Unbeelievables

Florian, Douglas. 2012. UNBEELIEVABLES: HONEYBEE POEMS AND PAINTINGS. Ill. by Douglas Florian. New York: Beach Lane. 9781442426528 [Suggested Grade Levels K – 5]

REVIEW

Florian presents entertainment, science lessons, and poetry in one short but valuable book of fourteen poems. Each double-page spread contains one large, colorful illustration, and the opposing page contains a thematic poem whereby readers learn about bees’ homes, bodies, roles, life-cycles, the honey-creation process, and the recent disconcerting disappearance of honeybees. Factual information supplements the fun, rhyming poems on each page. At the conclusion of the book, Florian provides a “beebliography” and online resources for further reading.

CONNECTIONS

Young readers can create their own bee works of art demonstrating information they learned from a poem. Older readers can use this book of poems as a starting point to conduct further research about bees, and use a Web 2.0 tool to show off their research product.

RELATED BOOKS

Other books for children with nature-themed poetry:

Davies, Nicola. OUTSIDE YOUR WINDOW: A FIRST BOOK OF NATURE. ISBN 9780763655495

Lewis, J. Patrick. NATIONAL GEOGRAPHIC BOOK OF ANIMAL POETRY: 200 POEMS WITH PHOTOGRAPHS THAT SQEAK, SOAR, AND ROAR. ISBN 9781426310096

By Jennifer E. M. Richey