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Weather and Seasons Topic

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Best Children’s Books about the Weather and Changing Seasons

Come rain or shine, there’s always a good book to match the weather! From sunshine and showers to hailstones and hurricanes, we’ve put together a list of the best children’s books and stories about weather and seasonal changes.

Recommended for children aged 4-7, this collection features children’s books that explore the fascinating and ever-changing world of weather. From seasonal changes and snowy days to rainclouds and storms, these books offer insights into the science behind different weather patterns, as well as how weather can impact our daily lives.

With our recommended books for children, you can be sure that you’re providing your child with the best possible resources to learn about the weather and the changing seasons. Whether you’re looking to incorporate science into your curriculum, inspire a love of reading, or simply enjoy some quality storytimes, these books are a perfect fit – whatever the weather!

We also have separate booklists for each season:

Children’s Books About Spring 

Children’s Books About Summer 

Children’s Books About Autumn

Children’s Books About Winter 

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Books about the changing seasons

Patricia Hegarty
 & Britta Teckentrup
Picturebook
An appealing and informative illustrated book that follows the natural changes of a tree through the four seasons. Dotted with hidden animals scampering through cut paper holes, each page of Tree: Seasons Come, Seasons Go allows its reader to investigate and explore one tree's rich and varied life cycle through seasonal change.
Fiona Waters
 & Frann Preston-Gannon
Poetry

This beautiful poetry anthology that includes a new nature poem for every day of the year is likely to become a primary classroom essential. The collection of 366 poems (to make sure leap years are covered too!) contains a really interesting mix of poems from well-known favourites from Christina Rossetti and Walter de la Mare to more modern offerings by Benjamin Zephaniah and Carol Ann Duffy, with each poem reflecting the seasonal changes associated with that day’s position in the year. The book is structured into monthly sections and the poems accompanied by beautiful illustrations that celebrate the beauty of the natural world and changing seasons.

Simona Ciraolo
Picturebook
Come summer, autumn or winter, a little boy is going to make the best of it.Nothing is better than summer, swimming every day and eating ice cream. But a little boy's big sister has BIG news. She tells him that summer is going to end soon ... and winter is coming! When winter comes, she says, it will be cold ... and dark ... and rain all the time . They'll be stuck on the sofa for days and won't even dream of eating ice cream...From author-illustrator Simona Ciraolo, this is a celebration of the changing of the seasons, showing just how much joy can be found around each sunny - or snowy - corner.
Alice Hemming
 & Nicola Slater
Picturebook
A brilliantly funny picture book about seasons, written by Alice Hemming and illustrated by Nicola Slater.Squirrel is so cross. Yesterday there were loads of beautiful leaves on his tree, but today? Today some are missing and Squirrel is convinced that someone has stolen them... there's a leaf thief on the loose!Join Squirrel on a mission to find the culprit, and meet so many fun animals on the way, while you find out how the world takes on different colours as the months pass by.A laugh-out-loud book about the changing seasons, with extra information in the back for especially curious minds.Perfect as a companion reader to children learning about seasons in school.A brilliant picture book that explores feelings, moods and times where we feel out of control.
Hannah Pang
 & Clover Robin
Non-fiction Picturebook
Nature is like a magical picture that changes with the seasons.Watch six breathtaking landscapes transform in front of your eyes in this beautifully illustrated book. Interactive split pages create an immersive experience that allows readers to take a visual journey across the globe, from the Arctic tundra to the African plains. With simple facts and stunning, collaged artwork, this is the perfect book for nature lovers, young and old.Step through a magical year in nature.

Clare Helen Welsh
 & Sally Soweol Han
Picturebook
Curious Macie notices that the evenings are brighter in summer and wants to know why. Together Mummy and Macie discover the wonder of the Sun, just in time for bed. A beautiful, lyrical and reassuring bedtime story with a double-page spread of non-fiction facts at the end.
Flora Martyn
 & Hannah Tolson
Picturebook
Join Lucy and Oscar and their dog Jasper as they explore spring, summer, autumn and winter on a woodland walk. What amazing things can you see? Come rain or shine, Oscar and Lucy walk Jasper the dog every day.On a spring morning, the world is waking up, animals peek out from their burrows and the birds sing happy songs. On summer afternoons it is HOT HOT HOT and picnics are a joy to have. On autumn evenings, the sky turns black and minibeasts find their perfect hiding spots. Winter mornings are frosty and cold. Spot all the nature elements that make woodland walks so special!Each spread uncovers an exciting new scene, at a certain time of the day and the year. Spot all the animals, minibeasts, leaves, trees and flowers. The wood is full of treasures.Published in collaboration with The Woodland Trust, the largest woodland conservation charity in the UK, and with delightful artwork from Hannah Tolson, A Walk in the Woods will delight kids who love to explore.

Books about wind and storms

Sam Usher
Picturebook

A boy and his grandad make the most of the storm brewing outside by deciding to fly a kite. First they must work as a team to find the kite, and then it’s time to hold onto their hats as they step outside into the blustering weather for an adventure together. You may also like the other books in the same series: Snow, Rain and Sun.

Nick Butterworth
Picturebook
Celebrate thirty years of Percy the Park Keeper and his animal friends with this funny story in the classic series from award-winning author and illustrator Nick Butterworth!A storm is raging outside and Percy the park keeper is having a sleepless night. When he gets up the following morning, Percy finds that the old oak tree has been blown down. It is a disaster for his animal friends who live there, but Percy is soon devising a plan to help his little friends find new homes. 
Nick Sharratt
Picturebook
Just when you thought it was safe to go back in the park . . .Timothy Pope is blown this way and that way in the windy park -- but among the whistling wind and blustering brollies could that be a shark he spies through his telescope. Peep through the die-cut hole in the pages of the book to find out.A third book in the bestselling Shark in the Park series -- it's fin-tastic fun!
Dianne Hofmeyr
 & Carol Thompson
Picturebook

A joyful story that celebrates imagination, outdoor play and intergenerational relationships, all about a grandpa and grandaughter’s playful take on sheltering from a storm in their beach hut. Carol Thompson’s illustrations in Storm Dragon by Diane Hofmeyr, bring as much to this gorgeous book as the words themselves – painting, as they do, an ethereal dance as Grandpa and granddaughter hurtle across the windswept beach.

The simple storyline will capture the imaginations of the youngest readers, with just a shadow of ‘We’re Going on a Bear Hunt’ and ‘Lion Hunt’, in the narrative.

Full of simple phrases and commands, the story will work well to build imaginative play or to herald splattery autumn art sessions! With its dramatic build-up and cosy ending, this book is also likely to become a bedtime favourite.

Books about ice and snow

Yuval Zommer
Picturebook

This gorgeous picturebook explores the gentle magic of snow. Young readers who may have only experienced real snow once or twice – or perhaps never – will relate to spring-born friends Fox and Hare, who hear rumours of a thing called snow coming as winter arrives, but need to know what exactly snow is. Their search takes them on a journey through Zommer’s beautifully illustrated forest scenes to ask a host of animal friends about snow until, at last, they experience the ‘whitest, coldest, fluffiest, sparkliest snow’ for themselves.

Benji Davies
Picturebook

High in the sky, a tiny snowflake is born and it begins to tumble down, wondering where it is destined to land. Meanwhile, a little girl called Noelle is getting ready for Christmas, decorating her tree and looking for Christmas wonder in everyday activities. The pair come together in a beautiful moment tied up with warmth, hope and the wonder of the little things that make wintertime magical.

Pippa Curnick
Picturebook
Shama and Bahama Llama can't wait for winter - skating, snowballs, hot chocolate . . . and best of all, the Winter Woolly Party!But when The Big Freeze suddenly arrives they discover that their jumpers are in a sorry state! Cue a major panic as everyone sets out on a wild race to Granny Brock's Jumper Shop to nab the perfect woolly jumpers.Will they make it to the top of the queue before she sells out? Or will they learn that sometimes the only way to get what you want is to work together?The perfect winter warmer, with a gentle message about working together and a light environmental touch.
Jon Nelson
Non-fiction
How do snow crystals form? What shapes can they take? Are no two snow crystals alike? These questions and more are answered inside this exploration of the science of snow, featuring photos of real snow crystals in all their beautiful diversity. Perfect for reading on winter days, this book by a nature photographer and a snow scientist will inspire wonder and curiosity about the marvels of snow. Snowflake-catching instructions are also included for aspiring young snow scientists!

Books about rain and clouds

David Conway
 & Jude Daly
Picturebook
This is a beautiful picture book that depicts a Kenyan village during a drought. Rain has not come down for months and the sun beats hard on the villagers, affecting the people, plants and animals. When a young girl called Lila hears a story from her grandfather about the secret of making the rain come back, she sets about on her own quest to save her village.
Grahame Baker-Smith
Picturebook
This is a beautiful picture book that explores the remarkable journey of the water cycle. From a few drops of rain in a little boy's jar to the depths of the vast ocean and back to clouds in the sky above, wonderful water is given centre-stage in this gentle narrative that evokes awe at the sheer beauty and scale of nature's systems.
David McKee
Picturebook
Favourite storytime character Elmer the elephant is back and this time he and his friends are waiting for a storm to finish so that they might see the rainbow at the end. But when the rainbow appears, it seems to have lost all of it's colours. When Elmer decides to come to the rescue by giving his own colours to rainbow, will Elmer become a colourless elephant for ever?
Emma Perry
 & Claire Alexander
Picturebook
Clouds gather, skies darken, rain drops, puddles appear… Let’s go puddling!Pull on your wellies and button up your coats for this playful, interactive story all about children delighting in the joy of splish-splash-sploshing in muddy puddles with their friends, and cherishing snuggles on the sofa afterwards. Emma Perry's debut on the Walker list encapsulates the joy of being outside whatever the weather, and is paired perfectly with Claire Alexander's watercolour artwork to recreate splashing puddles and raindrops!
Tim Hopgood
Picturebook
It is sad but true that no one is ever pleased to see Cyril the cloud. He's always being blamed for ruining everyone's fun: casting shadows over everywhere he goes, and making things look dull and miserable. So, one day, Cyril drifts far, far away in search of a friendly face: over farmland, towns, and an ocean . . . Eventually he arrives in a new land whose ground is baking hot. Here everyone welcomes the shade Cyril gives. This makes Cyril so happy that he cries big glorious tears of joy. And his tears soak the land and everything seems to smile. And that is all Cyril ever wanted - to look down on the world and see a happy smile. A beautiful story that taps right into what Tim Hopgood's books are all about: celebrating the natural world and promoting a positive outlook on life.

Sam Usher
Picturebook
Sam wants to go out but it's pouring with rain, so he and Grandpa decide to stay inside until the rain stops. Sam drinks hot chocolate and reads his books and dreams of adventures while Grandpa gets on with his important paperwork. Grandpa seems to have a VERY important letter to write. Then that very important letter has to be posted, despite the rain and floods. As they finally go outside, Sam and Grandpa have a magical adventure. Rain is the follow-up to the acclaimed Snow; and is the second title in a four-book series based on the weather.

Books about different types of weather

AKI Delphine Mach
Picturebook
Part of a series about a group of girls enjoying have fun in the great outdoors. This rhyming picture book is all about the Weather Girls, who explore the world around them come rain, snow or shine with a high spirit of adventure. Explore seasonal changes as the girls explore springtime green forests, swim in summer waters, jump around in autumn leaves and trek through snowy mountains.
Katie Daynes
 & Marie-Eve Tremblay
Non-fiction
​A lift-the-flap information text all about different types of weather and why they occur. Presented in a Q-and-A format with extra projects and quizzes to try, this is great for reading aloud to a class but young children will also enjoy looking through the bright, interactive pages independently.
Shirley Hughes
Poetry
A collection of poems about weather and seasons by much-loved children's author Shirley Hughes. A brother and sister enjoy exploring together throughout the seasons and experience the simple pleasures of the various weather conditions. With gentle rhymes and timeless illustrations, this poetry book is a real classic.
Caryl Hart
 & Bethan Wollvin
Picturebook
WHOOOOSH! We’re off on an exciting adventure in our hot-air balloon to say hello to all the different kinds of weather that make up our world.Join in with the rhymes and get ready to meet everything from whooshing wind to bright rainbows and shimmering sunshine. Little ones will be swept away on an unforgettable journey in this striking, action-packed picture book.This bold, bright follow-up to the acclaimed picture books Meet the Planets and Meet the Oceans is packed with gorgeous illustrations of everything from rainy rainforests to snowy mountains and stormy seas. Combining STEM learning with a rhyming twist, it's perfect for all little meteorologists!

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