I received a free ARC from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

An introduction to patterns in nature. It was an okay read.

I am not quite sure what I was looking for when I chosee this particular book. The title promised a lot more than was delivered and the message was promising.

Instead what the book delivers to the reader is maybe a very basic introduction to patterns in nature. Although we don't normally construe most of the items presented as such there was a very nice presenetation of similar items that could be found and how they may relate.

There were times when the book tried to do so much more but it felt like the author had no idea how to truly present their ideas to their readers. And once they accepted the subject matter as being too much it led to a brisk end and a suggestion as to what other books could be a better suggested read.

The artwork wasn't much to talk about either. At times it was interesting, especially when the textures shone through. And then there were just times that it was easily overlooked.

In the end this isn't a book I would run out and grab for my child. Instead I would like to look at the other two suggested books first just to see what they contain.

***I received access to a copy of this book in exchange for a free review.***

This is a rather metaphysical, scientific, zen-like picture book for children that talks about the patterns in nature, from the swirls in your ears to those in galaxies. The illustrations are interesting, with lots of little hand drawn shapes in things like tree leaves. Kids get an introduction to various elements of biology, astronomy, etc.

Example text:

"These patterns are just the start.
Keep looking. Leopard spots and ladybug
dots. Ocean waves and mountain peaks.
Lightning bolts and cracks in the sidewalk.
FIND MORE (this is in a larger text and different color in my wonky digital ARC)
Patterns are everywhere you look... even in the mirror."

Children who particularly like patterns may be especially interested in it. It would make a good library book for others, but perhaps not one you'd need to buy for the home library.

I read a digital ARC of this book for the purpose of review.

The concept behind Flow, Spin, Grow -- that patterns in nature surround us and that we can learn something about an object or entity based on the pattern it shows -- is a wonderful one to explore, and the art in the book is captivating. I utterly love the cover image, and several others throughout delighted me: they are precise but playful, comprehensive yet simple, filled with easily identifiable patterns on every page yet never repetitive. I also loved the diversity of people shown in the images and the balance between pages with people and pages with just nature.

That said, the text does not do the images justice. The book's text focuses on each of the title words roughly sequentially: things that flow, things that spin and things that grow. But the parallelism isn't as eloquent as it ought to be because of confusing inconsistencies, odd pacing, too much wordiness and illogical organization. The first part talks mostly about branches, which indicate that sometimes is flowing -- flow. But the next section talks about things spinning, with no mention of what spinning is associated with (as opposed to branches being associated with flow). It goes from here into the pattern of spirals, which the book says indicates something is growing.

First, I'm not sure I agree, based on what I know of science and of spiral patterns in nature, that spirals always indicate "that something is growing or shrinking." But even if I accept that, the attempt to tie the title words together is confusing in terms of the emphasis, such as this excerpt: "Branches tell you that something is flowing. Moving objects make each other spin. Spirals mean that something is growing or shrinking." That sequence would lead to title words of "Branches Moving, Growing," perhaps, which isn't parallel. Flow, Spin, Grow is parallel, but there's no noun/objet to associate with "spin," which makes it feel like it doesn't fit. This comes out in the text as well since the first part discusses branches first, then how branching means flow. That's followed by a second part that focuses on spinning and then vaguely mentions that moving objects make things spin (which doesn't really make sense to me either). Then the third section returns to the pattern of the first part, first mentioning spirals (the noun) and then what they mean (growing, the verb). The pattern is off. This comes through in the examples as well. I felt like the examples of these patterns jumped around too much. Part of the book's point is to show how things overlap and are connected, but the text couldn't effectively pull it altogether. At the least, I wanted the words and syntax to be more lyrical, thoughtful and deliberate, but they don't feel that way either.

The concept behind the book is a great idea, and there was plenty of opportunity to "flow" from one concept to another to show how various patterns throughout our world and our bodies, from the tiniest atoms to the largest galaxies, are connected. That's clearly what the book tried to do, literally from atoms to galaxies, but the execution feels like a first, or maybe second, draft that needed tighter editing, more thematically united language and much stronger, intuitive organization of ideas.

An interesting concept, but not executed as well as I hoped. I do like that it encourages kids to examine nature, how things are connected, and to look for patterns, but it just doesn't quite come altogether for me.

This is really a poem, a wonder filled statement that various things in nature follow similar patterns. It might make a great start for an art class.

Barss' words and Stewart's illustrations bring all of nature and space to the reader in this wonderful book. All of the illustrations show patterns that connect things together even though we may not realize it. From the patterns in the man-made apartments to the gopher's tunnels beneath the tree, there are patterns everywhere. Parents and children can make a game of finding the patterns in the illustrations while reading the book (as well as finding patterns in their classroom or home).

Barss takes the reader through space to discover how the Earth twirls around the Sun and the moon around the Earth because of gravity, and how the sun and galaxies whirl around and create swirls. Those swirls are found on Earth as well, and connects everything in the Universe.

Thank you NetGalley and Owl Kids for the opportunity to read an advance reader copy.

Readers are encouraged to explore patterns in nature in this mindful rhyming book. A diverse group of children play and relax in an open park area in the opening spread. The text playfully crawls around the scene, encouraging kids to "Look, climb, dig, flow. Breathe in deep, around you go. Twirl, whirl, swirl, grow. Explore, find more, join the show." The text inspires readers to look for patterns everywhere: observe, dig, explore, climb; a tree trunk splits, branches split, and below the ground, roots split and grow; water branches off into smaller bodies of water, and our own lungs have little branches like mini-trees, reaching for air. Nature twirls and whirls, like the galaxies in space or two friends at play; pine cones, storm clouds, and snail shells all swirl. It's an interesting way to introduce scientific inquiry to burgeoning scientists. An author's note goes further into the "secret code" hidden in the shapes of things, and suggests additional resources for more reading.

The artwork is the star in this book. Multilayered screen prints and muted colors create a setting where patterns gently emerge, waiting for readers to spot them: triangles on a tree or bush; cracks in the dirt and roots underground reach out. Flow Spin Grow is a good purchase for primary science collections; I also love Joyce Sidman and Beth Krommes' award-winning Swirl by Swirl: Spirals in Nature, and Jane Brocket's Spotty, Stripy, Swirly: What Are Patterns?

Flow, Spin, Grow by Patchen Barss is a cute book with a first look at patterns in Nature. I had thought that the descriptions would be more in depth than they were. For preschoolers this would be a great instruction to patterns and movement in nature. There is an emphasis on looking and exploring. As a read aloud, this could become interactive for young children.

The illustrations are subtle, drawing the eye to the line more than to the color. The change in font is eye catching too. The tree and human body were easily understood examples, but the galaxy spinning was completely lost on the four-year-old that read the book with me. Perhaps space could have been saved for an older audience. Overall, I liked the title and the concept.

Some of the best times I had teaching my children over our years of homeschooling were outside in nature.

We did the nature walk scavenger hunt thing, we spread a blanket on the beach and learned about sea life, we even sat in a big hole in the backyard to learn literature analysis. Those really were some of the most fantastic moments with my kids.

There is just something about nature and forests that allows your child to really learn and explore.

I recently read three fabulous books that can help you teach your children math and art using a nature theme. These are books you can use with your little ones to learn math and appreciate nature. You can also use them with your elementary aged children to do those wonderful crafting and art projects that really make the memories. And you can use these books with middle ages and even high schoolers who love to get out and smell that crisp fall air in the woods.




Flow, Spin, Grow

The first is a book called Flow, Spin, Grow by Patchen Barss that will take your young and elementary aged child on an gentle adventure through the fantastic mathematical shapes we see all around us. Spirals and branching shapes are everywhere in nature. You find them everywhere things are growing and moving. This touchingly gently picture book will guide your child through some of the basic mathematical concepts that lead to a better understanding of nature. In advanced term, it is called chaos theory and nonlinear mathematics, but this book is a wonderful way to introduce those topics through their expression in the world around us. I absolutely love this book. It is perfect for anyone with a young child, or an elementary aged student.
Author:Patchen Barss
Format: Paperback, 32 Pages
ISBN: 9781771472876
Publisher: Owlkids

This picture book points out that often similar patterns in nature point to similar functions. Various examples of branching patterns are explored and how this often points to things that flow. Various examples of spiral patterns are explored and how these often point to things that are spinning or growing. The book challenges readers to look for other patterns and how similar patterns might show a relationship in function.

This was a little more complex than I thought it would be. It doesn’t just point out patterns kids can find in the world, it explores the whys behind those patterns. That might be a little much for some young brains to grasp but kids often surprise you with what they catch on to. If you want a book for a curious little reader or a patterns/matching book a little bit different from any of the others out there, you might want to give this one a try.

I received an ARC of this title from the publisher through NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

Meh. Branches aren't patterns. I don't think the book entirely works. It was mildly interesting, but no patterns. Illustrations were nice. But book can't really be used for science at all. Sorry.

Flow, Spin, Grow
By Patchen Barss
I liked the idea of patterns in nature. It is so beautiful to see the patterns created in our own body and all around us. I liked the pictures in this book but I didn't like the actual flow of this book and how the pictures related. I think it would have been better to keep the similar patterns together, side by side to compare, rather than spread out over pages. I didn't like how the story flowed. I didn't care for the titles throughout the book. I think it would have been fun to have the text throughout the pictures creating similar patterns. Overall it was not my favorite. My 3-year-old son and I read it together, making the patterns on our couch with our fingers. It was an engaging topic but I didn't care for this book.

This is a boring book. The concept probably is that everything is connected, you can find similar patterns in different shapes and objects (e.g. 'branches' in tree or human body) but it's not fleshed out properly and I found the meaning in it, a time-wasting exercise.

This book does a wonderful job of having children start to recognize patterns in nature. A good follow-up (perhaps once they are a bit older) would be talking about Fibonacci spirals in nature.

I really wanted to like this book. I love the concept of it, and the art is sweet and simple. But I had a hard time putting my finger on what age group the book was for. The ideas seemed appropriate for my 4 year old, but not always explained well enough for her inquisitive mind -- *why* does a branching pattern usually mean flow is happening? The language, at least in the beginning, was appropriate for my 2yo but the concepts mostly out of her grasp, and as the book went on the language became more explanatory and sophisticated. The 'grow' section is better explained and uses more direct language appropriate for my 4yo, but felt like a marked shift from the simpler 'flow' section that the book started with. The 'spin' section and the 'grow' section bleed into each other and don't read as distinct ideas. The summary at the end gave me an idea of what the author was going for, but I'm not sure they achieved their original intent.

I think this book has a really great basis and intent but just felt like a draft that could have used more consistency and a more clearly defined target audience.

Thank you Netgalley for providing me with an electronic copy of this in exchange for my honest review.

First off, I love that the author is attempting to simplify a large and slightly esoteric concept like patterning for children. It isn't a science-based book, but more of a general introduction to some pattern types found in nature and how they relate to kids. Trees have particles that spin and kids spin, see. I like that, it is a nice way to make a connection with a young child. My only complaint about the subject matter is it isn't in the science category or in the children's general category. I think the story could really benefit from the specific introduction of certain patterns like the golden ratio instead of staying vague. It's beautiful and kids could see how it is everywhere if they know what to look for.

All in all, it is a lovely book, both written and illustrated with a high degree and sensitivity to the need and understanding of children. I recommend it for kids around the age of 5.

Flow, Spin and Grow had many learning and teaching opportunities present. It is a beautiful book that would easily find a place on classroom bookshelves. I loved the connection between the natural world and patterns as well as other science phenomena. Excellent book for outdoor education.

This was a nice introduction to some of the general patterns found in nature -- branching (rivers, veins, etc.), spirals, etc., tying them in with actions. It seems to be meant more as inspiration than regular science-based nonfiction, and I liked that the narrative voice encouraged questions and observation, even if the voice was a bit inconsistent.

I thought it was neat overall, just maybe tried to bite off more than it could chew. I'm not sure the spinning of atoms and galaxies was adequately linked in with the other more visible examples.

(Thanks to NetGalley for the review copy.)

Using rhyme, a friendly tone, and detailed illustrations, this book encourages readers to consider the patterns found in nature. An author’s note asks readers to think about why giraffes, some pinecones, and a cracked desert floor have similar shapes. What do they have in common? This is a good book to use to stimulate conversation and careful observation.