Providing your kids with books about nature is another way to complement your family’s love of the great outdoors. It inspires kids, sparks their imagination and also helps teach children about the world around them. These six wonderful children’s books encourage kids of all ages to enjoy the outdoors.

1.   The Kids’ Outdoor Adventure Book: 488 Great things to do in Nature Before You Grow Up, by Stacy Tornio is full of ideas of things for kids to do outdoors. It is well organized and sorted by the season, with check boxes next to each activity for kids to mark off after they have completed it. It’s a book that works well for families with kids of all ages. There is something for everyone.

2.   My Little World, by Julia Cooke is a wonderful book about a young child who is out for a walk with her grandmother and older brother in the Australian bush. At first, she is upset that she can’t see the things that her grandmother is pointing out because she is too small, but then she realizes that there is so much for her to discover—right in front of her eyes. This is a great book for parents to read to children ages 4 and older.

3.   Baby Bear Sees Blue, by Ashley Wolff is a fantastic book for parents to read to young children. Baby Bear asks his Mama Bear questions about the world around him from the moment he opens his eyes in the morning until the time he goes to sleep at night. The illustrations in this book are colorful, bold, and engaging for little ones. It’s one of my 2-year-old’s favorite books.

4.   Camping with the President, by Ginger Wadsworth is a story about President Theodore Roosevelt, John Muir, and their outdoor adventures in Yosemite National Park. This is a great read for school-aged children who are interested in nature and history. Camping with the President won the 2010 National Outdoor Book Award in the Children’s Category.

5.   A Stick is an Excellent Thing: Poems Celebrating Outdoor Play, by Marilyn Singer celebrates the fun of outdoor play in eighteen poems for young children and early readers. It is filled with wonderful illustrations and highlights fun activities and games for kids to enjoy outdoors from stargazing, to catching fireflies, to playing hop scotch, to splashing in ponds.

6.   A Child’s Introduction to the Night Sky: The Story of the Stars, Planets, and Constellations—and How You Can Find Them in the  Sky, by Michael Driscoll is the ideal book for school aged children who are interested in learning about our solar system, constellations, and the night sky. My 8-year-old began showing interest in the solar system at a young age, and this was a the perfect book to help him learn more. Included with the book is a Star Finder that helps you locate stars, constellations, and planets during various times of the year. A great book for your little astronomer!