Book Review: Wild Your World

Most kids go through a phase where they want to learn more about animals, and it’s fun for them to learn about the diversity of the natural world and what humans can do to protect other creatures we share the planet with. Camilla de la Bedoyere has written a couple of books, illustrated by Philip Giordano, to help kids learn more about birds and bees.

Wild Your World: Birds looks at many different kinds of birds that live around the world and covers things like parts of a bird, different habitats that birds live in, migration, camouflage, what and how birds eat and more.

With lovely illustrations showing a diverse array of birds found around the world, the book talks about different birds that live in the woodlands, rainforest, fields and farms, coastland, grasslands and deserts, urban areas and the polar regions.

It talks about some of the biggest, smallest and fastest birds, and fun facts about different birds. For example you’ll learn about birds that next in cacti, the birds with weird shaped eggs so they won’t roll off cliffs, and meet the birds that migrate from New Zealand to Alaska.

Wild Your World: Bees follows a similar format, talking about different kinds of bees (and how the vast majority of bee species are solitary bees), parts of a bee and why bees look the way they do, how bees collect nectar and pollen, how bees sense the world around them, how their wings work and what life in a colony is like.

It covers the bee life cycle, how bees make honey, what causes a swarm and more. It covers digger bees, carpenter bees, orchid bees, cuckoo bees (who lay their eggs in the nests of teddy bear bees so they don’t have to take care of their young), mining bees, plasterer bees, leaf-cutter, wool carder and mason bees (so named because they collect materials to make their nests), bumblebees and swaet bees.

Readers will also learn about keeping bees. Both books talk about the dangers to birds and bees and what humans can do to help them.

These books are aimed at readers ages 4-9 who will enjoy looking at the pictures and learning about these animals and how people can help protect them.

About the books: Both books are 46 pages and hardcover. Published 2025 by Design Eye (see: birds|bees). Both books retail for $16.99.

Let’s Get Buzzing About World Bee Day

Bee Craft – Learning about Pollination

Learning about Bees for Kids

Hispanic Heritage Month runs from Sept. 15 to Oct. 15 each year (because it celebrates the time period when several countries gained their independence) and it’s a great time to bring in some Hispanic inspired crafts and foods. For an overview on the celebration, the difference between Hispanic and Latino and the importance of the holiday, as well as a look at Latino art and famous Latinos and Latinas, check out this post and related information from the National Museum of the American Latino.

Spanish Playground has a great collection of craft ideas that you can do in Spanish class or with kids in any class or at home. It includes things like weaving, making mola (folk art from Panama; learn more at Kid World Citizen), doing an artist study of a Hispanic artist and more.

Crafty Chica has a great collection of crafts, coloring pages and printables for celebrating Hispanic Heritage Month with kids. I love this coloring page inspired by Amante bark painting, but there are also folk art stamps, corn husk dolls, tile painting ideas and more.

Papel picado is a classic folk art from Mexico that will feel familiar if you’ve ever made a paper snowflake. Learn how to make them from tissue paper with this video from Hispanic Society Museum and Library.

Learn more about Hispanic Heritage Month, get recipes and crafts from PBS Kids. I love this Peruvian siku flute, which can be made with old markers or paper straws.

While not exactly a craft, playing loteria (a Spanish language bingo game) is a fun thing to do with a group of kids. Free Kids Crafts has printable bingo cards with basic Spanish vocabulary and images for people who don’t already know these words.

And if you need a little snack when you’re done crafting, try these no bake mini tres leches cakes from Inspired by Family. They’re made with purchased pound cake so they’re pretty fast and easy.

Have you read?

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