The Red Sparrow Recommends
After the outdoor fun of summer, it’s just as much fun to sit and enjoy a good picture book with your little ones especially before bed time. It’s great to be able to relax away from a screen and this can lead to all sorts of interesting conversations!
It’s hard to find the time to sift through the bewildering choice to find good quality books for you and your younger kids to enjoy together, so we plan to post here are a selection we recommend (tried and tested by homeschooling parents) that you may not have already discovered which could appeal to you and yours!
Today's recommendations are for Toddlers and upwards:
THE OCTONAUTS
You may already know the animated series which is available on BBC iPlayer, Amazon Prime, and Netflix but have you explored the array of picture books the series is based on?
The Octonauts are described as ‘Star Trek meets Hello Kitty’. Captain Barnacles Bear, Dashi Dog, Professor Inkling Octopus, Kwazi Kitten, Peso Penguin, Shellington Otter, and Tweak Rabbit explore the Oceans from their Octopod sea base, meeting many different sea creatures along the way.
The picture books are written by Meomi – Vicky Wong and Michael Murphy – and although a slightly different feel from the TV versions the picture books are beautifully illustrated, so any young fans would sit down happily with you just to look at the marvellous detail in the pictures while you read the story. Some books have vertical illustrations, some are glow in the dark, and they are pleasure to look at for adults too!
Most of the beautiful original editions are now hard to get hold of, but worth keeping an eye out for sellers offering them at good prices - or asking at your local library.
The Octonauts and the Growing Goldfish is available to purchase as a paperback on Amazon UK, and whilst the larger format illustrations of the physical books are very inventive and encourage interaction, there's also a range available as e-books on Kindle.
Now, though, the Octonauts phenomenon has grown bigger than the books and the official Meomi website has more information and some lovely printable resources.
Also, there are good online resources available on the CBeebies Octonauts website
There’s even an Octonauts corner on the NOAA Office of Exploration and Research with facts about sea creatures and lovely illustrations to print out and colour! By the way, that's the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration - yes, many of the creatures the Octonauts meet in the TV series (such as the Vampire Squid and Yeti Crab) are very real sea beasties!
A new full-length animated adventure, the Octonauts and the Caves of Sac Actum, has just been released on Netflix, and premiers this weekend!
Long may the Octonauts ‘Explore, Rescue, Protect’!
