Oklahoma Ag in the Classroom Extra Reading: Books for Teaching About Agriculture Food and Nutrition Cookbooks Ahlberg, Allen, Running With Cutlery, Candlewick, 2006. (Grades PreK-3) A little boy's meal gets a mind of its own and leads him on a chase. Appleton, Julie, Do Carrots Make You See Better? Red Leaf, 2001. (Grades PreK-3) Simple nutrition lessons taught through games, stories, science activities and more. Barton, Byron (Illustrator), Little Red Hen, HarperCollins Juvenile, 1997 (Grades K-3). Simple, rhythmic text and bright, bold graphic illustrations combine in the traditional story about the industrious red hen and her very lazy friends who refuse to help her grow wheat or bake bread. Bowen, Gary, Stranded at Plimoth Plantation, 1626, Harper Collins, 1994. (Grades 4-7) The fictional diary of a young Plimoth settler named Christopher Sears, who documents the trials and tribulations of the year 1626. Heading for Jamestown, but stuck in Plimoth for many months, Sears describes the struggle, hard work, deaths, and uncomfortable surroundings. His diary is decorated with woodcuts depicting scenes from daily life in the village as well as some images of Native Americans and their way of living. The woodcuts are rich, powerful images inked with colors suitable to the time. The diary entries comment on the extremes of weather, the tedious labor, the boredom of military practice, the bland food, and also on the joy of the many marriages and births at Plimoth. Brown, Marc Tolon, DW, The Picky Eater, Little, Brown, 1995. (Grades PreK-3) Arthur the aardvark's sister is a picky eater. The family leaves her at home when they go out to eat, until DW decides she might be missing something good by being so picky. Brown, Marcia, Stone Soup, Aladdin, 1997. (Grades PreK-2) Old French tale about soldiers who trick miserly villages into making them a feast. This version won a Caldecott Medal when Brown retold and illustrated it in 1947. Buckwoldt, Davis, From Farm to Table, Evan-Moor, 1996. (Grades K-3) Explores the processes by which food is produced on various kinds of farms and trasported to local markets. Busenberg, Bonnie, Vanilla, Chocolate and Strawberry: The Story of Your Favorite Flavors, Lerner, 1995 (Grades 6-9). Busenberg describes the plant derivative of each flavor and explains how it is grown and processed. She also contributes fascinating bits of history, legend, and anecdote, as well as excellent overviews of how each flavoring is used. Recipes and a glossary are included. Carle, Eric, Pancakes, Pancakes, Aladdin, 1998. (Grades PreK-2) The barnyard rooster crows and Jack wakes up -- hungry, of course! What does he want for breakfast? A big pancake! But first, Jack's mother needs flour from the mill, an egg from the black hen, milk from the spotted cow, butter churned from fresh cream, and firewood for the stove. Will Jack ever get his pancake? Carle, Eric, The Very Hungry Caterpillar, Putnam, 1986. (Grades PreK-3) A beautifully illustrated narrative about a hungry caterpillar who eats his way from one food to the next, growing up to be a beautiful butterfly. Carle, Eric, Today is Monday, Philomel, 1993. (Grades PreK-3) Each day of the week brings a new food. When Sunday arrives, children from around the world gather to share their favorite foods. D'Amico, Joan, and Karen Eich Drummond, The Science Chef: 100 Fun Food Experiments and Recipes for Kids. (Grades 3-6) This book examines the science of food, while instructing children on the science behind various cooking reactions. Answers such questions as "How does bread rise?" and "Why does popcorn pop?" Includes over 100 simple, quick recipes that can be made with easy-to-obtain ingredients and standard kitchen equipment. Demi, One Grain of Rice: A Mathematical Folk Tale, Scholastic, 1997. (Grades K-6) The story of Rani, a clever girl who outsmarts a very selfish raja and saves her village. When offered a reward for a good deed, she asks only for one grain of rice, doubled each day for 30 days. Remember your math? That's lots of rice: enough to feed a village for a good long time - and to teach a greedy raja a lesson. dePaola, Pancakes for Breakfast, Voyager, 1990. (Grades PreK-1) With visions of pancakes dancing in her head, a little old lady goes to great lengths to procure the necessary ingredients. DiSalvo-Ryan, DyAnne, Uncle Willie and the Soup Kitchen, Mulberry, 1997 (Grades K-3). Learning from his uncle Willie that there are less fortunate people in the world and the importance of helping them, a young boy volunteers for a day's work at a soup kitchen and learns how he can make a difference. Ehlert, Lois, Eating the Alphabet: Fruits and Vegetables From A to Z, Voyager, 1993 (PreK). An alphabetical tour of fruits and vegetables, featuring vibrantly colored collage illustrations, large capital and lowercase letters of the alphabet, an A to Z glossart of produce and a pronunciation guide. Ehlert, Lois, Growing Vegetable Soup, Voyager, 1990 (Grades K-2). In brightly-colored collage illustrations, a father and child share the simple joys of planting, watering, and watching seeds grow in their garden. Then they cook them all up into a delicious vegetable soup, the recipe for which is included. Forsyth, Adrian, How Monkeys Make Chocolate: Foods and Medicines From the Rainforest, Owl, 1995 (Grades 4-7). Exploring the natural history of common and uncommon foods and medicines, an examination of the relationship between the rainforests and science explains why it is so important to learn about and preserve the rainforests. French, Vivian, Oliver's Fruit Salad, Orchard, 1998. Oliver's grandfather grows fruit tastier than anything from a can or bottle, but it doesn't mean Oliver will eat any of the fruit. His clever grandparents get Oliver to try fruit salad, and he loves it. Gershator, Davis, Bread is for Eating, Henry Holt, 1998. (Preschool) Celebrates the importance of bread. The reader is taken on a journey that follows the making of bread, from the seed planted in the soil to the baker's kneading of the dough. Music is included. Green, Emily K., Fruits: The New Food Guide Pyramid, Bellweather, 2006. (Grades 3-6) Green, Emily K., Grains: The New Food Guide Pyramid, Bellweather, 2006. (Grades K-3) Green, Emily K., Meat and Beans: The New Food Guide Pyramid, Bellweather, 2006. (Grades K-3) Green, Emily K., Milk: The New Food Guide Pyramid, Bellweather, 2006. (Grades K-3) Green, Emily K., Vegetables: The New Food Guide Pyramid, Bellweather, 2006. (Grades K-3) Hawkes, Nigel, Genetically Modified Food, Copper Beech, 2000 (Grades 3-8). Student-friendly format and colorful graphics help introduce students to the science behind and issues surrounding the production of food using genetic engineering. Stimulates discussion. Hawkins, Linda J., Alexander and the Great Food Fight, Turner, 2002 (Grades pre-K-3). Alexander's afternoon snacking choice becomes a heated argument among some fiesty fruit about which is the best for Alexander's young, growing body. Hoben, Russell, Bread and Jam for Francis, HarperTrophy, 1993. (Grades PreK-3) Francis' food jag is short-lived once her parents begin serving her bread and jam for every meal and snack. In the end she agrees with her friend, Albert, who declares, "I think it's nice that there are different kinds of lunches and breakfasts and dinners and snacks. I think eating is nice." Hoberman, Mary Ann, and Marla Frazee, The Seven Silly Eaters, Browndeer, 1997 (Grades K-3). A rhyming picture book about a family of picky eaters who drive their mother frantic. As each baby is born, it makes its rigid nutritional tastes known through bellowing demands. For example, Peter wants milk, but it must be warm, not hot, not cold. Mary Lou has to be fed "soft and squishy homemade bread. Jack - all he'll eat is applesauce. One twin wants poached eggs, the other fried. The line-and-color illustrations extend the silly fun as the comfortable house gets more and more cluttered and chaotic. Hughes, Meredith Sayles, Buried Treasure: Roots & Tubers, Lerner, 1998. (Grades 5-7) After an introduction giving general plant information, there are chapters on potatoes, sweet potatoes, carrots, and turnips, beets, and radishes. The authors describe the origin and history of each vegetable, growing and production techniques, and the way the food affects the lives of the people who raise, eat, and use it around the world. Each chapter also contains a simple recipe. Clearly labeled watercolor-and-ink diagrams of the plants, historical reproductions, and full-color photographs appear throughout. Not only does this book give readers facts about foods that they eat, but it also widens their awareness of how these vegetables are viewed in other countries. Hughes, Meredith Sayles, Cool as a Cucumber, Hot as a Pepper: Fruit Vegetables, Lerner, 1998 (Grades 4-6). Hughes, Meredith Sayles, Flavor Foods: Spices & Herbs, Lerner, 2000 (Grades 4-6). Hughes, Meredith Sayles, Green Power: Leaf & Flower Vegetables, Lerner, 2001 (Grades 5-7). Hughes, Meredith Sayles, Spill the Beans and Pass the Peanuts: Legumes, Lerner, 1999 (Grades 5-7). Hughes, Meredith Sayles, Stinky and Stringy: Stem & Bulb Vegetables, Lerner, 1999 (Grades 5-7). Ichord, Loretta Frances, Hasty Pudding, Johnnycakes, and Other Good Stuff: Cooking in Colonial America, Millbrook, 1998. (Grades K-3) Facts about America's culinary heritage covering such topics as manners, food preservation, and culinary staples such as corn. Ichord also includes a section on regional diversity and one she calls "Soul Cooking," which focuses on the unique cuisine created by slaves. Recipes for popular dishes, updated for modern kitchens and accompanied by clear directions and discussion of how the same dish would have been prepared by colonial cooks, conclude each chapter. Children will need adult help when they prepare the food, but they'll have fun learning the history and making such dishes as johnnycakes, pumpkin soup, and, of course, hasty pudding. Johnson, Sylvia A., Tomatoes, Potatoes, Corn, and Beans: How the Foods of the Americas Changed Eating Around the World, Atheneum, 1996. (Grades 6-8) Lee, Brenda Cartee, Lunch at the Zoo, Little Cottage, 2003 (pre-K-3). Humor, zoo animals, bright illustrations and the escapades of a little boy named Bubba teach children to choose a healthy diet of fruits and vegetables over unhealthy junk foods. McGinley-Nalley, Sharon, Pigs in the Pantry: Fun with Math and Cooking, Simon and Schuster Children's, 1999. (Grades K-3) This book takes a look at the concepts of measurement, featuring a family of pigs in the mood for cooking. Includes a recipe for vegetarian chili and a page of measurement facts. Micucci, Charles, The Life and Times of the Peanut, Houghton, 1997. (Grades 4-7) What are peanuts - are they peas or are they nuts? Do they grow above or below ground? Who invented peanut butter? This fascinating picture book, with its concise, detailed text and abundant illustrations, ranging from the humorous to the scientific, offers a spirited introduction to the life cycle, many uses, and historical influences of the peanut. Miranda, Anne, and Janet Stevens, To Market, To Market, Harcourt, 1997 (K-3). This twist on a classic rhyme tells what happens after a shopper goes "to market, to market, to buy a fat pig." Back home the pig promptly escapes, and soon the pig's in the kitchen, the lamb's on the bed, the cow's on the couch-and the rest of the animals are wreaking havoc throughout the house. Mograd, Sue, and Kelly Kennedy, Gobble Up Math, Creative Teaching, 1994. (Grades K-3) Kids will have fun learning math concepts while using nutritious food. Activities incorporate the Food Guide Pyramid, patterns, geometry, measurement, fractions, estimations and more. Moore, Jo Ellen, and Gary Shipman, Bread Around the World, Evan-Moor, 1995. (Grades 1-3) Discover the types of bread produced by people all over the world. Curriculum units include cooking demonstrations, field trips, science, math and writing experiences. Morris, Ann, and Ken Heyman; Bread, Bread, Bread; HarperTrophy; 1993 (K-3). Explores the disparate cultures of our planet through the bread we eat. Morrison, Lillian, and Nancy Dunaway, I Scream, You Scream: A Feast of Food Rhymes, August House, 1997. (K-3) In "I Scream, You Scream," Morrison combines best-loved food rhymes with long-forgotten gems, creating a delightful feast of sayings and chants. Myers, Jack, What Makes Popcorn Pop? And Other Questions About the World Around Us, Boyds Mills, 1991. (Grades 4-6) Older, Jules, and Lyn Severance, Ice Cream: Including Great Moments in Ice Cream History, Charlesbridge, 1998. The author chronicles the history of ice cream, introducing such famous figures as Marco Polo, who brought back "water ice" from China in the 13th century and Augustus Jackson, the White House chef and "probably America's first black ice cream manufacturer" who made the dessert for First Lady Dolly Madison. A timeline along the bottom of each page takes readers along the ice cream continuum. Severance, who designed the look of Ben and Jerry's carton art, brightens up the pages with bold graphics. Patent, Dorothy Hinshaw, and William Munoz, Where Food Comes From, Holiday House 1991. Beginning at the grocery, Patent discusses the sources of foods that are made into such products as Tater Tots, V-8,'' and Uncle Ben's Converted Rice. Brief chapters discuss fruits and vegetables, grains, meats, and dairy products. Color photos contrast the various states: one spread includes shots of a beef cow in a pasture, fresh cuts of meat, and a selection of processed beef products (e.g., gelatine) Palacios, Argentina, Peanut Butter, Apple Butter, Cinnamon Toast: Food Riddles for You to Guess, Raintree, 1992. (Grades PreK-8) Paulsen, Gary, The Tortilla Factory, Harcourt, Brace, 1995. (Grades K-3) Paulsen tells young readers how a corn seed eventually becomes a tortilla. "The black earth sleeps in winter . . .," but in the spring, it is worked by brown hands that plant the yellow seeds. Seeds become plants, and then the corn is ground into flour and sent to the tortilla factory. The flour disks come off the machine, are packaged, and eventually arrive in kitchens -" to be wrapped around juicy beans and eaten by white teeth, to fill a round stomach and give strength to the brown hands that work the black earth." This circular telling works nicely with the strong, attractive paintings that get texture from their linen surface. Pelham, David, Sam's Pizza: Your Pizza to Go, Dutton, 1996. (Grades K-3) A pop-up book that shows what happens when siblings are allowed to cook for one another and hides among the more typical pizza ingredients several less-appetizing ones. Pelham, David, Sam's Sandwich, Dutton, 1991. (Grades K-3) Fold-out flap book with the look of a real sandwich and easy-to-say, rolling rhymes. Sam and his sister Samantha are making a giant sandwich, but little does Samantha suspect that slimy slugs and creepy bugs are among the ingredients. Richie, Catherine, and Scott Richie, Do the Doors Open by Magic? And Other Supermarket Questions, Owl, 1995. (Grades K-3) Rotner, Shelley, and Julia Pemberton Hellums, Hold the Anchovies! A Book About Pizza, Orchard, 1996. (Grades K-3). Full-color photographs illustrate each step of the pizza-making process, as young pizza lovers learn how flour comes from wheat fields, the reason why dough rises, and the origins of popular toppings. Smith, Alastair, What Happens to Your Food, Usborne Flip Flaps Series, 1997. (Grades K-3) Solheim, James, and Eric Brace, It's Disgusting and We Ate It! True Food Facts from Around the World and Throughout History, Aladdin, 2001. (Grades K-3) Divided into three sections, the book begins with a look at some of the less common foods eaten today, such as frog legs, earthworms, snakes, insects, flowers, and seaweed, considers strange fare from the past, such as a menu from a medieval royal feast in England (14 oxen and 50 swans, among other things), the rat stew eaten by sailors, and the robins popular in Colonial America. "If You Think That's Sick, Look in Your Fridge" takes a look at how many common edibles, such as milk, cheese, honey, and mushrooms, are grown or produced. Each double-page spread includes basic facts and lots of interesting trivia. Steig, William, Pete's a Pizza, Joanna Cotler, 1998. When Pete is in an especially bad mood because it is raining and he can't play ball with his friends, his father decides that it might cheer his son up "to be made into a pizza." The interplay between father and son is both entertaining and endearing. The man says, after tickling Pete, "Pizzas are not supposed to laugh!" and Pete responds, "Pizza-makers are not supposed to tickle their pizzas!" Steig's spare line drawings and zany watercolor paintings are centered against a large white background. Stevens, Janet, Tops & Bottoms, Harcourt Brace, 1995. (K-4) Hoping to rise above his level of poverty, clever Hare strikes a deal with a rich and lazy bear in which Bear will contribute the land while Hare will provide the labor for a profitable harvest. Sturges, Philemon, and Amy Walrod, The Little Red Hen: (Makes a Pizza), Dutton, 1999. Children will enjoy following the process of making a pizza as the Little Red Hen - who can get no help from the duck, the dog, or the cat - buys an appropriate pan, kneads the dough, cuts and chops vegetables (and other stuff) for a fabulous topping, and bakes a humongous pizza ("It was lovely, but it wasn't little"). Despite many a "Not I," the duck, the dog, and the cat finally do help out in surprising ways. Swain, Gwenyth, Eating, Red Leaf, 1999. (Grades Preschool-3) Children throughout the world have favorite foods. Terry, Will, and Rita Golden Gelman, Pizza Pat, Random House, 1999. (Grades K-3) Pizza Pat stretches the floppy dough, puts on the gloppy tomatoes, adds the sloppy sausages, sprinkles on the cheese, and then pops it in the oven. But just before he cuts into his delicious pizza pie, he turns his back for one second--and the pizza disappears! A gang of hungry mice have taken Pat's irresistible creation away for themselves. This cumulative Step 1 book is based on the poem "The House That Jack Built." VanCleave, Janice, Food and Nurition for Every Kid, Wiley, John and Sons, 1999. (Grades 3-6) How does milk help me grow? Where do vitamins come from? From the Science for Every Kid series, these experiments teach kids all about food and nutrition. Back to Ag-Related Books for Children and Young Adults Back to Oklahoma Ag in the Classroom Recommend a book.