Nature Heroes by Lily Dyu (Nosy Crow – June 2025)
Nature Heroes is a fascinating collection of twenty biographies about significant individuals who work hard to protect our world. While some humans are destroying nature through their actions, these heroes are standing up to the threats facing plant Earth and inspiring others to do the same. Starting with renowned naturalist Jane Goodall, readers are introduced to people who are really making a difference around the world with a huge variety of animals, habitats and ecosystems.
Each biography is about 10 pages long making them really manageable. This book would be a fantastic class read aloud in Key Stage 2 or Key Stage 3, sharing and discussing one chapter each day. It would also lend itself well to Reading lessons or as a model for biography writing.
Greener Grass by Sarah Surgey & illustrated by Dannii Summerfield (Brilliant Monsters Books – July 2025)
Greener Grass is a lovely story celebrating the beauty of nature in our gardens while helping children navigate jealousy and friendships. Etta lives in a flat in the city. This doesn’t stop her from creating a beautiful garden on her balcony. She loves all her plants and flowers and feels very content. One day, she spots another garden through her telescope. This one is large and open with none of the constraints she has in her garden. Etta can’t help but feel jealous of the boy with this amazing garden. When a storm blows through, Etta’s garden survives because it is protected from the wind and rain while the boy’s garden suffers a lot of damage. Etta’s jealousy is replaced with empathy as she realises the loss he must be feeling and hopes he’ll be able to restore his special garden.
This story will be perfect for EYFS and Key Stage 1 classes learning about plants and growing. The contrast of the two gardens shows that beauty can be created in even the smallest spaces and everyone can be a gardener. Young readers will be able to empathise with both characters on their emotional journey and make suggestions about how they can become friends.
Our Pebbles by Jarvis (Walker Books – June 2025)
Our Pebbles is an absolutely gorgeous story about the special realationship between a boy and his grandad. The simple joys of walking to the beach, exploring the shore, talking to animals and finding treasure are depicted through charming illustrations and engaging text. Every time they visit the beach, this lovely pair choose a pebble and paint it with details of their day. As their collection grows, it reflects their shared memories and so many special days. When Grandad has to move away, the boy and his mum find a way to bring the pebbles to him.
Our Pebbles would be a wonderful book to read with grandparents and might even prompt the start of a lovely family tradition. It will help readers to understand that sometimes grandparents have to move into a home but traditions can be adapted and carry on.
Bessie’s Bees by George Kirk & illustrated by Ana Gomez (Templar Books – July 2025)
Bessie’s Bees uses busy, buzzy bees as a metaphor for ADHD. Bessie’s head was always buzzing with bees which was fine at home. They were a team and had established routines that made Bessie happy. However, when Bessie started at nursery, it seemed no one else had any bees. She decided she needed to keep hers hidden. This made things really difficult. Bessie was distracted by the buzzing inside her head until everything went wrong. Thankfully, Granny (who had bees of her own) was able to help Bessie learn how to share her bees and be true to herself.
Bessie’s Bees is an empowering and accessible first introduction to neurodiversity. The visual metaphor of the bees will help children to understand themselves a little bit better and develop empathy for their friends. With careful explanation, this book is a must-have for EYFS classrooms.
Feel Your Happy: A Celebration of the Senses by Emily Coxhead (Walker Books – June 2025)
The world is a wonderful place to explore using all our senses. But, sometimes it can become overwhelming. Feel Your Happy helps children to identify and celebrate their senses while providing suggestions for how to cope when things are too loud, bright, scratchy, smell strange or taste bad. Children are empowered to find happiness in difficulty by taking a deep breath and communicating what they need. Emphasising that everyone experiences the world differently allows young readers to develop empathy, acceptance and patience for those who need to take a few moments to “feel their happy”. This is another fantastic book for exploring differences and helping children understand the needs of others.
The Great Pollination Investigation by Deborah Hocking (Templar Books – May 2025)
Created in partnership with the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew, The Great Pollination Investigation answers so many questions about flowers, their relationship with insects and what makes them grow. Adorable yet detailed illustrations with fun flaps make this a hugely appealing book for readers age 5+. Challenging vocabulary is clearly explained and scientific concepts are not oversimplified. This book respects its readers with correct terminology and detailed facts they will be able to continue to use as they grow. The focus on the words “pollen”, “pollination” and “pollinators” reinforces the concepts and allows children to build on their knowledge.
Young readers will love exploring The Great Pollination Investigation as a class, with a friend or with an adult at home. It will be invaluable for Key Stage 1 and Lower Key Stage 2 Science topics about plants and growth and will be perfect for my Brownies (age 7-9) when they work on their “Grow Your Own” badge.
The Great Pollination Investigation could be paired with Greenwild: The World Behind the Door for a perfect fiction / non-fiction match.
RSPB Bird of the Week (Bloomsbury – April 2025)
Based on the #rspb TikTok series, RSPB Bird of the Week is the ultimate guide to bird watching, identification, habits and protection. Each bright, glossy double-page spread provides fascinating facts (and a few jokes) about a British bird. With 52 in total, there’s one bird to learn about each week for an entire year. Children will love this engaging and totally fun approach to bird watching and looking after our feathered friends.
RSPB Bird of the Week will make a fantastic gift for a young naturalist and, with its sturdy hardcover, would be great for taking on holiday to help with identifying birds around the UK.
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