The First Book of Plants by Alice Dickinson is another book in the Franklin Watts “First Book of” series published in the ’50s/’60s that is now in the public domain.
One of the nice features of these books is that, though they are introductory in nature, they use the correct vocabulary. So the detail is greater than you might expect from a first look. Concepts and terms are aided with many helpful illustrations.
This title covers:
- Plants live and grow.
- Why plants are important.
- How plants make food.
- Plant cells.
- What plants take from the air, the ground, and the sun.
- How plants make new plants.
- Pollination.
- Different types of seeds and how they travel.
- Fruit.
- Bacteria.
- Nitrates.
- Fungus.
- Water plants.
- Annuals and perennials.
- Plant experiments.
When we were putting together the plant portion of our free nature studies series, we frequently found it difficult to find examples of what the author was referring to that were not above the level of most young children. You’ll find The First Book of Plants to be a very helpful reference in that regard, with illustrations of plants with different types of roots, stems, fruit, and more. We have added the book to many of the portions of the plant series of those studies.
The First Book of Plants is another great introduction to nature — and it’s free!
Free eBook
Suggestions
- Read one section at a sitting. Then have your child narrate what he learned.
- Ask him to create a plant notebook and decorate the cover.
- The narrations can be held inside the notebook.
- There are many useful diagrams in the book that will aid in understanding. Add these to the notebook. They can be printed or the child can draw them himself.
- Complete the experiments included. Use the notebooking pages below to document the findings.
- Get outside and try to find examples of each concept learned.
Additional Resources
The First Book of Plants by Alice Dickinson
Paperback version for those interested.
Nature Journal Notebooking Sets {Free Download}
Free set of pages to make creating a tree notebook easy.
Free Nature Studies: Our Wonderful World
You’ll find many, many resources for each topic in the book in the plant section of our free nature studies:
- Lesson XI: How Plants Grow
- Lesson XII: A Plant and Its Flower
- Lesson XIII: Roots of Many Forms
- Lesson XIV: Plants and Their Stems
- Lesson XV: Green Leaf Factories
- Lesson XVI: A Field Daisy and Its Family
- Lesson XVII: Bees and Flowers
- Lesson XVIII: Friendly Trees
- Lesson XIX: Fruit Trees and Forests
- Lesson XX: Seed Homes
- Lesson XXI: How Seeds Find New Homes
7 Helpful Gardening Resources
If you are ready to get out and grow some plants, you might find these resources helpful.
Nature Study Made Easy
Another free public domain book that tracks nicely.
Science Experiment Notebooking Pages {Freebie}
Our favorite pages for documenting experiments.
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