I’ve been leading preschool story times at a local nature center for couple of years now.
This month, I’m getting ready for the spring session to start, so I’m pulling out my favorite picture books again. I’ll be reading up on owls, slugs, flowers, and all the other fun themes for the next few months.
Our first story time will be focused on owls. So, I wanted to share some of my favorite picture books. I’ve also included the craft project I made for the story time and some other activity ideas.
First, the picture books.
Did you know that there are almost 20 species of barn owls? Or that many owls start nesting the winter, from December through February? Reading is a hoot with these fun kids books, and you’ll learn all about these magnificent birds!
These books are a hoot! I’d suggest checking out a few and snuggling up in a blanket nest this month to read.
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If you want to avoid shopping on Amazon, I suggest checking Bookshop or your local bookstores instead.
To See an Owl, by Matthew Cordell
Janie has always dreamed of finding an owl. But how to start? With her teacher’s encouragement (and her mother’s patience), Janie sets out on an owl hunt. This book explores a variety of different habitats, while also showing kids a simple type of nature journal.
Owl Moon, by Jane Yolen, illustrated by John Schoenherr.
A late-night hike–and a hunt for a majestic owl. This classic picture book offers a fun outdoor adventure. Kids can follow along as the family in this story explores the mysterious woods. Can they find the great horned owls who live and hunt in those shadowy depths?
So You Want to Be an Owl, by Jane Porter, illustrated by Maddie Frost.
Ready to learn what it takes to be an owl? Professor Olaf Owl has you covered (with facts, not feathers). It’s a fun, silly book packed with facts and lively illustrations.
Molly The Owl, by Eric Blehm, illustrated by Christopher Adams.
This book is the true story of a young barn owl who lands in a family’s backyard. Molly gets blown in by a storm, but soon sets up house in a nest box. The family add a video camera and share her nest with family and friends. Then Molly turns into an Internet celebrity!
Whooo-ku: A Great Horned Owl Story, by Maria Gianferrari, illustrated by Jonathan Voss.
How much do you know about great horned owls? From nesting, to feeding their young, to protecting the fledglings from predators . . . this book has all the information you can need. And–it’s written entirely in haiku!
Owls, by Gail Gibbons
Did you know that there are more than 140 species of owls around the world? Or that owls are split into round-faced owls and heart-faced owls? This gorgeous picture books celebrates all things owl with simple graphics and detailed information. It’s a great resource for learning about different types of owls, as well as their behavior and habitats.
Owls!: Strange and Wonderful, by Laurence Pringle, illustrated by Meryl Henderson.
This book is a fun, easy-to-read look at owls around the world. It’s beautifully illustrated and packed with information about these amazing animals.
Tanna’s Owl, by Rachel Qitsualik-Tinsley
When Tanna’s father brings home a stray owl chick, he recruits her to help take care of it. It’s a dull, gray bird at first. Slowly, though, we get to watch with Tanna as the small chick grows into a gorgeous snowy owl. Then the time comes when Tanna must release the owl back to the wild . . .
Fire Flight, by Cedar Pruitt, illustrated by Chiara Fedele
As a helicopter crew flies through the haze and smoke of a forest fire, someone else flies alongside. A small owl takes refuge with them in the helicopter and catches a moment of rest in the confusion. This book tells the dramatic, real-life story of an owl during the 2020 wildfires in California.
The Know It Owl, by Terri Sabol, illustrated by Paula Piechna.
What is an owl? If they have plumicorns, are they really unicorns? How do they turn their necks and find their prey? Read along as the Know It Owl corrects his younger great horned owl relative! This book covers all the fun (and funny) facts about owls.
I shared this book in my round up of nature books from Indie authors back in December. It fits this theme, though, so I’m sharing it again!
The books above vary in length, but they all make good read-aloud stories.
If you have slightly older kids (or independent readers), this set of books my suit them better:
Owling: Enter the World of the Mysterious Birds of the Night, by Mark Wilson.
What makes owls so fascinating in stories as well as real life? This book looks at the owls of North America. It explores how they hunt, where they live, what they look like, and much more.
Whooo Knew?: The Truth about Owls, by Annette Whipple.
Fun, educational, and whimsical, this book offers a humorous nonfiction look at owls. It has great photos and a wealth of information about different owls species and their habits.
The Snowy Owl Scientist, by Mark Wilson
I recommend books from this Scientist in the Field series a lot! They’re some of the best crossovers I’ve found between nonfiction chapter books and picture books. This particular book follow scientist Denver Holt’s work in Alaska. Holt works on the coastal tundra of the North Slope, studying snowy owls and trying to understand their world.
Ready to make an owl puppet?
I like to do a craft project with each of my story times. For the owl theme, we make paperback bag puppets. You can design your own puppet and cut out the pieces from craft paper. Or, you can print out this template!
Before cutting out the pieces, color them with crayons or markers. Then cut them out and glue them onto a lunch bag. See if you can make your owl hoot!
Other activity ideas:
- Dissect an owl pellet. What kinds of bones can you find in the pellet? Are they from a bird or a rodent?
- Create an eye model. A human’s eye is just smaller than a ping-pong ball. But, if our eyes were as large as an owl’s eye in proportion to the rest of our head? Then our eyes would be the size of a softball! Find both a ping-pong ball and a soft ball. Then mark pupils on them and hold them up to your head. Imagine what you can see with these owl-sized eyes!
- Make a nature journal page. This can be as simple as drawing an owl in your sketch book. Be sure to write down a memory about an owl too! Or, you can watch John Muir Laws’ video about drawing owls on YouTube:
Did you enjoy these activities? Be sure to check out my blog post with ideas for building a nest, making a model frog, and more!
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