I’m finding it quite tricky at the moment to find any decent stretches of time to do something outdoors with my kids. So today we did something very easy and relaxing – took some books outside with a rug and read. Obviously you can choose any books, but I thought I’d stick with the theme of wildlife and nature and pick out all our books about the great outdoors and read a few of them to my pre-schooler son. So today we read nature books for kids outdoors!
This was a lovely activity to do, and it really made a difference being outside reading. Sometimes I think I’m trying to be on the go all the time. Being active outdoors is great, but is is also very nice to just sit, tune into the sounds around you and smell the fresh air. It was very relaxing and I wondered why I’d never read outdoors with my children before?!
Luckily for us it was also a lovely day – finally. So we had the sun on our backs and a good half an hour of studying our books and reading some nature stories.
Choosing our stories to read outdoors
B enjoying The Little Gardener
We have these nature books for kids:-
Sharing a Shell by Julia Donaldson
My favourite book. It’s just got great rhythm to it and I adore the story about these three seaside creatures making friends and making a home together. Great for two and up.
The Little Book of the Dawn Chorus by Andrea Pinnington and Caz Buckingham
A new book in our collection, after being inspired on this nature journey of ours to listen to birdsong more and try to interpret who is singing what. It’s a fact book, so my toddler wasn’t interested in anything other than pressing the buttons but my older son loves it!
Nature’s Day by Kay Maguire and Danielle Kroll
Another amazing book for older children, with great illustrations. It takes the reader through the seasons with pages on things like pond life, roots and shoots and birds that fly south with the sun. This would also make an amazing birthday present for girls and boys from five and up.
A World Full of Animal Stories by Angela McAllister
Another great birthday present idea. This hardback book is packed full of short folktales and legends about animals from all over the world. Examples include the story of the prairie wolf and the song of the armadillo.
The Little Gardener by Emily Hughes
A nice story for ages three and up about a little boy who loved looking after his garden.
A First Book of Nature by Nicola Davies
A good book to dip into, with short poems and stories about nature in all its forms. Lovely illustrations too.
Boris Goes Camping by Carrie Weston and Tim Warnes
A tale about a group of animal friends who go camping in the woods, but come across some mischievous little wolves who try to spoil their fun. Good for ages three and up.
Tree by Britta Teekentrup
Another new story for us. I bought this a gift for a friend and liked it so much I bought one for my children too. It’s a cut out book which follows a tree throughout the seasons, highlighting all who live in her branches.
They are all really lovely and imaginative books. Some are stories, and some are more factual. The illustrations are beautiful too.
All our nature books
