Tag Jesús Verona

A Little Dose of Nature / Look What I Found: On the Farm

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A Little Dose of Nature
Dr. Alison Greenwood and Anneli Bray
Ivy Kids

Written by psychologist, Dr Alison Greenwood who has set up a charity called Dose of Nature, this book as the cover says, suggests ‘outdoor fun to help happiness bloom’. To improve mental health and wellbeing, twenty five activities are suggested for children (and adults), all to be done outside in the natural world, well away from the distractions of social media, computer games etc.

First though the author states that nature has five active ingredients that are of benefit to humans; these will give us more energy, improve concentration and sleep, help us to relax, and to be in a better mood. These include fractal patterns, nature’s sounds, phytoncides (natural chemicals), soil bacteria and sunlight. I expect some of these science terms will be unfamiliar to younger children and Alison pitches her explanations at just the right level. The book has five main sections, entitled Nature’s Fractals, The Science of Sounds, Fresh Air, Soil

and Soak Up the Sunshine!

Who could fail to connect with nature as they collect and arrange natural objects to create a mandala – in my experience children love to do this.

The same is true of getting messy by sculpting animals using sludgy mud or running around barefoot in a muddy patch and then comparing the experience with walking barefoot on grass.

Brilliant for forest school and outdoor science. I love that Alison’s final words include paragraphs on awe and what she calls ‘wow moments’.
Anneli Bray’s detailed illustrations are an inclusive delight and certainly make this particular book stand out from others on the theme of appreciating the great outdoors..

Look What I Found: On the Farm
Moira Butterfield and Jesús Verona
Nosy Crow

Bursting with information, this is the third title in a series published in collaboration with the National Trust.
Readers join the three young adventurers on a new expedition one spring day as they investigate their surroundings while following the path through the fields. Each in turn exclaims in the rhyming narrative, “Look what I found!”

excitedly showing the others and readers the discovery, be it animal related, such as a tuft of sheep’s wool or a feather, or plant-related like the fluffy head of dandelion seeds.


Another engaging mix of story, non-fiction and search-and-find, illustrated by Jesús Verona whose scenes of the natural world, both the close-ups and landscapes are immersive.

Recommended for family bookshelves and KS1 class collections, especially if you want to encourage children to get outside and explore their surroundings.

Sunday Funday

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Sunday Funday
Katherine Halligan and Jesús Verona
Nosy Crow

Subtitled A Nature Activity for Every Weekend of the Year and created in collaboration with the National Trust, this bumper book, written by Katherine Halligan and organised by season offers a smashing way (or rather fifty two ways) to encourage youngsters to make the most of what the natural world has to offer.

As a seasoned teacher of primary children, many of the activities are familiar but no matter, they probably won’t be to families using the book for whom in addition to the main part of the book, there are four ‘key kits’ lists (craft materials, kitchen equipment, adventure items and garden bits and pieces), as well as a list of safety tips; and, the yoga teacher part of me was delighted to find the ‘Be a Tree’ spread.

There are recipes, gardening projects for both indoors and out, and much more. In the spring section I particularly liked the ‘Noisy Nature Concert’

and the idea of a Mad Hatter’s Tea Party in summer sounds lots of fun, especially the suggestion of using old sun hats to create small hanging gardens.

Lots of people take photos of walks they’ve enjoyed to act as reminders: the ‘Nature memory Jar’ suggestion in the Autumn section is a great way to make a different sort of memory of a enjoyable day out

and I’m definitely going to try making the ‘Gorgeous Granola’ using the recipe in the same section. It’s good to see the rangoli design idea for the festival of Diwali using such items as leaves as well as the more traditional materials.

Although I’m not really ready to think about winter just yet, I will start collecting fir cones when out walking in preparation for making some ‘Pine Cone Pals’ with youngsters when winter arrives.

Each activity is colourfully and alluringly illustrated by Jesús Verona. Be it rain or shine, you’ll find something to tempt you in this book that will last not just one but several years.

Let’s Go For a Walk / Look What I Found at the Seaside

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Let’s Go For a Walk
Ranger Hamza and Kate Kronreif
Ivy Kids

In the company of Ranger Hamza, any walk will be an experience that engages all the senses. No matter where or when you go there’s sure to be a wealth of interesting sights, sounds, smells and exciting tactile things to feel with our hands. Best to do as Ranger Hamza advises though and take a copy of this book along, then suitably attired and with eyes and ears open, everyone is ready to sally forth.

The first focus is colour and youngsters are encouraged to spot red things and of course, what is found will depend on the season and to some extent the surroundings.
Then what about trying to spy things tall, wide or small; or feeling various things like these walkers are doing on the sea shore.

Not all smells are to be savoured; we all enjoy different ones. I for instance would not want to be in close proximity of fresh fish or chimney smoke but would love to inhale the aroma of lavender or baking bread. The important thing is to do as the ranger suggests and ‘use our noses’.

Each double spread has a new focus: there are shapes, minibeasts, sounds,

letters and numbers, pairs of objects, different materials that things are made of. The dark makes everything look different, shadowy perhaps, or you might spot some nocturnal creatures or star patterns if you walk at night.
To see other things up high though, it’s better to walk in the daytime when the clouds sometimes look amazing; while focussing on the ground can be equally rewarding with plants popping up in unexpected places and all kinds of patterns created either by humans or by nature.

With wildlife photographer and CBeebies Ranger Manza as guide and Kate Kronreif as illustrator, this guided book walk is sure to make youngsters want to undertake the real thing. Nature and being able to get outdoors are what have kept so many of us – young and not so young – sane over the past year and now I’m pretty sure that henceforward, none of us will take these things for granted. Are you ready, ‘Let’s Go For a Walk’ …

Look What I Found at the Seaside
Moira Butterfield and Jesús Verona
Nosy Crow

There are wonders aplenty waiting to be found if you take a stroll on the seashore with the characters in this smashing book (a companion to Look What I Found in the Woods), also published in collaboration with the National Trust).

Every spread is packed with exciting things to discover, the first being the wealth of different shaped seashells, be they curly and shining bright ‘like a pearl’,

long and curly, opening like a pair of wings or perhaps a purse.

The rock pools too are full of exciting patterned pebbles, fish and other small sea creatures; among the seaweed too are more treasures and sometimes foraging seagulls. Watch out for crabs scuttling among the fronds or peeping out of shells.

It’s interesting to imagine what a mermaid might keep in one of those mermaid’s purses close to the cave mouth …

There’s much more too if you follow the cliff path; maybe some fossils, butterflies, bees and seaside flowers; and if you are quiet you just might come upon some wonderful sea birds tucked away among the rocks.

Yes, the seaside is a veritable treasure trove but it’s important to collect thoughtfully, doing no harm and leaving nothing but your footprints behind.

Told through a gentle rhyming narrative and also bursting with fascinating facts, and illustrated with alluring scenes of the children investigating the natural world, this will surely get youngsters enthused to get out and explore nature.

Look What I Found in the Woods

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Look What I Found in the Woods
Moira Butterfield and Jesús Verona
Nosy Crow

‘Follow me. I know the way. / We’re walking in the woods today.’ So says the child narrator of this book.
The woods are my favourite place to walk and during the pandemic I’ve spent a lot of time so doing in woodlands close to my home, always returning home feeling considerably uplifted. Consequently I was more than happy to take up the invitation to participate in this woodland foray with the three child adventurers shown on the first spread.

Readers are immediately engaged by means of an insert in the bottom right-hand corner that asks us to find one signpost, two butterflies and three bright yellow flowers.
The second spread shows the children making observations while the text provides facts about the trees and a sidebar showing labelled tree shapes.

The subsequent spreads alternate between these two styles of layout

as readers learn about leaves, bark,

fruits and seeds, fir cones and shells while the children continue their exploration discovering exciting ‘treasure’ throughout their walk; treasure that they present on the final spread once back indoors.

This highly engaging nature book published in collaboration with the National Trust, successfully mixes story, non-fiction and search-and-find. Jesús Verona’s illustrations are an absolute delight. Each one offers an immersive scene to linger over and wonder at the fine detail included; and the final endpaper shows the children’s creative efforts with some of their findings.