I've never thought much about the fact that while I know what wind is, I really don't know a lot about what makes wind and honestly, I can't even see it. Wind is a Dance straddles two feelings: lyrical metaphor and fact-giving nonfiction. The text and images swirl with the varying emotions of wind, in all its varied forms. Shumaker compares a hurricane to a whisk, lighter breezes to butterflies, and the illustrations bring that symbolism to life. For the more engaged reader, most pages feature a paragraph teaching the science behind each wind, in helpful nonfiction learning that knows how to keep away from the "too dense" precipice. Balanced and well-informed science for children.

Read as a nomination in the nonfiction book award category as a panelist for Children's and Young Adult Bloggers' Literary Awards (Cybils Awards).

I absolutely loved, loved, loved this book. The art combined with the poetry of the writing made it a soothing read. On top of that, it taught me stuff even I didn't know at 39-years-old and refreshed my mind where it concerned stuff I'd learned in school yeaaaaars ago. It also made learning a fun, bright experience. The art itself adds to the soothing experience in the best way as it's so well done. The colors used were a beautiful choice and made the words more captivating. I would definitely recommend this book as an educational tool for parents or teachers, but also just as an enjoyable read for those of any age.

Wind is a Dance is an illustrated picture book that somehow tries to put an element that can not be seen, on paper. Children are naturally drawn to the elements and the power of the wind is no exception. The delightfully illustrated book describes wind; from the gentlest breeze to the riotous hurricane. It is a picture book with foundational knowledge to share with children. Even a few adults might learn something new.

What is wind? Teach children about this force of nature through this delightfully illustrated book, which follows wind in intensity from a breeze to a tornado, and back to a light wind! This book would be perfect for movement activities. Definitions of types of winds accompany the text. More about Wind and Measuring Wind sections are included at the end.

Very cute book with best metaphors for different types of wind. I’ve not seen a book like this before and I really like it! It’s educational while offering the coolest comparisons! The illustrations are lovely, both in style and color.

"Wind is a Dance" is a children's informational and poetic children's book written
by Debra Kempf Shumaker and illustrated by Josée Bisaillon.

On each spread, we have a lyrical poem about the wind as well as a colored box of text explaining what is causes the effect such as a headwind or gale force. I like the shapes the wind turns into, such as a puppy, a whisk, or boxing gloves. The end of the book asks, "How would you describe the wind today?" Now that you've had some good examples, you can probably come up with your own good analogies or compare it to one that was described in the book.

The end of the book has more information about the wind and the glossary of words to describe wind at different forces. Next, there is a chart called Measuring Wind with info about the Beaufort Scale. Finally is a description of an Anemometer, an instrument used to measure wind, as well as book and website sources for more information.

This book would be great for a science lesson on the wind and weather or a literature lesson about descriptive words or analogies.

This book is highly recommended for classrooms, children's libraries, and in the home of kids interested in weather.

Thank you to Netgalley, Kids Can Press, and Debra Kempf Shumaker for providing me with this e-book in exchange for my honest review.

What is wind? This is the question that is answered in this delightful book [and not always in the way you expect], with fantastic illustrations and a lovely story about wind and what it is and what it represents and just how we can "see" it. Filled with so many things to look at and discuss, and a section with notes and sources at the back, this is an excellent book for littles who are endlessly curious [and their adults]. It was a thoroughly enjoyable read!

Thank you to NetGalley, Debra Kempf Shumaker, Josée Bisaillon - Illustrator, and Kids Can Press for providing this ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Only the other week I was charmed by a book in verse for the very young concerning the water cycle (https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/6826661691) – this is similar, but different. It borrows from verse in using metaphors for all the different winds, which include one I've never heard of. This allows visually for the winds to be anything from wispy, diaphanous tutus to ghost puppies to phantom cosmic whisks, as we learn how different strengths of wind have different behaviours and effects and cause different problems – and how they all come about in the first place. The issue here is a common one, however – the pages need two voices on them, one to do the poetical, artistic stuff, and the other to convey the science, and they just interrupt each other too much. OK, so the science is not breaking into the verse and spoiling the rhythm and rhyme like with some such books, but it is added to at the end, and so might perhaps have all waited until then and not strayed onto the more artful spreads we started with. All the same, it's a clash that reduces the charm here, so three and a half stars for the effective accuracy it does have.

I have tried to read this book with my kiddos who are 3 and 6 a couple times and they were just not interested. I then read it on my own because I like the idea of the book. I felt like this book would be great for a lesson plan on wind. I liked the illustrations and I liked the subject matter of which can be taught from the book but it just didn’t keep interest in terms of a storybook. I do like that it has both the poetic story along with terms to learn more on for older kids.

This delightful book uses poetry and metaphors to do an impressive job of describing wind and making it relatable to children. Sprinkled throughout the text are informative bubbles with short descriptions of the different types of wind. I love a nonfiction text that captures the imagination and entertains while it educates. I absolutely cannot wait to use this book in a library storytime.

This is a lovely little book. It is educational as well as entertaining. It will definitely keep a child's attention with the beautiful illustrations.

This is a really beautiful book.

I loved the writing style and the different poems in the book, they are a really nice mix.

There is also a few handy pages at the end on wind speeds and more of a scientific description of the types of wind speeds from breeze, gales, blizzard and hurricanes too.

I loved the illustrations used in the book too - they are really lovely.

It is 5 stars from me for this one - very highly recommended - a lovely addition to any bookcase

Who can make a drawing of the wind? What are some of the names we call the wind? How do we define the speeds and characteristics of wind? This book does a fine job of making nonfiction learning a delightful entertainment!
The illustrations by Josee Bisaillon are simple, stylized, imaginative, colorful, and fun.
Well suited for reading WITH someone of any age including ESL, and great for gifting to everyone, but especially to a school, hospital, or your local public library!
I requested and received a free temporary uncorrected proof e-book on Adobe Digital Editions from Kids Can Press via NetGalley. Thank you! Avail Oct 1, 2024

This book is a great way to teach children about the weather.
This is a non-fiction - fiction book told as a poem that teaches kids about what is wind, and what are tornados, extra.
I loved the writing style and whimsical illustrations

Baru banget belajar ttg STEAM and STEM method for kids dan ketemu buku ini. Wah, suka banget! 💕

Buku karangan Debra Kempf ini mengajak si kecil menyelami tentang sains dibalik Angin. Bahasanya mudah dimengerti, ilustrasi apik, dan kalimatnya berima indah. Contohnya,

[ Wind is a dance.. --- a dance of air
Warm air leaps high, cool air bows low
Day by day, fast or slow, wind changes ]

Enak banget kan dibacanyaa? Berima.

Selain itu, buku ini ga cuma berupa kumpulan kalimat indah tapi juga ada penjelasan ilmiahnya. Jadi cocok banget buat menjawab rasa penasaran si kecil tentang angin. Penjelasan ilmiahnya pun beneran menggandeng expert, loh. Pada halaman akhir, ada infografis lebih lengkap tentang angin yang bisa dibaca orang dewasa.

Menurutku buku #WindisDance ini jenius! STEAMnya dapet banget. Pembahasannya ilmiah tapi tetap membangkitkan sense of art.

Orangtua mana coba yg bisa kepikiran menjelaskan bahwa angin adalah tarian? Deffo parents who have read this book 😁 Ketika membaca ini pasti si kecil bakalan praktekin dan coba-coba bikin angin dengan apa yang dia bisa.

Kalau kalian cari buku STEAM, udah jelas Wind is Dance harus kalian miliki.

Definitely gonna read this for my toddler!
⭐⭐ ⭐ ⭐ ⭐

@kidscanpress #kidslit #steambook #steamforkids #steamliterary

What a beautiful book with easily accessible descriptions and metaphors. The brilliance of the writing allows kids to make connections between what they know and can visualize and the provided scientific definitions and facts. I can easily see this being used in classrooms for both science and Language Arts, even with older students.

This was such a beautiful book that my four kids and I really enjoyed together at bedtime. It was wonderfully written, and the illustrations were so fun! My kids loved it.