The Tiny Seed, by Eric Carle

Carle, Eric. The Tiny Seed. New York: Simon & Schuster Books for Young Readers, 1987. Print.

Additional Information:

• Written and illustrated by Eric Carle
• Hardcover

Synopsis: The Tiny Seed is a simple picture book that follows the life cycle of a flower through the four seasons.  It demonstrates that life cycles are cyclical by ending the story the same way it began.  The book begins with several seeds flying through the wind, and it follows them as they travel through different environments and circumstances.  One seed survives various conditions and eventually grows into a gigantic flower.  The story concludes with the flower losing its leaves in the fall and spreading its seeds after it dies.

Book Notes: Eric Carle both wrote and illustrated this book, similar to his other stories like The Very Hungry Caterpillar.  His illustrations consume every page and he rarely uses lines to draw pictures.  The style of illustrations in The Tiny Seed are unique to Eric Carle and demonstrate his style.  The language in this story is simple and easy to read.  There are little to no difficult words in the text.  

Critique: The Tiny Seed is a simple story that effectively portrays the complete plant life cycle throughout all four seasons.  It is easy to read aloud or have students read individually.  This book is useful when teaching about plants and their complete life cycles, or when teaching about the seasons.  It is most appropriate for young students at the primary level because the story is too simple for older students to read on their own.  The plot is cyclical, like the life cycle of flowers, and it is an effective read aloud to pair with a life science unit.  

Classroom Activities: As previously stated, this book pairs nicely when teaching about life cycles, plants, or seasons.  It is applicable at the first or second grade level, and students love the works of Eric Carle.  It is an excellent introduction to an activity about plants. Below are links to various lesson plans and classroom activities that use The Tiny Seed.

Lesson plan: http://www.teachingoasis.com/Tiny%20Seed.pdf

Teacher ideas: http://www.brighthubeducation.com/pre-k-and-k-lesson-plans/52891-the-tiny-seed-activities/

Activities: http://treasures.macmillanmh.com/t/students/grade2/book1/unit2/the-tiny-seed

Crafts: http://www.toddlerapproved.com/2013/07/seed-flower-craft-tiny-seed-activities.html

Helpful Resources:

Author/Illustrator site: http://www.eric-carle.com/home.html

Book trailer: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VSFNr777V0A