“What are the best Children’s books about Ecology ?” We looked at 182 of the top Kids Ecology books, aggregating and ranking them so we could answer that very question!
The top 12 titles, all appearing on 2 or more “Best Kids Ecology ” book lists, are ranked below by how many lists they appear on. The remaining 150+ titles, as well as the lists we used are in alphabetical order at the bottom of the page.
Happy Scrolling!
Lists It Appears On:
“An optimistic tale that manages to be both encouraging yet realistic about how to do some good in your very own backyard.” —Kirkus Celebrate the 25th anniversary of City Green—the environmentally and community-conscious classic that shows the wonderful things kids can do when they put their minds to it—with this new paperback edition. Right in the middle of Marcy’s city block is a vacant lot, littered and forlorn. Sometimes just looking at it makes Marcy feel sad. Then one spring, Marcy has a wonderful idea: Instead of a useless lot, why not a green and growing space for everyone to enjoy?
Lists It Appears On:
From apple cores to zinnia heads, readers will discover the best ingredients for a successful compost pile! Kids everywhere are knowledgeable about the environment and climate change. Not only is composting becoming more common in households and residential gardens, but many school gardens feature compost piles, too. But how do you start a compost pile? What’s safe to include? Perfect for an Earth Day focus or year-round reference, this inviting book provides all the answers for kids and families looking for simple, child-friendly ways to help the planet.
Lists It Appears On:
Eleven-year-old Olivia Bouler has drawn and illustrated a brief guide to endangered birds in an effort use book sales to contribute to the clean-up expenses for the oil contamination of the Gulf of Mexico.
Lists It Appears On:
Retells the story of Rachel Carson, a pioneering environmentalist who wrote and published “Silent Spring,” the revolutionary book pointing out the dangerous effects of chemicals on the living world.
Lists It Appears On:
Perfect for spring planting season–an outstanding book about backyard science the whole family will appreciate. Alice’s family plants a vegetable garden each spring, and this budding naturalist reports all she sees about how the plants grow, what insects come to eat the plants, and what birds and animals come to eat the insects. It’s the food chain, right in her own backyard! While Alice’s narrative is simple and engaging, science concepts are presented in more depth in sidebars by a pair of very knowledgeable (and highly amusing) chickens! Noted science writer Kathleen Weidner Zoehfeld knows how to layer information to make it accessible to a wide range of readers and useful for educators. And illustrator Priscilla Lamont’s funny, friendly paintings make this a garden everyone will want to explore. Kids will eat up this wonderful book of backyard science—and perhaps they’ll even be inspired to eat their vegetables! “A wonderfully informative and enjoyable journey through one family’s backyard garden, from spring planting to fall harvest.
Lists It Appears On:
Simple text and illustrations show how children can help protect the Earth.
Lists It Appears On:
The many different animals that live in a great kapok tree in the Brazilian rainforest try to convince a man with an ax of the importance of not cutting down their home.
Lists It Appears On:
A little house in the country sees life change around her as her small town grows into a large city.
Lists It Appears On:
The Once-ler describes the results of the local pollution problem.
Lists It Appears On:
Ms. Frizzle takes her kids on a whirlwind tour, from the Arctic to the equator so they can see telltale signs of climate change.
Lists It Appears On:
A beloved classic—written by a beloved Caldecott winner—is lovelier than ever! Barbara Cooney’s story of Alice Rumphius, who longed to travel the world, live in a house by the sea, and do something to make the world more beautiful, has a timeless quality that resonates with each new generation. The countless lupines that bloom along the coast of Maine are the legacy of the real Miss Rumphius, the Lupine Lady, who scattered lupine seeds everywhere she went. Miss Rumphius received the American Book Award in the year of publication. To celebrate the thirtieth anniversary of two-time Caldecott winner Barbara Cooney’s best-loved book, the illustrations have been reoriginated, going back to the original art to ensure state-of-the-art reproduction of Cooney’s exquisite artwork
Lists It Appears On:
One boy’s quest for a greener world… one garden at a time. While out exploring one day, a little boy named Liam discovers a struggling garden and decides to take care of it. As time passes, the garden spreads throughout the dark, gray city, transforming it into a lush, green world. This is an enchanting tale with environmental themes and breathtaking illustrations that become more vibrant as the garden blooms. Red-headed Liam can also be spotted on every page, adding a clever seek-and-find element to this captivating picture book.
# | Books | Authors | Lists |
13 | A Drop Around the World | Barbara Shaw McKinney | Children Of the Earth |
14 | A Grand Old Tree | Mary Newell DePalma | Read That Again |
15 | A River Ran Wild: An Environmental History | Lynn Cherry | We Are teachers |
16 | A Stick Is An Excellent Thing | Marilyn Singer | NWF |
17 | A Symphony of Whales | A Mighty Girl | |
18 | A Whiff of Pine, a Hint of Skunk: A Forest of Poems | Deborah Ruddell | Start With A Book |
19 | Ancient Rhymes, A Dolphin Lullaby | John Denver | Children Of the Earth |
20 | Anywhere Farm | A Mighty Girl | |
21 | Beatrix Potter: A scientist’s eye | Nature | |
22 | Bee & Me | A Mighty Girl | |
23 | Belonging | Jeannie Baker | Read That Again |
24 | Beneath the Sun | Melissa Stewart | Start With A Book |
25 | Bloom BoomBloom Boom! | April Pulley Sayre | The Childrens Book review |
26 | Butterfly Park | Elly McKay | We Are teachers |
27 | Can You See Me? | Ted Lewin | Start With A Book |
28 | Charlie and Lola: We Are Extremely Very Good Recyclers | A Mighty Girl | |
29 | Chavela and the Magic Bubble | Monica Brown | Start With A Book |
30 | Citizen Scientists: Be Part of the Scientific Discovery from Your Own Backyard | Loree Griffin Burns | NWF |
31 | Coral Reefs | Jason Chin | NWF |
32 | Cork & Fuzz: The Swimming Lesson | Dori Chaconas | NWF |
33 | Curious George Plants a Tree | Margret and H.A. Rey | Family Education |
34 | Dear Children of the Earth | Children Of the Earth | |
35 | E-I-E-I-O: How Old MacDonald Got His Farm | Judy Sierra | Start With A Book |
36 | Early child development: Body of knowledge | Nature | |
37 | Earth Verse: Haiku from the Ground Up | Sally Walker | Start With A Book |
38 | Eddie’s Garden and How to Make Things Grow | Sarah Garland | Start With A Book |
39 | Eliza and the Dragonfly | Susie Caldwell Rinehart | Children Of the Earth |
40 | Emi and the Rhino Scientist | A Mighty Girl | |
41 | Everglades | Jean Craighead George | Start With A Book |
42 | Every Autumn Comes the Bear | Jim Arnosky | Start With A Book |
43 | Explore a Shark | David George Gordon | Sierra Club |
44 | Eyes Wide Open: Going Behind the Environmental Headlines | Paul Fleischman | Children Of the Earth |
45 | Eyewitness Plant | David Burnie | Start With A Book |
46 | Fabulous Frogs | Martin Jenkins | Start With A Book |
47 | Far from Shore: Chronicles of an Open Ocean Voyage | Sophie Webb | NWF |
48 | Farmer Will Allen and the Growing Table | Jacqueline Briggs Martin | Start With A Book |
49 | Find the Constellations | H.A. Rey. | Sierra Club |
50 | First Garden and How It Grew | Robbin Gourley | Start With A Book |
51 | Fishing in the Air | Sharon Creech and Chris Raschka | We Are teachers |
52 | Flip, Float, Fly: Seeds on the Move | JoAnn Early Macken | Start With A Book |
53 | Fresh Picked Poetry: A Day at the Farmers’ Market | Michelle Schaub | Start With A Book |
54 | Friends: Snake and Lizard | Joy Cowley | NWF |
55 | Galápagos Girl / Galapagueña | Marsha Diane Arnold | Start With A Book |
56 | Get Outside: The Kids Guide to Fun in the Great Outdoors | Jane Drake, Ann Love | Start With A Book |
57 | Giant Squid | Candace Fleming | Sierra Club |
58 | Girls Who Looked Under Rocks: The Lives of Six Pioneering Naturalists | A Mighty Girl | |
59 | Give a Hootenanny! Twangy Tunes About Lovin’ the Earth | Heidi Howe | Children Of the Earth |
60 | Goodbye Autumn, Hello WinterGoodbye Autumn, Hello Winter | Kenard Pak | The Childrens Book review |
61 | Green | Laura Vaccaro Seeger | Start With A Book |
62 | Greetings | Raven Howell | The Childrens Book review |
63 | Herb, The Vegetarian Dragon | Jules Bass | Children Of the Earth |
64 | Home for a Tiger, Home for a Bear | Brenda Williams | Children Of the Earth |
65 | Home In The Sky | Jeannie Baker | Read That Again |
66 | How Did That Get in My Lunchbox? The Story of Food | Lucia Gaggiotti | Start With A Book |
67 | How Does My Garden Grow? | Gerda Muller | Start With A Book |
68 | If You Were My Baby: A Wildlife Lullaby | Fran Hodgkins | Children Of the Earth |
69 | In One Tidepool: Crabs, Snails and Salty Tails | Anthony D. Fredericks | Children Of the Earth |
70 | In retrospect: The Lorax | Nature | |
71 | In the Small, Small Pond | Denise Fleming | Start With A Book |
72 | Inside Outside | Lizi Boyd | Start With A Book |
73 | Jack’s Garden | Henry Cole | Start With A Book |
74 | Jackson Jones and the Puddle of Thorns | Mary Quattlebaum | Start With A Book |
75 | Jo MacDonald Had a Garden | Mary Quattlebaum | Start With A Book |
76 | Just a Dream | Chris Van Allsburg | We Are teachers |
77 | Leaf Litter Critters | Leslie Bulion | Start With A Book |
78 | Least Things: Poems about Small Natures | Jane Yolen | Start With A Book |
79 | Letting Swift River Go | Jane Yolen | We Are teachers |
80 | Life in the Amazon Rainforest | Ginjer Clarke | Start With A Book |
81 | Life in the Ocean: The Story of Oceanographer Sylvia Earle | A Mighty Girl | |
82 | Light Shining Through the Mist: A Photobiography of Dian Fossey | A Mighty Girl | |
83 | Little Seeds | A Mighty Girl | |
84 | Luz Makes a Splash | Claudia Davila | Start With A Book |
85 | Mama Miti: Wangari Maathai and the Trees of Kenya | A Mighty Girl | |
86 | Marshes and Swamps | Gail Gibbons | Start With A Book |
87 | Marty McGuire Digs Worms! | A Mighty Girl | |
88 | Me…Jane | A Mighty Girl | |
89 | Meadowlands: A Wetlands Survival Story | Thomas R. Yezerski | Start With A Book |
90 | Michael Recycle | Ellie Bethel | Family Education |
91 | Midnight Creatures: A Pop-Up Shadow Search | Helen Friel. | Sierra Club |
92 | Miss Fox’s Class Goes Green | A Mighty Girl | |
93 | My Favorite Tree: Terrific Trees of North America | Diane Iverson | Children Of the Earth |
94 | Nature Log Kids: A Kid’s Journal to Record Their Birding Experiences | DeAnna Brandt | Start With A Book |
95 | Near One Cattail: Turtles, Logs and Leaping Frogs | Anthony D. Fredericks | Children Of the Earth |
96 | No Monkeys, No Chocolate | Melissa Stewart, Allen Young | Start With A Book |
97 | Old Turtle | Douglas Wood | Children Of the Earth |
98 | On Meadowview Street | A Mighty Girl | |
99 | On One Flower: Butterflies, Ticks and a Few More Icks | Anthony D. Fredericks | Children Of the Earth |
100 | One Love | A Mighty Girl | |
101 | One Plastic Bag: Isatou Ceesay and the Recycling Women of the Gambia | A Mighty Girl | |
102 | One Tree | Green Start | Family Education |
103 | Our School Garden! | Rick Swann | Start With A Book |
104 | Our Tree Named Steve | Alan Zweibel | We Are teachers |
105 | Out of School and Into Nature: The Anna Comstock Story | A Mighty Girl | |
106 | Out on the Prairie | Donna Bateman | Start With A Book |
107 | Over and Under the Pond | Kate Messner | Start With A Book |
108 | Over in the Jungle: A Rainforest Rhyme | Marianne Berkes | Children Of the Earth |
109 | Over in the Ocean, In a Coral Reef | Marianne Berkes | Children Of the Earth |
110 | Owl Moon | Jane Yolen | We Are teachers |
111 | Pass the Energy, Please! | Barbara Shaw McKinney | Children Of the Earth |
112 | Pedal Power: How One Community Became the Bicycle Capital of the World | Allan Drummond | Start With A Book |
113 | Picture a Tree | Barbara Reid | Start With A Book |
114 | Places of Power | Michael DeMunn | Children Of the Earth |
115 | Plant a Little Seed | Bonnie Christensen | Start With A Book |
116 | Planting a Rainbow | Lois Ehlert | Start With A Book |
117 | Planting the Trees of Kenya: The Story of Wangara Maathai | Claire Nivola | Start With A Book |
118 | Plants Feed Me | Lizzy Rockwell | Start With A Book |
119 | Prairie Dog Song: The Key to Saving North America’s Grasslands | Susan L. Roth and Cindy Trumbore. | Sierra Club |
120 | Rachel: The Story of Rachel Carson | A Mighty Girl | |
121 | Red Knit Cap Girl | A Mighty Girl | |
122 | Redwoods | Jason Chin | Start With A Book |
123 | River Song With the Banana Slug String Band | Steve Van Zandt | Children Of the Earth |
124 | Sea Turtle Scientist | A Mighty Girl | |
125 | Seed, Soil, Sun: Earth’s Recipe for Food | Cris Peterson | Start With A Book |
126 | Seeds of Change: Wangari’s Gift to the World | A Mighty Girl | |
127 | Sing a Song of Seasons- A Nature Poem for Each Day of the YearSing a Song of Seasons: A Nature Poem for Each Day of the Year | Nosy Crow | The Childrens Book review |
128 | Sparrow Girl | A Mighty Girl | |
129 | Spring After Spring: How Rachel Carson Inspired the Environmental Movement | A Mighty Girl | |
130 | Squirrels Leap, Squirrels Sleep | Sierra Club | |
131 | Stars | Mary Lyn Ray | NWF |
132 | Story Worlds Nature | Thomas Hegbrook | Start With A Book |
133 | Summer Days and NightsSummer Days and Nights | Wong Herbert Yee | The Childrens Book review |
134 | Sunshine On My Shoulders | John Denver | Children Of the Earth |
135 | Swirl by Swirl: Spirals in Nature | Joyce Sidman | Start With A Book |
136 | Tales of wonder | Nature | |
137 | The Big Green | Peggy Gifford | Start With A Book |
138 | The Camping Trip That Changed America | Barb Rosenstock | NWF |
139 | The Dandelion Seed | Joseph Anthony | Children Of the Earth |
140 | The Dream of the Thylacine | Margaret Wild and Ron Brooks | We Are teachers |
141 | The Earth and I | Frank Asch | Family Education |
142 | The Elephant Scientist | A Mighty Girl | |
143 | The End of the Wild | Nicole Helget | Start With A Book |
144 | The Forever Forest: Kids Save a Tropical Treasure | Kristin Joy Pratt-Serafini | Children Of the Earth |
145 | The Forever Garden | Laurel Snyder | Start With A Book |
146 | The Hidden Forest | Jeannie Baker | Read That Again |
147 | The Little Gardener | Emily Hughes | We Are teachers |
148 | The Little Plant Doctor: A Story About George Washington Carver | Jean Marzollo | Start With A Book |
149 | The Penderwicks at Point Mouette | Jeanne Birdsall | NWF |
150 | The Promise | A Mighty Girl | |
151 | The Story of Frog Belly Rat Bone | Timothy Basil Ering | We Are teachers |
152 | The Story Of Rosy Dock | Jeannie Baker | Read That Again |
153 | The Tin Forest | Helen Ward | We Are teachers |
154 | The Tragic Tale of the Great Auk | Sierra Club | |
155 | The Tree in the Ancient Forest | Carol Reed-Jones | Children Of the Earth |
156 | The Tree Lady: The True Story of How One Tree-Loving Woman Changed A City Forever | A Mighty Girl | |
157 | The Watcher: Jane Goodall’s Life with the Chimps | A Mighty Girl | |
158 | The Water Walker | Joanne Robertson | Start With A Book |
159 | The Wump World | Bill Peet | We Are teachers |
160 | The Year Comes Round: Haiku through the Seasons | Sid Farrar | Start With A Book |
161 | There Was a Tree | Rachel Isadora | Start With A Book |
162 | Turtle Bay | Saviour Pirotta | Read That Again |
163 | Under Water, Under Earth | Sierra Club | |
164 | Up We Grow! A Year in the Life of a Small, Local Farm | Deborah Hodge | Start With A Book |
165 | Wangari’s Trees of Peace: A True Story from Africa | A Mighty Girl | |
166 | Watch Me Grow! A Down-to-Earth Look at Growing Food in the City | Deborah Hodge | Start With A Book |
167 | We’re Sailing to Galapagos: A Week in the Pacific | Laurie Krebs | Start With A Book |
168 | What If There Were No Bees? | Suzanne Slade | Start With A Book |
169 | When Green Becomes Tomatoes: Poems for All Seasons | Julie Fogliano | Start With A Book |
170 | Where Once There Was a Wood | Denise Fleming | Start With A Book |
171 | Where The Forest Meets The Sea | Jeannie Baker | Read That Again |
172 | Where the River Begins | Thomas Locker | Start With A Book |
173 | Where the Wisdom Lies: | Children Of the Earth | |
174 | Who Was Rachel Carson? | A Mighty Girl | |
175 | Whole World | Children Of the Earth | |
176 | Why Do We Need Bees? | Emily Bone | Start With A Book |
177 | Wild Animals of the North | Dieter Braun. | Sierra Club |
178 | Wilderness: An Interactive Atlas of Animals | Hannah Pang | Start With A Book |
179 | Window | Jeannie Baker | Read That Again |
180 | Wolf Island | Celia Godkin | We Are teachers |
181 | Wonderful Nature, Wonderful You | Karin Ireland | Children Of the Earth |
182 | You’re Aboard Spaceship Earth | Patricia Lauber | Read That Again |
Source | Article |
A Mighty Girl | Top Children’s Books on the Environment |
Children Of the Earth | Great Books for Kids – Recommended Books that Help Children Learn … |
Family Education | Top 10 Earth Day Books for Children |
Nature | Where the wild tales are: how stories teach kids to nurture |
NWF | Summer Reading to Inspire Outdoor Time for Kids |
Read That Again | Children’s Book Reviews |
Sierra Club | 10 Nature-Themed Books to Give Kids of All Ages |
Start With A Book | Nature and the Environment: Fiction & nonfiction children’s books and … |
The Childrens Book review | Environment & Ecology : The Childrens Book Review |
We Are teachers | 17 of Our Favorite Picture Books About Nature |
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