Quite early in my teaching career, I found myself weaving different strands of the curriculum together to create literature-based thematic units of study. Making connections between the Language Arts, Social Studies, Science, Art, Music, and Math curricula came quite easily, but finding the “just right” pieces of literature to provide a focus for each theme took a little more effort.
Fortunately, from coast to coast to coast, we have many publishing houses that are dedicated to the production of amazing children’s books for teachers to choose from. The following is a mix of fiction, non-fiction, old favourites, and brand-new titles that have their origins along one of our three extensive coastlines. Take a look—you might find something that would be a great fit for your next unit of study.
by Ian McAllister and Nicholas Read
Orca Book Publishers
ISBN 978-1-55469-206-4
121 pp, ages 8+
orcabook.com
The wolves that live in the Great Bear Rainforest on the central coast of British Columbia are genetically distinct from other wolf populations. The Sea Wolves describes the daily lives of these intelligent animals who can “swim like otters and fish like bears”! Extensively illustrated with Ian McAllister’s photographs and written in an easily accessible and conversational tone by Nicholas Read, this book would
make a great classroom resource for grades three to seven.
by Ian McAllister and Nicholas Read
Orca Book Publishers
ISBN 978-1-55469-205-7
90 pp, ages 8+
orcabook.com
The Salmon Bears describes the lives of the grizzly, black, and spirit bear populations of the Great Bear Rainforest. Key to their survival is the return of the spawning salmon each autumn. Both The Sea Wolves and The Salmon Bears provide support to young readers with many non-fiction text features: an extensive number of wonderful photographs, captions, headings, fact boxes, bold words, a map, and an index.
by Seabacola Beaton, Jorja Johnson, and Cadence Manson
illustrated by Natalie Laurin
Strong Nations Publishing
ISBN 978-1-77174-600-7
72 pp, ages 8+
strongnations.com
Andy’s Tribal Canoe Journey is a graphic novel inspired by Cadence and Jorja’s experiences paddling in the Spe’eth youth canoe in the 2019 Tribal Canoe Journey from Nanaimo, BC, to Lummi, Washington State, USA. The main character, Andy, learns to cope with the physical and emotional challenges of paddling for long hours over several days and in varying weather conditions. By the time they reach Lummi, he is physically exhausted but happy to be part of his canoe family. The illustrations in this book match the text perfectly and help to make the novel accessible to younger readers.
The Tribal Canoe Journey is an annual event organized by Indigenous Peoples of the Pacific Northwest. It provides opportunities for people to connect and share cultures. The route, the length of the journey, and the destination vary from year to year, depending on the location of the host Nation.
by Sheryl McFarlane
illustrated by Sheena Lott
Orca Book Publishers
ISBN 0-920501-76-1
72 pp, ages 6 – 9
orcabook.com
Originally printed in 1992, this Canadian classic is a celebration of nature and the wonders of living on a small island on the West Coast. Jessie invites her city cousin to come and visit. She makes a list of all the activities that they could enjoy together and the abundant wildlife that populates the land, air, and water around her island home. Beautifully illustrated by Sheena Lott, Jessie’s Island makes a wonderful springboard into a study of island ecosystems and the creatures that live there.
ISBN 978-1-926569-08-6
Uumajut #2
ISBN 978-1-926569-22-2
Inhabit Media
by Simon Awa, Seeglook Akeeagok, Anna Ziegler, Stephanie McDonald
illustrated by Romi Caron
30 pp, ages 7 – 9
inhabitmedia.com
These two dual-language books (Inuktitut/English) provide young readers with a glimpse at some of the Arctic’s fascinating wildlife species. From tiny amphipods to the bowhead whale, there is a wide variety of creatures to learn about. The books are divided into two categories: “Animals of the Tundra” and “Animals of the Sea and Ice.” The softly coloured illustrations provide a clear image of each animal and its habitat.
by Christy Jordan-Fenton and Margaret Pokiak- Fenton
Annick Press
ISBN 978-1-55451-246-1
106 pp, ages 9 – 12
annickpress.com
Margaret Pokiak-Fenton spent her early childhood years on Banks Island. At the age of eight, she travelled with her father to Aklavik to attend the Catholic residential school. Her goal was to learn to read. Despite her family’s warnings, Margaret was unprepared for the harsh reality of living in a residential school setting. This true story was written by Christy Jordon-Fenton, Margaret’s daughter-in-law. The photos at the back of the book are from Margaret’s archives.
Note: Banks Island is part of the Arctic Archipelago and is located in the Beaufort Sea. It is part of the Northwest Territories.
by Robert Munsch and Michael Kusugak
illustrated by Vladyana Krykorka
Annick Press
ISBN 1-55037-008-1
32 pp, ages 5 – 8
annickpress.com
A Promise Is A Promise is a collaboration between Robert Munsch and Michael Kusugak. The story features a young girl named Allashua and her family and their encounter with the Qallupilluit, imaginary creatures that live in the waters of Hudson Bay. Storytellers claim that they grab children who stray too close to the cracks in the ice. I have a well-worn copy of this book (published in 1988) sitting on my desk. It has been read to multiple primary classes and has been featured in many literature-based themes. Note: A free downloadable lesson plan for A Promise Is A Promise is available at: strongnations.com.
A sea turtle’s Atlantic adventure
written and illustrated by Carol McDougall
Boulder Books
ISBN 978-1-989417-63-8
40 pp, ages 5 – 8
boulderbooks.ca
This delightfully illustrated book begins with the hatching of Lally, a leatherback turtle. Readers follow her as she makes her way down the beach and enters the ocean water. She soon begins a search for her favourite food— jellyfish! The search takes her on a long trek that lasts for several years. She swims north from the shores of Trinidad to the coast of Newfoundland and then back again. By the time she drags herself up onto her native beach to lay her own eggs, she weighs over half a tonne.
Jellies in the Belly would make a great read-aloud for primary classes. It describes the turtle life cycle as well as some of the hazards they face on their migrations. There is a puzzle, a map, and a list of turtle facts at the back of the book.
Note: Leatherbacks have the widest range of all sea turtles. About 60% of leatherbacks that feed near Newfoundland come from Trinidad nesting grounds.
by The Central Coast of Labrador Archaeology Partnership
illustrated by Cynthia Colosimo
translated by Sophie Tuglavina
Flanker Press
ISBN 978-1-897317-91-4
38 pp, ages 8+
flankerpress.com
Anguti’s Amulet is a dual language (Inuktitut/English) project written by students and staff who worked at an archeological site on the central coast of Labrador. The site was occupied between A.D. 1720 and A.D. 1750. A fictional story was created around what the team learned from excavating the site, historical documents, and oral history. A map, word boxes, and detailed illustrations help orient the reader to the specific place and time of the story. Through many historical photographs, diagrams, and sketches, the back section of the book describes the detailed links between the story and the archeological site. The reader will also catch a glimpse of “Gunther” in one of the photos. Gunther is a member of the fox family that had a den at the project site!
Dolphin SOS
by Roy Miki and Slavia Miki
illustrated by Julie Flett Tradewind Books
ISBN 9781896580760
32 pp, ages 6 – 8
tradewindbooks.com
Dolphin SOS is a story based on an event that happened at Seal Cove, Newfoundland in 2009. A number of white-beaked dolphins became trapped by ice in White Bay. After several days of watching the dolphins struggle to free themselves, a number of villagers managed to clear a channel to the open water. One dolphin was too weak to swim out, and so one of the men donned a survival suit and entered the water. He kept the dolphin afloat until the others returned with a boat and a rope for a harness. The dolphin was towed out to the open water and survived. Julie Flett’s bold illustrations capture the mood of this book beautifully.
Brenda Boreham
Brenda has 35 years of classroom experience. She has presented workshops on literacy strategies, and has written a number of resources for teachers. She remains passionate about matching up kids with books.
This article is featured in Canadian Teacher Magazine’s Spring 2024 issue.