Here is a To Change a Planet review for librarians, teachers and parents. One planet is all we have. Just one. A child is just one person. How can one child change a planet? When one molecule, carbon dioxide, threatens our one planet. It may seem like too much for one child to do much about.
To Change a Planet Book Review
Celebrated author Christina Soontornvat provides a child-friendly explanation of climate change any child could comprehend.
The Story
Climate change can be a tricky subject to explain to children, but Soontornvat’s masterful prose manages to simplify the subject in picture book form. Quite the feat for the 32 page limit on picture books for subject many adults can’t seem to comprehend.
The author expertly takes the science and uses figurative language like similes to bring the concept to life. Carbon dioxide covers the Earth like a blanket.
Primary grade students will be able to read this book and comprehend it, and upper grade students will be able to study the science more deeply and analyze the figurative language in the text. This makes this book a rather perfect addition to any Earth Day read alouds.
The Illustrations
Rahele Jomepour Bell’s illustrations are stunning. From their depiction of the carbon dioxide molecule to summarizing in one spread, the ways that humans are producing carbon dioxide; the illustrations lift the text to a new level.
The most memorable spread for me was the one that shows Earth covered in a blanket that is depicted as a quilt. The quilt shows the many ways that carbon dioxide is produced to really help students see what makes the Earth blanket.
Conclusion
Christina Soontornvat and Rahele Jomepour Bell have teamed up to create a book on climate change that every library should have. Whether you want to study climate change, activism or figurative language, To Change a Planet should be on the shelf. Grades Kindergarten through 3rd grade will really enjoy this story the most. It will still be great for all elementary grades.
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