Leaves (Spot the Difference: Plants)
Part of a new Acorn: Spot the Difference subseries about the parts of plants, this small, horizontally formatted book brings botany to the youngest readers. After general facts about what plants need (air, water, and sunlight), the next spread includes a diagrammed photo of a plant and the statement, “Most plants have leaves.” Then, each page is devoted to a different type of leaf, with a crisp, close-up color photo and one or two simple sentences on each page. The interactive text and beautiful photos will have kids pointing at the pages and talking about color, texture (“smooth,” “hairy”), number (the tulip has few leaves; the fern has many), and shape (narrow pine leaves; wide banana plant leaves). The concluding, pictorial glossary sums up the concepts, and a note to parents and teachers suggests activities that include collecting and describing real leaves; this would also provide good preparation for field trips to a botanical garden, nursery, or conservatory. Preschool-Kindergarten. --Hazel Rochman--This text refers to theLibrary Bindingedition.