Books
🌿🌻Tadpole to Frog by American Museum of Natural History
This board book is from their “Science for Toddlers” series and impressively high quality! Content for this book is informed by an AMNH expert herpetologist.
🌿🌻Lake Mamas & Babies by Stan Tekiela
This photo-illustrated board book shares facts about forest animals native to North America, including loons, bald eagles, muskrats, and toads. For a quick read, just learn the names for each baby animal (like chicks, kits, toadlets, and eaglets). For a longer read, you may learn about the number of babies, where they are born, how parents care for them, and how fast they grow.
🌿🌻Who’s Hiding on the River by Katharine McEwen
This lift-the-flap board book features short facts about many riparian animals, both in and along the river. Learn about swans, perch, pike, otters, beavers, and many more in this beautifully-illustrated book!
🌿🌻N is for Newt (illustrated by Kaya Kajfez)
This illustrated Animal Alphabet board book features alliterative facts about newts from around the world, including California newt & rough-skinned newt of North America.
🌿🌻T is for Toad (illustrated by Marc Pattenden)
This illustrated Animal Alphabet board book features alliterative facts about toads from around the world, including American toads.
🌿🌻Plip-Plop Pond! by Kaaren Pixton
This textless Indestructibles book for babies features beautiful illustrations of a pond ecosystem, including frogs, newts, swans, herons, turtles, kingfishers, muskrats, and dragonflies!
🌿Over and Under the Pond by Kate Messner (illustrated by Christopher Silas Neal)
With iconic illustrations by Chrisopher Silas Neal, this book explores the creatures and plants that thrive in and around the waters of a pond as a mother and child paddle a boat over the surface.
🌿Over and Under the Wetland by Kate Messner (illustrated by Christopher Silas Neal)
In the familiar format of Messner’s other books, a child and grandmother wander along a boardwalk, exploring the plants and animals of a swamp ecosystem in the Florida Everglades. Additional texts at the end of the book further describe the featured wildlife, along with an author’s note about the Corkscrew Swamp Sanctuary that inspired the book.
🌿Over in a River by Marianne Berkes (illustrated by Jill Dubin)
Like other books in this series, Over in a River is sung to the tune of “Over in the Meadow” and introduces ten animals found in or around river systems in the USA, including manatees, blue herons, water snakes, and salmon!
🌿Being Frog by April Pully Sayre
This book includes photo illustrations of green frogs from a pond near the author’s home. The text is very simple and works well for toddlers and preschoolers alike. Green frogs are native to the Eastern United States, including the eastern half of Minnesota. Invite children to find and point to the frogs in each photo!
🌿At the Marsh in the Meadow by Jeanie Mebane (illustrated by Gerald Guerlais)
This book parallels the poem “The House that Jack Built” as it explores the fish, bugs, plants, and other living things in the food chain of a marsh ecosystem.
🌿There’s a Hole in the Log on the Bottom of the Lake by Loren Long
While this song will probably feel familiar, it’s worthwhile to memorize the modified tune in the back of the book before you start, because singing along is the best way to read this book. See how fast you can sing before you start mixing up the words in this fun cumulative song about a frog in a hole in a log!
🌿Water Can Be by Laura Purdie Salas (illustrated by Violeta Dabija)
This Minnesota author delights with rhyme and rhythm in a celebration of water in all its forms and functions!
🌿Maggi and Milo by Juli Brenning (illustrated by Priscilla Burris)
In this book, budding scientist Maggi receives a gift of frog-hunting year from her grandma and heads out to the pond with her border collie Milo to catch some frogs!
🌿The Boat that Ben Built by Jen Lynn Bailey (illustrated by Maggie Zeng)
This reimagining of classic nursery rhyme “This is the House that Jack Built” takes us on a journey down a river and past many different animals of the American Northwoods. One of my favorite thigns about this lovely book is that Ben’s mother is neither absent nor looming, calmly watching him from the shore as their dog walks alongside her. Even better, each animal featured gets a one-page spread about them at the end of the book.
Fabulous Frogs by Martin Jenkens (illustrated by Tim Hopgood)
This beautifully illustrated book provides easy tidbits about interesting frogs from all over the world!
Get Busy, Beaver by Carolyn Crimi (illustrated by Janie Bynum)
Dreaming young beaver Theolonius spends his days admiring nature while his family keeps busy, busy, busy rebuilding their dam. Eventually, Theolonius is inspired to create the kind of natural masterpiece that only a dreamer could imagine!
Creative Art Opportunities
🐢Tearing blue and green tissue paper and sticking to tempera paint
🐢Sticky Molasses/Syrup Collage – tilt the paper to let the syrup run along the page
🐢Collage with crepe paper streamers
🐢Painting with blue and green and brown watercolors
🐢Textured painting with dirt or sand
Hands On Experiences
⛅️Explore a lifelike turtle figurine
⛅️Explore toy fish in water with a net
⛅️Explore a sensory table of water with fish, frog, and turtle figurines
⛅️Explores with stones and sticks in a sensory table of water
⛅️Explore a sensory table of water with cups
🌿Dig a trench or hole in soil/sand and fill it with water
🌿Have a picnic and/or read books next to a pond
🌿Look for frogs and turtles
🌿Observe ducks, geese, and wading birds at a lake or pond
🌿Drop leaves into a stream and watch them float away
Songs to Learn and Sing
“Three Little Fishes”
Down in the meadow in an itty bitty pool
Lived three little fishies and a momma fishy too
“Swim,” said the momma fishy, “Swim if you can”
And they swam and they swam all over the dam
Boom boom ditty-datty wattem… (3x)
And they swam and they swam all over the dam
“Stop,” said the momma fishy, “You’ll get lost”
But the three little fishies didn’t wanna be bossed
Three little fishies went off on a spree
And they swam and they swam right out to the sea
Boom boom ditty-datty wattem… (3x)
And they swam and they swam right out to the sea
“Whee,” cried the little fishes, “Heres a lot of fun”
We’ll swim in the sea ’til the day is done
They swam and they swam and it was a lark
‘Til all of a sudden they saw a shark
Boom boom ditty-datty wattem… (3x)
‘Til all of a sudden they saw a shark
“Help,” cried the little fishes, “Look at the whales!”
And as quick as they could, they turned on their tails
Back to their pool in the meadow they swam
And they swam and they swam back over the dam
Boom boom ditty-datty wattem… (3x)
And they swam and they swam back over the dam
“Five Little Frogs”
Five green and speckled frogs
Sat on a hollow log
Eating some most delicious bugs–yum, yum!
One jumped into the pool
Where it was nice and cool
Now there are four green speckled frogs – ribbit ribbit!
Four green and speckled frogs… (etc.)
“Cattail Marsh” by Douglas Wood
Cattail marsh…
Red wing sings in the misty morn
Sings to the glow of the day newborn
Cattail marsh…
Whirl of wings as the wild ducks fly
Green heads flash in the morning sky
Cattail marsh…
Still and lonely the heron stands
Hungry lord of the silver sedge
Cattail marsh…
Red sun climbs through the willow trees
Cattails nod in the soft young breeze
Cattail marsh
Tracks on the shore from the silent mink
Song in the field from the bobolink
Cattail marsh
Muskrat dives near the whispering sedge
Ripples fly to the water’s edge
Cattail marsh
“Six Little Ducks”
Six little ducks that I once knew
Fat ones, skinny ones, fair ones too
But the one little duck with a feather on his back
He led the others with a “Quack quack quack”
“Quack quack quack, quack quack quack”
He led the others with a “Quack quack quack.”
Down to the river they would go
Wibble-wobble, wibble-wobble to and fro
But the one little duck with a feather on his back
He led the others with a “Quack quack quack”
“Quack quack quack, quack quack quack”
He led the others with a “Quack quack quack.”
Home from the river they would come
Wibble-wobble, wibble-wobble Ho-hum-hum
But the one little duck with a feather on his back
He led the others with a “Quack quack quack”
“Quack quack quack, quack quack quack”
He led the others with a “Quack quack quack.”
“Five Little Ducks”
Five little ducks went out one day, over the hills and far away.
Mother duck said, “Quack, quack, quack, quack!”
But only four little ducks came back.
Four little ducks…
Three little ducks…
Two little ducks…
One little duck went out one day, over the hills and far away.
Mother duck said, “Quack, quack, quack, quack.”
But none of the five little ducks came back.
Sad Mother duck went out one day… Over the hills and far away…
Mother duck said… “Quack… Quack… Quack… Quack…”
… And all of the five little ducks came back!
“Once I Caught a Fish Alive”
One, two, three, four, five
Once I caught a fish alive
Six, seven, eight, nine, ten
Then I let it go again
“Why did you let it go?”
Because it bit my finger so!
“Which finger did it bite?”
This little finger on my right!
“Row Row Row Your Boat”
Row row row your boat
Gently down the stream
Merrily merrily merrily merrily
Life is but a dream
Twist twist twist your boat…
Bounce bounce bounce your boat…
Sway sway sway your boat…
Wiggle wiggle wiggle your boat…
Tickle tickle, tickle your boat…
“All the Fish” by Caspar Babypants (excerpt)
All the fish are swimming in the water,
Swimming in the water,
Swimming in the water
All the fish are swimming in the water
Bubble, bubble, bubble… pop!
All the ducks paddle in the water,
Paddle in the water,
Paddle in the water
All the ducks paddle in the water
Bubble, bubble, bubble… pop!
All the frogs are jumping in the water,
Jumping in the water,
Jumping in the water
All the frogs are jumping in the water
Bubble, bubble, bubble… pop!
“Crawdad Hole“
You get a line and I’ll get a pole, honey
You get a line and I’ll get a pole, baby
You get a line and I’ll get a pole
And we’ll go fishing in the crawdad hole
Honey, oh baby, mine
Get up now, you slept too late, honey
Get up now, you slept to late, baby
Get up now, you slept to late
The crawdad man walked past your gate
Honey, oh baby mine.
What are you gonna do when the lake runs dry, honey
What are you gonan do when the lake runs dry, baby
What are you gonna do when the lake runs dry
Sit and watch those crawdads fly
Honey, oh baby, mine
You get a line and I’ll get a pole, honey
You get a line and I’ll get a pole, baby
You get a line and I’ll get a pole
And we’ll go fishing in the crawdad hole
Honey, oh baby, mine
“Little Stream” by Douglas Wood (excerpt)
There’s a little stream that flows
Down a wood I’ve come to know
I greet her in the morning like a friend
I come to listen to her song
As she swiftly rolls along
Laughing as she slips around the bend
There the killdeer calls his name
And the jaybird does the same
The heron stands his vigil on the sand
And I stand my watch as well
Where the rose and dogwood dwell
To feel their benediction on the land
Little stream I can still hear you calling
Though my footsteps may take me far away
Through the seasons you’re rising and falling
Young and old, each new day
You move along but you stay
And I thank you for passing my way
“Frog Song” by Charlie Hope
Well there were five frogs, five frogs, five frogs
Sitting on a log, log, log
And they were eating toast with jam all day–
(Wait, wait, wait… frogs don’t eat toast with jam!)
Oh…
They were eating flies with their sticky tongues all day!
Until a lilypad appeared
And they all began to cheer
And one frog, one frog, one frog ran away!
Well there were four frogs, four frogs, four frogs
Sitting on a log, log, log
And they were eating steamed carrots all day–
(Wait, wait, wait… frogs don’t eat steamed carrots!)
Oh…
They were eating flies with their sticky tongues all day!
Until a lilypad appeared
And they all began to cheer
And one frog, one frog, one frog ran away!
Well there were three frogs, three frogs, three frogs
Sitting on a log, log, log
And they were eating edamame all day–
(Wait, wait, wait… frogs don’t eat edamame!)
Oh…
They were eating flies with their sticky tongues all day!
Until a lilypad appeared
And they all began to cheer
And one frog, one frog, one frog ran away!
Well there were two frogs, two frogs, two frogs
Sitting on a log, log, log
And they were eating applesauce all day–
(Wait, wait, wait… frogs don’t eat applesauce!)
Oh…
They were eating flies with their sticky tongues all day!
Until a lilypad appeared
And they all began to cheer
And one frog, one frog, one frog ran away!
Well there was one frog, one frog, one frog
Sitting on a log, log, log
And he was eating flies with his sticky tongue all day!
(Wait, wait, wait… Oh, yeah, frogs do eat flies!)
Until a lilypad appeared
And they together cheered, cause
There were five frogs, five frogs, five frogs
Eating flies with their sticky tongues all day!
NIYN – Rivers, Lakes, & Ponds on Spotify
All playlists are works in progress and are actively curated when I have a unit in play or preparation, so new songs may appear and old songs may be removed if they don’t suit my designs.
Nature In Your Nurture 