This Month’s Book: The Desert Is My Mother
Our Cover to Cover Book of the Month for March is The Desert Is My Mother by Pat Mora. The desert is mother to all of us Tucsonans and how lucky we are to live in such a beautiful place! See the beauty of the desert as your explore the vibrantly illustrated pages of this book!
The desert is a beautiful place that provides for us in many ways! The Desert Is My Mother by Pat Mora depicts how the desert provides for a little girl, and the gratitude she feels for its generosity. While reading, talk with your child about the meaning of gratitude. Talk about the things that make you feel grateful. Invite your child to think about the things she is grateful for.
Stars twinkling in the night are such a beautiful sight! We’re so lucky that there is a song about them! Sing Twinkle Twinkle Little Star with your little one! Promote fine motor skills by modeling for your child how to make their little fingers twinkle like a star. Find an example of the finger play here: https://youtu.be/hy0KyiJJDyY
Vocabulary is an important early literacy skill and books provide the perfect opportunity to introduce new words! Chant, bloom, heal, and prickly pear are just a few of the many words found in this book that may not be used every day. While reading, invite your child to think about the meaning of any unfamiliar words you come across. Are there any clues in the story that can tell you what they might mean?
Let your child paint the beautiful colors of the deserts with watercolor ice cubes! Simply mix water and food coloring in your ice cube trays and freeze! Involve your child in the process and create new shades by mixing colors! Make predictions with your child throughout the process: “What color do you think yellow and blue will make?”
Join the Conversation!
Share your experience with The Desert Is My Mother and be entered into a raffle to win next month’s C2C Book Club title! For example, you could:
- Tell us about your child’s favorite part of the story.
- Send a video of you sharing the book together.
- Send a picture of you and your child painting with ice cubes!
Share your photos and videos with us on Twitter and Instagram and be sure to tag Make Way for Books. For example:
@mwfbaz Yellow and blue make green! #storytime
Or email us your photo or video at info@makewayforbooks.org.
Be creative! We can’t wait to see what you loved about The Desert Is My Mother!