Coastal Care Junior

“Earth’s Beating Heart”: 12 Coastal-Themed Books to Help Kids Grow Their Understanding and Empathy – Hakai Magazine

Cover illustration by Michelle Mee Nutter for the book The Girl Who Built an Ocean (courtesy of Penguin Random House).
Cover illustration by Michelle Mee Nutter for the book The Girl Who Built an Ocean (courtesy of Penguin Random House).

Excerpt:
From the Arctic to the Antarctic and from the smallest bioluminescent organism to the biggest whales, this season’s selections take readers through the world’s oceans and introduce them to a range of incredible species.

It’s no secret that screen time is increasing in schools, often at the expense of storytime. And while the results of the research into the potential benefits and harms of technology in the classroom are all over the map, the evidence of the extensive benefits of reading is indisputable.

Not only does reading improve kids’ cognitive development, literary skills, concentration, and creativity, it also helps them gain a deeper understanding of the world, develop empathy for others, and build stronger bonds with the people with whom they read.

With kids often reading less in schools, it’s more important than ever to encourage them to pick up books at home, especially titles about important topics like the ocean, which, as author Rochelle Strauss puts it, is “Earth’s beating heart.”

To get you started, here are 12 new coastal-themed children’s books to captivate readers of all ages.

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