Review and Giveaway! I'm Turning Green from The Little Environmentalists

A couple of months ago, I introduced you to the first book from The Little Environmentalists called, Nature Discovery In My Backyard. I enjoyed using the book to expand on our "adventure" walks around the neighborhood here in Chicago. We don't get to experience a lot of "nature" per say, but we do try to get outside as often as we can. The newest offering from The Little Environmentalists is called, I'm Turning Green and it follows a little girl around inside her home, the grocery store and to the farmer's market while she discovers just how easy it is to "go green."

Click on Read More to find out more about this great series and to learn how you can win a copy of I'm Turning Green for your children.

Remember when you were a kid and your parents made you eat dinner because there were starving kids in some third world country? Or, they reminded you to turn off the lights to save electricity or turn off the water to not waste it? We collected and recycled cans, not in an attempt to "save the planet," but for extra change that my brother's and I then got to shop with at the mall. Wow, have the times changed! A lot of the messages are still there, but the logic is different. Now, we think about recycling and water conservation as ways to make our world a better place, not because of the dollar value attached to those actions. And, our attempts at "going green" stretch beyond just recycling our pop cans. People are making choices to buy locally, support their farmer's markets, buy used toys and books, we walk as much as we can instead of taking the car, the list goes on and on. I'm Turning Green by The Little Environmentalists is a great tool for sparking conversation, even with young children, about the little choices we make every day that can have a big impact on our world.

Written in the same easy to understand style with the same "filtered" photograph style illustrations as Nature Discovery In My Backyard, I'm Turning Green is meant to be shared with non-readers as well as older children. For educators and parents, the back of the book has a section called Earth Notes which offers more tips and educational facts to supplement the "green" lessons being discussed. As a former elementary school teacher, I would have loved these books in the classroom. They're just right for introducing a unit, and the extra ideas to expand the lesson are always appreciated. The less I had to come up with on my own, the better. I taught fourth and fifth grade, but I can see the benefits of this series extending throughout the elementary school building. The books are simple enough for the young children, but thought-provoking enough to still appeal to older children, too.

Just in case you were wondering, The Little Environmentalists doesn't just talk the talk. Their commitment to environmental awareness extends beyond simply educating children. The Little Environmentalists print their books using 100% recycled paper that is processed using 100% post-consumer waste, chlorine free, and printed with environmentally friendly inks. If you don't know what all this means to you, then check out this statistic: It has been estimated that producing a ton of paper using 100% post-consumer copy paper rather than virgin pulp saves about 24 large trees, 4000 kilowatt hours of electricity, 60 pounds of air pollution and 7000 gallons of water! WOW!

You can buy a copy of I'm Turning Green on The Little Environmentalists newly updated website (it looks great!) for $7.95 for a paperback version. Right now, they're also offering a couple of different discounts on your purchase. You can get 25% off and free shipping on all orders of 2 or more books using the coupon code Environment or take 25% off all orders using the coupon code Green. Teachers, now is the time to spend the last of your $250 for the tax year, and parents, these paperback books are just the right size to fit in a stocking! With 25% off and free shipping, start your series collection now!

The Little Environmentalists is also preparing to host the Take the Go Green Challenge. You can read a little bit about it here. Check the site soon for updates including official rules, entry forms, and prizes.

The Little Environmentalists is offering a copy of I'm Turning Green to one lucky Kid Buy Products reader. To enter our giveaway, please leave us a comment on this post telling us how you family is "going green." We'll keep the comments open until 11:59 CST on Thursday, December 18th. I'll choose one winner using random.org. You can read our "official" giveaway rules here. Thanks again for reading, and good luck!