Up in the Garden and Down in the Dirt

CONTENT:

Together with Over and Under the Snow (2011) and Over and Under the Pond (2017), Up in the Garden and Down in the Dirt (2015) is part of the series of picturebooks written by Kate Messner and illustrated by Christopher Silas Neal. The picturebook is an invitation for young readers to explore what is there in a garden focusing both on what is on the surface and on what is underground. The main characters, a girl and her grandmother, guide the readers through the pages. Children are invited to discover everything that happens in the garden though the seasons and the synergy among all the creatures that populate it.

WHY USING THIS PICTUREBOOK:

Thanks to this picturebook, children can discover how the plants in the garden grow and how different animals and insects contribute to the process. The garden is presented as a complex ecosystem. The written text offers specific terms related to insects, animals and plants and these are supported by the illustrations. The visual text further expands the written text: the images support children’s comprehension of the narrative, but also they facilitate observation and discovering new information.