Spring, Sprang, Sprung!

We don't want to jinx the winter weather demons... but we are so ready for spring! We'd love to share some of our favorite spring inspired books and activities with you.


What Will Hatch? Written by Jennifer Ward and Illustrated by Susie Ghahremani (Walker Children's)

 

This beautifully illustrated book introduces readers to a variety of different eggs and we are asked to solve the riddle, what will hatch?  Ward does include a rhyming hint for each animal before you can lift the flap to see who is hiding.  

If you wanted to do something crafty with old egg cartons, look no further!  Homemade Serenity shared a DIY wreath you can make by simply cutting, painting or coloring, and gluing! 

I Hatched! Written by Jill Esbaum and Illustrated by Jen Corace (Dial)

This story follows a newly hatched chick as he explores the new world around him.  Our little friend in this book is so cute and plucky, we are as excited as he is that he finally hatched.  He spends his entire first day learning and exploring and by the end of the book he is ready to show off all he learned to his newly hatched baby sister.  

A Book of Babies Written and Illustrated by Il Sung Na (Knopf Books for Young Readers)

Il Sung Na creates such beautiful books!  This story shows many different animals on their first day and readers get to travel along with a curious little duck as we learn all about them.  

And Then It's Spring Written by Julie Fogliano and Illustrated by Erin Stead (Roaring Book Press)

 

We love this book so much that we used the illustrations as our inspiration for last summer's window painting.  This book follows a young boy and his dog who decide to take matters into their own hands.  They decide they've had enough of the brown world winter brings and begin to plant seeds.  This story reminds us that we need to be patient for spring to arrive, just as they must wait to see signs of spring.

A cute craft to go along with this book would be to make your own plant markers.  Head over to What We Do All Day for some inspiration.

 

More Written by I. C. Springman and Illustrated by Brian Lies (HMH Books for Young Readers)

 

This book follows a bird preparing his nest and gathering a whole bunch of items to spruce it up.  Luckily, this magpie is good friends with some mice who help him address his hoarding problem. This story would be a good read as we get ready for spring cleaning and helps us remember that more isn't always better.

If you're looking to help out our feathered friends this spring, think about putting materials out for them to build their nests.  We loved the natural-looking display idea from Birds and Bloom and Duncraft.  You can get the grapevine balls at craft stores and simply fill them with cotton, yarn, ribbons, or other soft household goods.

 
 We hope you enjoy the season and all its beauty!