Since Earth Day is coming up soon we are seeing a lot more advice cropping up for parents who want to teach their kids about going green. I read four eco children’s books to my own kids recently and they all got a big thumbs up so I thought I would share them here.
William is Going Green by James Martin II - This story is about a garbage truck named William who lives in a big city collecting garbage. He is largely unappreciated by the people who live in his city and he gets laid off when the city folk complain about how badly he pollutes the air. So William sets of to find another job and he ends up in Jamestown, a tranquil city that has “gone green”. The garbage service company there is happy to hire him but they tell him he must get a clean hybrid engine though. William can’t afford to get a new engine so he is just about to leave and try another city when circumstances give him the opportunity to be come to the aid of one of Jamestown’s smallest residents and he finds a way to get that engine and begin his own mission to go green and fight global warming. My kids really liked the story…especially my 7 year old son who LOVES garbage trucks. It is wonderfully illustrated too….the colors just pop off the page.
Interestingly the author was inspired to write this book not long after his own journey to greener living began when he made a big environmental boo-boo and was fined by the city.
My Bag and Me by Karen Farmer - This one was adorable and perfect for kids in the 4-6 years old range. It follows the activities of a little boy who has his own shopping bag. He talks about how he and his bag are helping to save the environment and he and his mom takes their very own reusable bags to the supermarket and say NO to paper and plastic. Once again the illustrations are top notch. My 4 year old daughter was completely absorbed in this book and she was just beside herself when a hidden compartment in the back of the book revealed a small shopping bag just like the one the little boy in the story had. She has been carrying it everywhere and calls it her “earth bag”. :) The book is 100% recyclable.
Knut - How One Little Polar Bear Captivated the World by Juliana, Isabella, and Craig Hatkoff - Is there anyone not familiar with the adorable polar bear from the Berlin Zoo named Knut? Well, this lengthy story follows his life from birth and it is documented with amazing full color photos. This book was a bit too long and wordy for my 4 year old but perfect for my 7 year old boy. Both got a few good chuckles out of the pictures, especially the one where Knut is playing in the mud or chewing a shoe. The last part of the book talks about the habits and lives of polar bears in the wild and how they are being threatened by climate crisis and of course it gives a few ideas for how kids can get involved in changing things for the better.
Michael Recycle by Ellie Bethel - This story is about the town of Aberdoo-Rimey where garbage was left to grow rotten and slimy. 
The town has a serious problem with garbage build-up and littering so the green caped crusader Michael Recycle must come to their aid and teach them how to clean up their act. They get inventive with recycling, water conservation, gardening, and composting so that once their town looks and smells fresh and inviting. The illustrations were killer….absolutely fantastic. Both of my older kids loved this book.
Happy Reading!
译文:
给孩子的四本生态书
随着地球日的即将来临,我们看到了此起彼伏的建议,那些建议是针对那些想教孩子们环保的父母们. 我最近给我的孩子读了四本生态类的书,他们都很觉得很棒,所以我想我应该在这里分享一下.
威廉姆变环保了 作者：James Martin II. 这是关于一辆名叫威廉姆的垃圾车在大城市收垃圾的故事. 他很不受他所在城市人们的欢迎,到后来他被人们抱怨说他严重污染了空气. 所以威廉姆决定去找其他工作.他在詹姆斯镇上找到了工作, 那个宁静的城市已经变得环保了. 那里的垃圾公司很乐意雇佣他.但他们告诉他必须要有一个净化混合引擎.威廉姆买不起一个新的引擎,所以当他正打算要走,去其他城市找工作的时候,环境给了一个机会去帮助詹姆斯镇上最小的居民.他发现那是一个能够获得新引擎的方法.于是开始了他的环保任务,与全球气候变暖做斗争. 我的孩子们真的很喜欢这个故事...特别是我7岁的儿子,他喜欢垃圾车.书中的插图也很棒...色彩充斥着页面. 有趣的是，作者是在他自己犯了一个大的环境的愚蠢的错误，被指出纠正之后，开始了更环保的生活之后才想要写这本书的。
我的包和我 作者：Karen Farmer。这本书深受喜欢，并最适合4到6岁的孩子。它描述了一个拥有自己的购物包的小男孩的一系列活动。他讲述他和他的包怎样帮助保护环境的，他和他的妈妈带着他们各自可重复使用的包去超市以及对纸和塑料说不的故事。插图也是最高档的。我四岁的女儿完全被这本书吸引了。就在她为之疯狂的时候，书背后的隔厢里出现了一只和故事中小男孩的包一样的小购物包。她把它带到被一个地方，并称它为“地球包”。这本书是百分之百可回收的。
克努特---一只小北极熊如何迷住全世界 作者：Juliana, Isabella和 Craig Hatkoff 有没有人不熟悉这只来自柏林动物园，名叫克努特的可爱北极熊的？这个长长的故事描述了他从出生以后的生活并由全彩色照片记录。这本书对于我四岁的孩子来说，显得稍稍有点长，有点罗嗦，但对我7岁的儿子来说则恰到好处。他们都从图片得到了一些乐趣。特别是一张关于克努特在泥巴中玩耍，要写字的照片。书的最后一部分时关于野生北极熊的习性和生活，以及他们如今正被气候危机所威胁着。当然它也给了一些让孩子使环境变得更好的建议。
麦克吕塞克 作者：Ellie Bethel 这个故事是关于一个叫Aberdoo-Rimey的镇的，在那里垃圾变烂变粘。那个镇有严重的垃圾处理问题。所以绿色战士麦克吕塞克必须帮助他们并且教他们如何净化他们的行为。他们在循环，水保护，园艺，化肥方便都有创新。所以他们的镇变得新鲜而迷人。插图很吸引人。。。绝对的迷人。我的两个孩子都喜欢这本书。
祝阅读愉快！