-income apartments on the East side of Dayton, Ohio, until the age of nine. Humble beginnings growing up in a somewhat multi-racial neighborhood gave Travis an inimitable perspective on life at an incredibly young age.
His imagination has always been his outlet. Thinking back to grade-school when he was in an uncomfortable situation or when he didn’t handle conflict well, Travis would always replay the scene again in his mind where things played out the way he wished. An innate defense mechanism, he assumes, which led to the discovery of his extraordinary talent.
Be sure to leave Travis a book review. You also can keep up with Travis for future promotions, giveaways, and etc., at the following:
Grandpa’s trouble with a pesky bee is narrated by his clever, young grandson. Every morning, Grandpa sits on the porch with his dog, Sparks, and his tea. He repeats the scenario every evening. Poor Grandpa is troubled by a pesky bee. His grandson decides to do something about the pesky visitor. One evening the boy comes up with an ingenious solution and saves the day.
This short multicultural rhyming picture book teaches children kindness and empathy toward others. It is a touching tale of a loving Christian boy and his grandpa. Elementary grade readers will chuckle at the bee’s antics and the boy’s efforts to save the day. Recommended as a bedtime story or family read-aloud.
GIVEAWAY
Enter for a chance to win a copy of Bizzy Bzzz the Bee and Grandpa’s Tea and a $100 Visa gift card!
One (1) grand prize winner receives:
A copy of Bizzy Bzzz the Bee and Grandpa’s Tea
A $100 Visa gift card
Six (6) winners receive:
A copy of Bizzy Bzzz the Bee and Grandpa’s Tea
The giveaway begins May 24, 2021, at 12:01 A.M. MT and ends June 24, 2021, at 11:59 P.M. MT.
The Queen Who Banished Bugs, A Tale of Bees, Butterflies, Ants, and Other Pollinators
Written by Ferris Kelly Robinson
Illustrated by Mary Ferris Kelly
King Claude and Queen Libertine rule the kingdom of Dunce. The queen is overbearing and obstinate. King Claude spends his days trying to appease her. One day a bee lands on her heel. The queen immediately kills it. That does not appease her anger. Queen Libertine banishes every insect in the kingdom. That effectively destroys the food chain. Pollination ceases and crops die. The animals in the kingdom have no food.
The king becomes desperate. He decides to defy the queen. Claude plants a tiny seed that grows into milkweed. Other types of flowers follow. Pollinators return to the kingdom. The king tutors his queen on the importance of pollinators to ensure the food supply of their kingdom.
The author provides an explanation of how pollination works at the end of the tale. Robinson adds a link to resources for learning more about the subject.
This story is written in rhyme. The illustrator provides line drawings with color interspersed throughout the story. I would consider this book more of an early chapter book than a picture book. While it could be a read-aloud for younger children, it will appeal more to readers in the five to eight age range or as a beginning reader.
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A, Bee, See: Who are our Pollinators and Why are They in Trouble?
Written by Kenneth Eade
Photographs by Valentine Eade
The author decided to write a children’s edition of his adult book. You might expect it to be written by a biologist, but Kenneth Eade is a lawyer with the vision to look ahead toward environmental responsibility. He begins by explaining the interdependence of plants and animals and then introduces the bee as our most important pollinator. Bees have been at work for more than one hundred million years. There are thousands of kinds of bees, but Eade concentrates on the most common types like the honey bee and the bumblebee, and how they accomplish their work. Most of us are aware of the bees work, but are less familiar with the fact that moths and bats pollinate plants at night. Did you know that bats pollinate three hundred kinds of fruit and cacti?
The reader will learn how the honeybee colony is organized into queen bee, workers and drones. Did you know that honeybees have five eyes that help them navigate with light, color and direction? For years I have been telling children to stand still when any type of bee flies near them. I felt vindicated that this is the right action. What I found really interesting is that worker bees have two stomachs, one for eating and one for storing the nectar they gather, They even have tiny bags on their hind legs for carrying the pollen to the hive. I was never aware of the processing bee that puts nectar into a honeycomb cell nor that she adds an enzyme that allows it to ripen and dry into honey. Such a perfect food for the bees which lasts for years and provides nutrition for humans as well.
Bees are endangered now because excessive land clearing depletes home-sites for bees as well as other animals. At the same time the wildflowers are disappearing. Many farmers treat their crops with pesticides that kill bees. Children can help by urging their parents to plant wildflowers in their gardens and writing to government representatives to make them aware of environmental concerns.
This book contains beautiful photographs and is well written. It belongs on the shelves of every elementary classroom. Younger children can learn a lot about plants, animals and the environment by using this book as a reference. Older children might use it as a starting point for more advanced study. This book is enlightening and informative for all ages.
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September 6, 2023
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