Bird Watch by Christie Matheson

Bird Watch Reviews

• 
  Kathryn

  Beautiful! The illustrations are lovely and the text is engaging. It is both a counting book (backwards from ten) and a seek-and-find book. Be advised that you really have to search hard to find some of these birds -- my four-year-old thoroughly enjoyed the challenge and was successful, but very young readers may struggle (and it would be impossible for a group story time). I appreciate the back matter with further information on birding and the types of birds depicted in the story. And I appreciate that, unlike some books for children, the birds are drawn with accuracy so that they would be easy to identify in the wild.
• 
  Chance Lee

  For me, the watercolor artwork doesn't mesh well with seek-n-find, but the seek-n-find is secondary to the story anyway.
• 
  Abby Johnson

  This would make a really great read for a family who likes to bird to introduce young children to some of the techniques and concepts involved. In each spread, there are things to find, whether birds (sometimes identified by their unique plumage) or other woodland creatures. It's not only a fun seek and find book, but a primer on how actual birders identify birds - with distinctive features, location of birds (on the ground, in a tree), etc. Back matter includes more information about birding and about the bird species seen in the book.
• 
  Ruth Ann

  For kids with lots of patience, this picture book is both a (math) concept book and a find-the-birds book. The counting goes in reverse, beginning with ten.
  Lovely illustrations of realistic birds and their habitats.
• 
  Shaye Miller

  Bird Watch is a lovely watercolor-based picture book that gives children something to look for on each page. Whether they're hunting for sparrows or spying the stripy tailed wrens, they'll be using their counting and i-spy skills. The back matter includes much more about birds and birding, so don't forget to turn past the last page of the story! The full-color art in this book was created with watercolor paints and collages.
  
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  The Miller Memo!
• 
  KC

  A counting "how to" with bird watching.
• 
  Stacy Renee (LazyDayLit)

  Bird Watch is a fantastic picture book that teaches you about ten beautiful birds you may encounter in your very own yard! You just have to slow down and take the time to look!
  
  We countdown from ten as we are introduced to ten lovely birds, from the itty bitty chickadee to the great owl, and must find them hidden among the plants and trees. There are a few insects to find as well!
  
  The watercolor illustrations are beautiful and make this fun look-and-find extra life-like. Could you spot all ten black-capped chickadees in the blackberry bushes and in the trees? Most of the birds blend easily into their natural surroundings which makes this a nice little challenge but it wasn't too difficult for my four-year-old.
  
  There's also educational information at the end of the book about bird-watching - or 'birding' - and extra information about the ten birds it features!
  
  This review was originally shared on my blog:
  Lazy Day Literature
• 
  Bethany

  BIRD WATCH teaches about some birds you might see if you look close enough. First, you have to step outside. Then, look to the trees or bushes. You might see a bird eating a seed or a worm. You might hear some singing.
  
  Some illustrations are designed to be a "look and find" as if you were outside. You have to look closely to spot the birds that are hidden in the environment. In the back of the book, there's also more information on the different birds you might see round the yard.
  
  I love that this book encourages children to get outside and take in the beauty nature has to offer. These day, electronics might interfere with a child's willingness to go outside, but BIRD WATCH will spark their curiosity. There's beauty all around us if we look close enough to see it.
  
  
  Final Verdict: I would recommend this to fans of birds, playing outside, nature, and look-and-finds.
• 
  Raven Black

  This is a 3.5 to 4. While it is a lovely book which I enjoyed, there was something missing. The art is bright and bold. The prose fun. I was not paying attention and realized a few pages in it is a counting book as well as a "hide and seek" book. There are facts about birds as well. This would work on many levels (math and science) and can be adapted to the child's needs and will slightly grow with your child.
• 
  Allison

  "There are treasures hiding in the trees and on the ground and in the air. If you go outside and look carefully, you just might find them."
  
  An introduction to the idea of bird-watching, with encouragement to go outside and find these feathered treasures, as well as some search and find bird-watching on the pages themselves. Pretty watercolor illustrations. Interactive, and therefore, interesting for young readers.
• 
  Zoraida Rivera Morales

  The greatest assets of this book is that it not only teaches about birds, but it is, also, a book to play with finding the different birds. It has backmatter about the different birds presented in the book.
  
  I think it's a good book. Would have liked a more polished language throughout the book as it was at the beginning. I found the emphasis on looking for the birds right on the text distracting.
  
  The book offers the reader the opportunity to count backwards, too.
• 
  Amanda

  3 1/2 stars
  
  Beautiful, soft watercolor illustrations that made it a bit difficult sometimes to actually see what you are supposed to be seeking (this is why I dropped it down a half a star). Perfect for one-on-one sharing. Great introduction to birding and talking about a day's rhythm. Counting backwards from 10 to 1.
• 
  Molly Cluff (Library!)

  A great book that almost has a look-and-find quality to it. Really gorgeous illustrations of birds in the wild that you try to locate amongst the foliage. I feel like this is best as a one-on-one read, rather than in a storytime, so you can see the details in the pictures. This could get a kiddo excited about birding!
• 
  Mary

  The author/illustrator challenges the reader to observe carefully to see birds and other creatures in nature. The watercolor paintings are beautiful. A reverse counting look-and-find book, the reader must discover 10 chickadees, 9 bluebirds, and so on. Some birds in the book were difficult to spot--as is certainly the case outdoors. Borrow from public library.
• 
  Erin

  An extra-challenging seek-and-find combined with a counting book. The birds are difficult to pick out, which I really liked, because it seemed to mimic the difficulty of finding a bird in real life. Probably less easy to use with a big group than her other books, just due to the difficulty of the seeking.
• 
  Elaine Fultz, Teacher Librarian, MLS

  This is a seek-and-find picture book that features ten common birds. Minimal text invites readers to look for a countdown of birds in each watercolor spread from ten chickadees hiding in a pine tree to one owl soaring in the night sky. Additional info about birding and birds follows the story.
• 
  Jillian

  Very nifty book - a little bit of math, a little bit of ornithology, some seeking and finding, and an overall plot to the story. I didn't *love* the illustrations, but they are quite pretty - and a decent challenge to find everything we're supposed to be looking for.
• 
  Ann Haefele

  Gorgeous watercolor mixed with collage illustrations of backyard birds. Facts about these birds are found at the end. Can be used as an “I spy” book as the birds are hiding in nature on each page. Author tells you how many there are to find.
• 
  Sandy

  This beautifully illustrated book teaches children about different types of birds, nature and also has a counting and hide and seek element to it. My young children enjoyed finding the birds among the tree branches.
• 
  Elliot's Mama

  This is such a beautifully illustrated book! Elliot loves birds, so we liked finding the hidden warblers, wrens, robins, and other birds. This is definitely a great book for toddlers up to kindergarten or even older.
  
  * this was a library book
  * age: Elliot was 1.5 years old
• 
  Caroline

  A children's guide to birding.
  
  The illustrations and calming narration are very soothing and make you want to slow down, listen, and watch the world around you.
  
  Has some information on birding and the birds found in the book in the back.
  Great book for nature study.
• 
  Emma

  Some of the text was a little clumsy but I like how interactive this book is.
• 
  Edward Sullivan

  A counting book and an introduction to birding.
• 
  Judy Ripke

  A good book for math, bird-watching, while also being a look and find book.
• 
  Alyssa Gudenburr

  A beautiful search and find book featuring a variety of birds. This book would be better as a one-on-one story because the watercolors make the birds hard to see.
• 
  Syntha Green

  A nice intro to birding as well as a seek and find