by Taetske | 4:50 pm
(Last Updated On: August 1, 2021)

 

Make your child understand Climate Change

 

I have written a couple of posts on Global Warming and the effect it has on our climate. We are already experiencing climate change and slowly but surely many people are waking up to this fact.

The ice is melting and changing the habitat of a lot of animals. The melting of the ice releases some not-so-pleasant surprises. Bacteria and viruses which have been frozen and dormant for millennia are suddenly set free. Methane is bubbling up from lakes close to the arctic circle posing a more rapid increase in greenhouse gases causing more global warming.

 

The last ice

The last Ice image Gerd Altmann

 

How the weather is changing

Somewhere else in our world, islands get flooded because of rising water levels, and the people who lived there for many generations have no option but to leave. We can observe extreme weather conditions worldwide.

From more devastating hurricanes and typhoons to massive forest fires in Europe, the U.S., and Australia. Wherever you look, our so-called pleasant climate seems to disappear, going from one extreme to the other.

 

The Globe

The Globe image Gerd Altmann

 

We have a responsibility to take care of the planet

We, grown-ups, are watching and trying to cope,  hoping there would be solutions to at least mitigate these extremes, but it seems that adults cannot agree on taking global action. Too many interests interfere and it is obvious with our passivity, we will get nowhere like this. The consequences for this passivity will cost us all dearly.

What will we leave for future generations? Will we leave a dead and suffocating environment? How will future generations think about us, their ancestors?

The small children will be grown-ups in 20 to 30 years and will wish to form their own families. Will they be able to do this?

 

2 small boys reading a book

2 Small boys reading a book image Victoria Borodinova

 

Information from Sierraclub.org

Recently I came across a newsletter from Sierraclub.org, which made me think about this. The children of our times hear the words Global Warming and Climate Change constantly in the conversations of their parents and other family members.

On TV, it is also often mentioned, and it is very possible it awakes their imagination and they want to know more about all of this. It is not too easy for parents to explain this difficult and multifaceted issue. Luckily a lot of excellent books, apt for different age groups, have come on the market.

Reading to your child has multiple benefits.

 

Jules-Verne statue with mother reading to small son

JulesVerne statue with mother reading to small son image floherrouO

 

By reading you learn

You might choose to read these books to your child. I remember when I was young my Mother used to read a lot to me and that cultivated my love for books. It is so cozy to curl up on the sofa and read to your child. There are also some books geared to older children that they might want to read themselves.  I will present a short list of books which might aid a child in understanding this difficult topic.

 

Have a look at this nice collection of books suitable for different ages

Ages 3-7

The Digger and the Flower by Joseph Kuefler.

It shows little children that you can do something on a personal level, like planting flower seeds in your garden. It tells about urban expansion putting in peril a flower and a backhoe trying to avoid this.

 

 

Ages 4-8

The Brilliant Deep by Kate Messner, illustrated by Matthew Forsythe

Does your child like the seas? If yes, it will have heard about the coral reefs and that they are dying. In this book, you will find a powerful message. There is still hope as The Coral Restoration Foundation is working on the conservation of the reef.

 

 

Ages 5-6

Great Polar Bear by Carolyn Lesser

This book is illustrated with exquisite cut-paper collages. The writer shows its young readers how the polar bears are struggling to survive because of climate change.

 

 

Ages-6-10

Icebergs and Glaciers by Seymour Simon

The writer explains the melting of Iceland’s ice sheets and that there are countries that contemplate the use of icebergs as sources of freshwater as they are lacking rain. The melting of the ice is causing cities and towns to flood. In this book, you will find photos of places that will disappear in time.

 

 

Ages 7 and more

Look at the Weather by Britta Teckentrup

Using lovely landscape paintings to illustrate the sun showers and ocean fog, some poetic language to then continue on a factual tone explaining the ways of the rain, snow, and storms and their role in the increase of temperatures.

 

 

Ages 8-12

The End of the Wild by Nicole Helget

The leaking of Methane because of fracking is one of the factors which intensify climate change. This story is about a girl who lives in a depressed rural area where the fracking company promises jobs but at the same time causes water pollution, destroying ecosystems, and can even break relationships.

 

 

Ages 9-13

Rising Seas by Keltie Thomas

This is not a book with cheerful prognoses, it tells about the rising temperatures around the globe. From places like Miami to Kiribati to Antarctica, the water level rises. This book offers 10 ways to make a difference and most teens could feel inspired.

 

 

Ages 10 and more

When the Sky Breaks by Simon Winchester

The writer explains why monster storms like Hurricane Sandy and Cyclone Tracy form part of the global warming process. It calls for action as human behavior worsens those storms and all the other following up consequences. This is a book for those children who want an understandable scientific explanation of it all.

 

 

Ages 6-10

A place for Turtles. by Melissa Stewart, illustrated by Higgins Bond.

What we do influences the lives of bats, butterflies, frogs, fish, birds, and turtles. It explains why we should protect the ecosystem as they are disappearing because of rising temperatures.

 

 

Ages 7-14

The Wolves of Currumpaw by William Grill

This is the biography of wolf hunter Ernest Thompson Seton. Then came the point in his life which brought on a change of heart about wild animals and the environment. Later on, he became the co-founder of the Boy Scouts of America. In 2013, the organization mandated that its Eagle members earn sustainability badges – a reminder of human contributions to climate change.

 

 

Ages 8-12

The Global Warming Express by Marina Weber, illustrated by Joanna Whysner.

This is a fantasy story about a group of animals that are alarmed by climate change and want to fight it. It sends a message to the young readers: If they can do it, so can you. The nine-year-old founders of Global Warming Express illustrated this tale.

 

 

Conclusion

Here are some lovely books to read from if your child is still small. For older children, they are the perfect gift for the coming holidays. Our future generation has a right to be informed about what is happening in our world, as it will be their world in the future. So buy some books for the children so they can be informed and will see their world with fresh eyes.

Before you leave, have a look at Recommendations. It is a special page I have made for you. It holds a collection of things you might find interesting.

 

Source: Lela Nargi, Aug 27, 2018, for SierraClub.org

Photo Source: Pixabay

 

Here you can read about things that are released when the ice melts.

Global Warming: some unsettling Happenings in our World

 

Comments

David

Great article with an important message. We have a responsibility to educate and guide our future generations. If we don’t, then the future looks very bleak. Unfortunately, politics often gets in the way of doing anything about environmental issues, so the more people evangelise the problems, the better.

Some great books to read there and I will be certain to share that information with others.

Keep up the good work!

Nov 21.2018 | 04:17 pm

    Taetske

    Good afternoon David,

    You are right, politicians often make decisions which do not benefit our planet and neither reflect the majority of the people. 

    That is a nice idea to share this post with other people. Christmas is around the corner and a good book is a sensible gift I think.

    Thank you for leaving a comment on my website. I hope you downloaded your free PDF?

    Regards, Taetske

    Nov 21.2018 | 05:19 pm

Kehinde Segun

Anytime I heard or reminded of Global Warming, my heart would suddenly stop. Because I always think about the bad days it that are yet to come. The feelings and imagination of the incoming disasters like diseases, water level rising that might cause flooding, hurricanes etc will just fill my mind.

Aside from reading of books for the kids, is there another way to prepare them for this incoming disasters?

Jan 26.2019 | 10:20 am

    Taetske

    Good evening Kehinde,

    Thank you for leaving a comment on my website. I hope you downloaded your free PDF?

    You ask me if there are other things we can do to prepare our children for the incoming disasters. I would prefer to try and show children that we can do a lot on a personal level to mitigate the problems. 

    Go shopping with your own bags. Do not buy food which is wrapped in plastic. Separate your waste for recycling. When you have a drink in the bar do not use a plastic straw. Be careful with your water use. When buying a new car how about an electric one. Each child should plant at least 1 tree in her or his life. One can do many things to help the planet. Parents should be a good example for your children.

    Regards, Taetske

    Jan 26.2019 | 05:33 pm

Lok Which

Thanks for sharing this information. I have been searching for books I can buy for my kids to educate them and keep them busy. Reading this post I think I have seen a stop to my search these books will even educate my kids the more on what is happening around them. I will be getting one of this books.

Jan 26.2019 | 10:22 am

    Taetske

    Good evening Lok,

    Thank you for your comment on my post. I hope you have downloaded your free PDF?

    Nice to hear you find the information helpful for finding a good book for your children. It is never too soon to tell them what is happening in the world. They want to live here and have their own families. We should all together make this possible.

    Regards, Taetske

    Jan 26.2019 | 05:44 pm

Riaz Shah

Great point there Taetske,

I’m sorry to say but a lot of kids today have zero understanding of global warming, almost every kid in my neighbourhood do not even believe in it. Everytime I try talking to them about how the water is rising due to ice caps melting but they keep bringing up excuses to not care and the worst one I’ve heard so far is “If Trump doesn’t believe in Global Warming why should we?” Oh my god, I swear…

Jan 26.2019 | 10:23 am

    Taetske

    Good evening Riaz,

    It is very sad that Mr. Trump gives such a bad example, he has no heart for the environment and only thinks about money. I hope that by the next time people make a better choice. We have a responsibility to care for our habitat as it will be the home for future generations.

    Thank you for your comment. I hope you have downloaded your free PDF?

    Regards, Taetske

    Jan 26.2019 | 05:58 pm

Clement

Thank you for taking your time to lend your voice about the impact and effect of global warming in our society, in my humble opinion I think it should be a collective fight so as to sustain our environment and save humanity. I will check out the book:The dagger and the flower and I think it will be nice to teach my nephew what global warming is all about and measures that can help protect the environment.

Jan 26.2019 | 10:23 am

    Taetske

    Good evening Clement,

    Nice to see you again. Thank you for your comment.

    We have to find the right leaders so we can all fight together. Sadly there are leaders who deny Global Warming and are more interested in earning money. 

    I hope your nephew will find the book you have chosen for him interesting. One day when grown up he will have to take care of our planet.

    Regards, Taetske

    Jan 26.2019 | 08:42 pm

Jay

Kids are the leaders of tomorrow and sometimes we feel they are too little to pay attention to events happening around them. But I think that is not the case and there are a lot of things happening around us that our kids need to be aware of. For example, global warming is a topic kids are becoming more curious about because they live in the environment and are also experiencing and able to see changes in the climate and the environment.

When they get curious about these events we need to be able to reply and educate them so that they can get a better understanding of exactly what is happening. One very good way to teach a kid is through books and I am glad that the books you suggested talk a lot about our environment and global warming. This would be a good read for kids and they would benefit from it a lot.

Jan 26.2019 | 10:29 am

    Taetske

    Good evening Jay,

    Nice to see you again. Thank you for your comment.

    We all have a responsibility towards our environment. It is important to show the children that we care instead of polluting and destroying our habitat. I am happy that there are a lot of good books out there which show the children what is happening. 

    Regards, Taetske

    Jan 26.2019 | 08:48 pm

mzakapon

Hi Taetske,

Thanks for sharing this excellent information about Global warming and children learning issue on this topic. I am agreed with you that though this topic is covered in their school’s books, they need to understand it thoroughly. I believe more illustrated figures with resourceful information of the “Digger and the Flower” book will be best concept for their learning on global warming issue. I am planning to buy one for my child soon. Thanks for sharing.

Jan 26.2019 | 11:35 am

    Taetske

    Good evening Mzakapon,

    Thank you for your visit and leaving a comment. Nice to see you again.

    Parents have an obligation to inform their children about this important topic. After all, it is affecting their world also, the world where one day they want to form a family. We should show them to respect our environment we only have this planet to live on.

    I am happy to hear you have found a good book to give to your child.

    Regards, Taetske

    Jan 26.2019 | 08:52 pm

swangirl

Hello Taetske,

These look like great books. I am very familiar with most of these themes as they were the topic of my graduate school courses. I was immersed in rising ocean levels, melting glaciers, the plight of polar bears and species that have to migrate to higher altitudes and latitudes attempting to find suitable habitat as climate changes. My last research paper was about ocean acidification and the effects on coral, sea birds, fish and creatures such as crabs. These changes are already occurring here in high latitudes and especially in Alaska. Our cold water holds more carbon dioxide and allows acidification to occur that much faster. The effects can already be measured on sea creatures and they are already moving in response. Sea birds are dying and the shells of tiny creatures are thinning as calcium carbonate weakens.

I spent 10 years studying these topics and I often felt all alone among my family and co-workers. Most people here don’t believe in climate change. My school was thousands of miles away and conducted online so my classmates were all at a distance. It was very lonely at times. It appeared to me that the younger generation were the ones to accept climate change while adults were obstinate and refused to believe the evidence. It is a strange thought to me for adults to be teaching kids about it since here it seems to the other way around. Good for you for being enlightened enough to face reality and teach kids who need to see what is really happening regardless of politics and what is convenient. 

I cannot tell you how many times I was told we cannot destroy our economy based on something that is not proven or that it isn’t fair to punish us for what might happen in the future. This is often the result of a religious upbringing here where people are taught that man is superior to all other life on earth and the resources here are for our use above all else. That kind of indoctrination is hard to break. The people telling me this were not particularly religious themselves but the culture as a whole is strong. I am not very religious either but I believe if you are a good Christian than you should be the Shepard and steward taking care of the creatures on earth, not just taking advantage of them. If more people understood this they would be more willing to do what it takes to care for the earth rather than view it as a store of free goods to take at will.

I really enjoyed seeing this list of great books. 

Thank you,

Jessica

Jan 26.2019 | 11:35 am

    Taetske

    Good Morning Jessica,

    Thank you for your long comment on my post. I hope you downloaded your free PDF?

    It is awful what we humans are doing to our environment. So sad the see these beautiful corals lose their colors and die. With that, a whole ecosystem disappears. On land, we have the bees that are dying and when they are gone it will all collapse us included. Then one should not forget the plastic pollution, altogether a cocktail  of tremendous stupidities. I do not understand why people still deny that our actions have consequences, extremely serious ones.

    It happens often that children have a clearer view of things. A good example is the German boy Felix, who at the age of 9 years started a worldwide movement planting millions of trees. Here comes the link.https://motherearthstreasures.com/reforestation-amazing-vision-of-a-young-boy

    Older  people are often stuck in their views they have held for so long and therefore are not capable of seeing things from a different angle.

    Yes, economy, I know what you mean. Going from agriculture to building factories was possible. That is why I say one can also switch over from coal and nuclear to wind, water, and sun. Of course, it means a big investment in the beginning but it will pay for its self in some years. The good we will be doing to our health is priceless but it seems that big companies really do not care about that. Because of technology we soon will be living in a gigantic microwave world you cannot escape from. When those 5G satellites are up there we will be bombarded with radiation which will fry us. When the human race is gone those companies have nobody to sell their gadgets.

    You are right, we should be taking care of our planet, that is our obligation also towards future generations. It does not look good at all.

    Regards, Taetske

    Jan 27.2019 | 07:31 am

Christian

We do have a responsibility to teach every generation about global warming. I feel like because of covid 19 and the huge break we had on global emissions, that is gonna take an even bigger toll when we get back to our lives, and everything goes back to normal. That huge fluctuation between doing well and our normal is really doing a number on the ice caps.

Jan 05.2021 | 05:55 pm

    Taetske

    Good Morning Christian,

    Thank you for your visit and for your comment. I hope you downloaded your free PDF? Tulip widget.

    When the world had the first lockdown, amazing things happened. The water in Venice cleared up and swans and dolphins were seen swimming in the lagoons. In India one could suddenly see the far-away mountains again, first time in more than 30 years. When the beeaches became deserted, nature came back in the form of happy turtles which could lay their eggs again.

    We definitely have an obligation to take care of Mother Earth. It is obvious we have done a poor job till now. 

    I would like to invite you to have a look at the green widget Save the Planet. You will find it in the sidebar. bUnited is a worldwide movement which is free to join. It might resonate with you.

    Regards, Taetske 

    Jan 06.2021 | 07:46 am

Hannie

Marvelous, Taetske, the grandkids are coming over next week and their English is really improving. And some of these books will surely be translated into Spanish, so that will do as well.

A good reason to visit the local library. I hope it’s open after these dreadful lockdowns. 🙂

Thanks for the tips!

Jun 18.2021 | 03:26 pm

    Taetske

    Good afternoon Hannie,

    Thank you for stopping by and for your comment.

    Nice to hear you found my list of books useful. Often a book can do wonders in understanding a difficult topic for children. I grew up without a computer and tv. There was a lot of time for reading in those days.

    I hope you will be successful in your search. Have a great time with the grandchildren.

    Regards, Taetske

    Jun 21.2021 | 02:00 pm

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