Laura Purdie Salas

Small Reads for Brighters Days

  • Email
  • Facebook
  • LinkedIn
  • Pinterest
  • RSS
  • Twitter
  • YouTube
  • Home
  • Laura’s Books
  • Poetry
    • Poems Published Elsewhere
    • My Poetry–a Sampler
    • Poetry Videos
    • How To Write Poetry
      • Poetic Pursuits
  • For Teachers
  • Presentations
  • Freelancer
  • About
    • Press Kit
      • Short Bios
      • Awards & Honors
      • Author Photos
      • Book Covers
      • Book Reviews
      • In the Press
    • Who Am I?
    • How I Became a Writer
  • Blog
    • Review Policy
  • For Writers
You are here: Home / A Leaf Can Be…

A Leaf Can Be…

A Leaf Can Be…

A leaf can be a…Shade spiller…Mouth filler…Tree topper…Rain stopper…

Leaves and trees feed us, shade us, and heal our planet. They can also shelter tiny bats, paint the hills gold in autumn, and be umbrellas for wildlife. Find out about some of the roles leaves play in this brief, poetic exploration of leaves throughout the year. Stunning art by Violeta Dabija brings the magic of our world to the page.

Author: Laura Purdie Salas
Illustrator: Violeta Dabija
Publisher: Millbrook Press, 2012
ISBN: 978-0-7613-6203-6

Order Now!
Signed Copies Available

Personalized, signed copies! Note personalization name in comment box as you order the book:>)

Support indie booksellers!

Order from Amazon

Awards & Recognition

  • Bank Street Best Books
  • IRA Teachers’ Choice
  • NCTE Notable Children’s Book
  • Minnesota Book Award Finalist
  • Scholastic Book Club selection
  • Riverby Award for Nature Books for Young Readers
  • SCBWI Golden Kite Honor Book
  • Finalist for KRA’s Bill Martin, Jr. Picture Book Award
  • Nebraska Agriculture Foundation’s Book of the Month May 2018

Book Trailer

FREE Downloadables

  • Teaching Guide
  • Literature Guide from Nebraska Agriculture in the Classroom
  • Write a Can Be… book–lesson plan and templates for students!
  • Common Core State Standards Activity Sheets

Grade K – Reading Informational Text

Standard 1 here and here
Standard 2
Standard 3
Standard 4
Standard 5
Standard 6
Standard 7
Standard 8
Standard 9

Grade 1 – Reading Informational Text

Standard 1 here and here and here
Standard 2
Standard 3
Standard 4
Standard 5 here and here
Standard 6
Standard 7
Standard 8
Standard 9

Grade 2 – Reading Informational Text

Standard 1
Standard 2
Standard 3
Standard 4 here and here and here
Standard 5 here and here
Standard 6
Standard 7
Standard 8
Standard 9

Grade K – Writing

Standard 1
Standard 2
Standard 3

Grade 1 – Writing

Standard 1
Standard 2
Standard 3

Grade 2 – Writing

Standard 1
Standard 2
Standard 3

Reviews & More

  • New York Times review: “Grown-up readers may be a bit in awe too.”
  • School Library Journal review: “A lovely observation about nature, suitable for a variety of science units or individual sharing.”
  • Kirkus review: “Simple and pleasing, with classroom-discussion and read-aloud appeal.”
  • Publishers Weekly review: “Salas explores the many functions a leaf can serve with simple grace.”
  • Many more reviews and blog posts about A Leaf Can Be…
  • Watch a cool 3rd-grade art project inspired by A Leaf Can Be…

How the Book Began

I love rhyming nonfiction picture books, and I was looking for a topic to write about. In paging through my other books, I came across a poem I wrote for Chatter, Sing, Roar, Buzz: Poems About the Rain Forest. It was about Honduran tent bats, which chew through ribs of large leaves. These tiny bats huddle along the spine of the leaf and the broken fronds fold down around them, sheltering them from rain and predators. How cool is that? It made me wonder what else leaves do, and it was fun to learn about all the purposes leaves serve in our world. And it was even more fun to write about them in rhyming couplets!

Meet the Illustrator

Violeta Dabija lives in Moldova, a small Eastern European country I don’t think I had ever heard of! She works in traditional and digital media and often mixes them to produce delicate and atmospheric illustrations with a traditional feel. She has illustrated many children’s books, but I think this was her first U.S. book. I love the translucency, the quality of light in her work.

I am thrilled with Violeta’s stunning art for A Leaf Can Be…, and I was not surprised that Lerner chose one of her illustrations from this book for its electronic and print holiday cards the year this book came out! To see more of her work, please visit Violeta Dabija’s website.

Share:

  • Click to share on Facebook (Opens in new window)
  • Click to share on Twitter (Opens in new window)
  • Click to email a link to a friend (Opens in new window)
  • Click to print (Opens in new window)
  • Click to share on LinkedIn (Opens in new window)
  • More
  • Click to share on Pinterest (Opens in new window)
  • Click to share on Tumblr (Opens in new window)
  • Click to share on Reddit (Opens in new window)

JANUARY NEWS

I loved the holidays! And I'm so glad they're over. A quiet, snowy January is just what I need. This month, I'm working on two board book manuscripts, and I'm making materials to go with my 3 spring 2023 books.

I'm also busy prepping for upcoming author visits and setting my goals and priorities for 2023. Wishing you a lovely start to your own new year!

Are You Looking For…?

  • Poems for the Classroom
  • Poetryactions
  • 15 Words or Less Poems
  • Poetry Activities for Teachers

Tags

15 Words or Less Poems 30 Painless Classroom Poems anthologies A Rock Can Be... BookSpeak! Can Be... books classroom connections conferences and conventions equation poems events free verse haiku imagepoems image poems J. Patrick Lewis Kidlit Combos Laura's books Laura's poems my writing process National Poetry Month 2014 (riddle-ku) National Poetry Month 2016 nifty news nonfiction books personal photopoetry poems poemsketch Poetry 7 poetryactions poetry books Poetry Friday Poetry Princesses poetry prompts poetry sisters Putrid rhyming nonfiction rhyming poems Riddle-ku school visits snowman-cold student poems teen/adult poems the business side videos Water Can Be...

Meta

  • Log in
  • Entries feed
  • Comments feed
  • WordPress.org

Laura’s Press Kit Components

Who Am I?
Short Bios
Awards & Honors
Author Photos
Book Covers
Book Reviews
In the Press
How I Became a Writer

Laura’s Author Visit Info

VISITS TO SCHOOLS
A Video Intro to Laura’s Author Visits
Virtual Visits with Laura
Small Writes: Write-Along Videos
Printable Flyer (print page 1 only)
Author Visit Programs
Typical Schedules
Author Visit Materials
Multi-Day Visits
Fees
Ordering Books for Events
Where Laura’s Been
Laura’s Report Card from Educators

OTHER PRESENTATIONS

For Libraries & Book Festivals
For Educators
For Writers

Post Categories

Copyright © 2009–2023 · Laura Purdie Salas · WordPress · Log in