Ocean Seasons

Seasons change in the ocean much as they do on land. Spring brings new plants and baby animals, summer oceans glow with sparkly plankton lights, and autumn winds blow across the open water. In winter the humpback whales migrate to warmer waters, just as some land animals move to warmer climates. The cycle begins again as they return to the northern waters in the spring. In fun, fanciful form, Ocean Seasons introduces plants and animals that are joined through the mix of seasons, food webs, and habitats beneath the waves. While set in the Pacific, similar changes occur in the Atlantic also. The "For Creative Minds" learning sections features and "Ocean Food Web Card Game." This nonfiction picture book with a cuddle factor includes a 4-page For Creative Minds section in the back of the book and a 39-page cross-curricular Teaching Activity Guide online. Ocean Seasons is vetted by experts and designed to encourage parental engagement. Its extensive back matter helps teachers with time-saving lesson ideas, provides extensions for science, math, and social studies units, and uses inquiry-based learning to help build critical thinking skills in young readers. The Spanish translation supports ELL and dual-language programs. The interactive ebook reads aloud in both English and Spanish with word highlighting and audio speed control to promote oral language skills, fluency, pronunciation, text engagement, and reading comprehension.