Whistling Wings

Can a swan survive without winter migration? Marcel, a young tundra swan, is tired from the first half of a winter migration. One thousand miles is a long way to fly—too long for Marcel, so he hides in the rushes to stay behind while his parents and the flock continue south. But with the lake nearly frozen over, he soon realizes that he is not cut out for life on ice. Other animals offer advice about how to survive the winter, but their ways of living aren’t right for the swan. Hungry and scared, he falls asleep – only to be awakened by a big surprise! The "For Creative Minds" educational section includes "Tundra Swan Fun Facts" and a "Tundra Swan Life Cycle Sequencing Activity."

This fictional story includes a 4-page For Creative Minds section in the back of the book and a 32-page cross-curricular Teaching Activity Guide online. Whistling Wings is vetted by experts and designed to encourage parental engagement. Its extensive back matter helps teachers with time-saving lesson ideas, provides extensions for science, math, and social studies units, and uses inquiry-based learning to help build critical thinking skills in young readers. The Spanish translation supports ELL and dual-language programs. The interactive ebook reads aloud in both English and Spanish with word highlighting and audio speed control to promote oral language skills, fluency, pronunciation, text engagement, and reading comprehension.

Written by Laura Goering, Illustrated by Laura Jacques
32 pg, 10 x 8.5, Ages 4-8, Grades PK-3, Lexile: - 550, AR: 4.1, F&P: N

Reviews:

Text and illustrations combine in a perfect blend to produce a heart-warming tale. This book could be used to supplement science lessons. - Children's Literature Comprehensive Database

Whistling Wings is a grand pick for any community library children's picturebook collection. - Midwest Book Review

This is a beautiful book with bright illustration. Good use of color. The last few pages offer facts that add to the story. - IBPA Benjamin Franklin Award

Author/Illustrator Info:

Laura Goering, (Whistling Wings) is a professor of Russian language and literature (including Russian Literature for Children) at Carleton College. Every fall, people travel from all over the Upper Midwest to Alma, Wisconsin, to view the thousands of whistling swans (also called tundra swans), who stop there on the way from their breeding grounds in northern Canada and Alaska to their wintering grounds in the Chesapeake Bay area. It was this spectacle that inspired Laura to write Whistling Wings. While Laura has poems published in anthologies and several magazine articles to her credit, this is her first picture book. Laura, lives in Minnesota with her husband, and their daughter. Visit Laura's Website.

Award-winning illustrator Laura Jacques is passionate about illustrating children's books that focus on natural history, wildlife, and environmental awareness for children. In addition to illustrating Tornado Tamer, The Most Dangerous, Baby Owl's Rescue and Whistling Wings for Arbordale, she has also illustrated For the Birds: The Life of Roger Tory Peterson, Squirrel Assist, At Home in the Rain Forest, and Wildlife Refuge: A Classroom Adventure. Her books have won several honors and awards, including "NSTA-CBC Outstanding Science Trade Books for Children" sponsored by the Children's Book Council and the "KIND Children's Book Award" sponsored by the Association for Humane and Environmental Education, a division of the Humane Society of the United States. For more information, visit Laura's website: http://www.laurajacques.com.