Title: The Shortest Day: Celebrating the Winter Solstice

Author: Wendy Pfeffer, Illustrated by Jesse Reisch

Genre: Informational

Summary: This book is about the winter solstice. The winter solstice is the shortest day of the year. The day still has twenty-four hours, but it has the least amount of hours of daylight. This marks the beginning of winter in the North. The book also talks about how long ago people did not understand that the Earth moved causing the winter, so they had ceremonies to make the sun come back. Astronomers started to study the sky and discovered that the sun was setting in different places. The astronomers also discovered there was a longest day of the year, which meant the most daylight hours. Ancient people celebrated these different events with different traditions. The winter solstice marks new beginnings for people today. The end of the book also includes facts about the winter solstice.

Review: This book is a great way to introduce the different seasons to children. It is the perfect book to read when leading up to the winter solstice so the children can be familiar with the change in seasons.

CAC:

science: This book can be used to teach children about the seasons and the weather changing. It can also be used for teaching astronomy.