A Swarm of Bug Books at Big Universe

Big Universe has children's picture books about ladybugs, cicadas, bees, crickets and more.

Summer is on its way and like it or not, so are the bugs. Most adults have lost their fascination with insects and other creepy-crawlies, but don’t underestimate the power of a six-legger to keep a child occupied.

I recently attended a high school track meet – one that lasted a long time. There was a delay in the action, so I watched a charming little girl play nearby. She was not holding an electronic device or the latest plastic plaything from Toys R Us. Nope. That 3-year-old was playing happily with a ladybug. It occupied her for THREE HOURS!

She did not whine to go home. She did not beg for candy. Nor did she pull a “Grace Van Cutsem,” when the crowd cheered loudly for the relay runners on the track. She simply let her ladybug crawl up one arm and down the next, making a bug-friendly bridge with her chubby, but gentle, index fingers.

I am inclined to think she would enjoy the two online picture books about ladybugs that Big Universe offers. The website has an amazing assortment of fact-filled bug books for junior entomologists. The pictures are exquisite, so pre-readers can enjoy the books on their own or alongside a grownup.

The Big Universe Author Tool provides another way for kids to process what they find in their own backyard. They can write about the bugs they discover in the flowerpots on their deck or crawling in the lawn. The writing tool can be used to create a field notebook to record life cycles, feeding habits and other observations. The website’s “Insect” clipart lets children illustrate their writing easily.

Reading bug books, going on a scientific bug hunt, and writing about it on a computer are a fun combo to ward off summer setback – or “brain drain.” (Experts say reading a minimum of six books is enough to keep children from losing literacy gains made during the previous school year.) The physical activity will keep their bodies healthy, too.

Children’s Books About Bugs

• Don’t Squash That Bug! The Curious Kid’s Guide to Insects    
• The Life Cycle of a Bee
• Fireflies
• Beetles
• Crickets
• Aphids
• Grasshoppers
• Bugs for Lunch
• Dragonflies
• Creeping Crawlers
• Cicadas
• Smelly Stink Bugs
• Hungry Cockroaches
• Damselflies
• The Life Cycle of a Butterfly
• Cockroaches
• Earwigs
• Butterflies
• Moths
• Leaping Grasshoppers
• Ants
• World of Insects: Bumblebees
• Stink Bugs
• Praying Mantises
• Why Animals Live in Webs
• Why Animals Live in Hives
• Goliath Beetle
• Mosquitoes
• Honey Bees
• Ladybugs
• The Life Cycle of a Ladybug
• Bug Buzz (Animated)
• On One Flower: Butterflies, Ticks and a Few More Icks
• Wings of Change

Other BU Blogs About Summer Reading:

Summer Reading Lists: Cats, Dogs and Horses

Batter Up! Baseball Stories for Summer Reading

The ABCs of Car Games: Part One

The ABCs of Car Games: Part Two

The ABCs of Car Games: Part Three

Fight Summer Setback with Free Books

Top 10 List: Golden Opportunities of Summer

Children, Books and Summer Vacation

Reading in the Summer

Got an Arts and Crafts Kid? Try a Rourke Book

My dad used to call my sister “Miss Fingers,” because she was always touching things. I now know that she was a tactile learner – driven by curiosity and the desire to understand and experience objects up close and in person.

Today she is a renaissance woman of many talents: school teacher, mother, tennis whiz, quilter, seamstress, great cook, scrapbooker and home decorator extraordinaire.

My youngest daughter takes after her creative aunt. When she was really little, I would have my “Miss Fingers” roll up her hands in the front of her shirt, when we walked through stores with lots of breakables. She just could not resist “looking at” all the pretty things with her busy little digits.

She now spends her free time cutting, pasting, gluing, stringing and knitting things together. Her collages cover her bedroom walls, and her friends have been the recipients of homemade cards, picture frames, scarves, jewelry and one-of-a-kind posters.

If you have a child with a hunger for hobbies, check out the craft series by Big Universe’s partner, Rourke Publishing. Written by Tracy Maurer, these well-illustrated books are aimed at the Grade 3-6 crowd. Following the directions for each project strengthens reading comprehension skills and vocabulary – while fostering artistic creativity.

• “Paper Crafts with Pizzazz”
• “Scrapbook Starters”
• “Fabulous Fashion Crafts”
•  “Rock Your Room with Crafts”
• “Fingernail Art”
•  “Cupcakes, Cookies and Cakes”

Paula Willey of the Baltimore County Public Library in Towson, Md., reviewed this series for the November 2009 issue of School Library Journal. Here is what she had to say:

“The crafts in these cheery books are not too hard, but not so simple as to be boring, and are made with a minimum of specialty supplies. Lively, upbeat covers feature photos of regular girls with big smiles. Inside, the subject of each book is first put into context and then illustrated with seven to eight crafts. There is an emphasis on safety and on getting permission and on responsibility. Many projects incorporate reuse of household items that might otherwise be discarded (worn-out jeans, buttons, jars, newspapers).”

 Rourke Publishing also offers an “Explore and Draw” series, which would have been up my other daughter’s alley when she was younger – a combination of reading and sketching! Titles include:

• “Horses”       
• “Dinosaurs”
• “Cars”
• “Monster Trucks”
•  “Spacecrafts”
• “Wizards, Witches and Dragons”
•  “Airplanes”
• “Knights and Castles”

Update: (Sept. 24, 2010) While exploring online, I found another superb crafts book by Kathy Ross, a teacher and nursery school program director with more than 30 years of experience on the front lines. “Crafts for Kids Who are Learning About Weather” caught my eye because Jan Barger’s illustrations are simply darling. The pair also has written a crafts book titled “Crafts for Kids Who are Learning About Community Workers.” Ross has several dozen additional crafts book titles under her belt with other illustrators.

Update: (Oct. 4, 2010) Big Universe has added the book “Crafty Kids ” to its online library shelf. Written by Char Benjamin, this Teacher Created Materials book helps early readers expand their vocabulary and explore mathematical principles (patterns) in a tangible way – making crafts for a school sale.

Update: (March 10, 2011) It’s National Craft Month, and I found a good article by Sherri Osborn at About.com with loads of craft tutorial links to explore with your children.