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From Dirt To Showers How Seeds Become Flowers

by Kristin Morine with Sharon Campbell

22 pages; Saddle stitched; illustrated children's book; full color; catalogue #07-0774; ISBN 1-4251-2417-8; US$10.96, C$12.60, EUR8.55, £5.66

Ever wonder how a flower grows? Learn with Vermy the wormy as he observes what it takes for a tiny seed to become a beautiful flower.

About the Book

The delightful story unfolds along with a flower. Vermy the wormy experiences the planting of a seed through the blooming of the flower and all that lies between through a simple easy to read storyline.

This book was designed and written by two teachers to support the science curriculum of Kindergarten through 2nd grade levels. During the school year students study and plant seeds and care for the seedlings as they grow. The intent was to present the life cycle of a flower in a lively format that would go hand in hand with this project for children who are just beginning to read.

The illustrations were created with the ancient art of mosaic in mind. The author/illustrators visited St. Mark's Basilica in Venice and were inspired by the detail of the ceilings. The background of the illustrations was done with broken pieces of bathroom tile and set in grout. The detail pieces were hand formed in earthenware clay, fired, glazed and added to the mosaics.

About the Authors/Illustrators

Kris Morine graduated from Buena Vista College with her BA in Art and Mass Communication. That summer after she graduated she went to Vermont to work at a Girl Scout camp teaching art. She decided that summer to go back to Iowa and enroll at University of Northern Iowa to get her teaching certificate. After receiving her teaching degree she got a job in Des Moines Public Schools where she has worked for 16 years teaching elementary art. She met Sharon and they have been involved in many different projects ever since but writing and illustrating this book was by far the most fun. The two helped each other through the Masters program at Iowa State and are now wondering what is next. Kris lives in Ankeny, Iowa and summers on the lake in God's country, Minnesota.

Sharon Campbell has a BFA degree from Drake University in Des Moines, Iowa and a MFA degree from Iowa State University in Ames, Iowa. She has taught elementary art for 24 years. Sharon lives in Des Moines, Iowa with her husband Dan.

Excerpts