Clean Water for Everyone in Inspiring and Family Oriented Picture Book for Young Readers

Gwendolyn Wallace's gorgeous picture book depicts a story of a mission to find clean and fresh water for everyone. Dancing With Water tells the story of a grandpa who is on a mission to help everyone with getting clean and fresh water for their lives.

Kit's grandpa has the mission of finding clean water for as many people as he can. Hotels and factories are appearing more and more in his town and this fact is making it more difficult to find clean and fresh water for the town. Kit believes that his grandpa has a magical skill with his divining stick as he digs fo water in many places every day. Kit is now old enough to help his grandpa with finding water. They travel around daily in Grandpa's truck to dig for water. Grandpa's magic stick that is made from a tree branch is his secret tool for digging for the water. When the water springs up from a source, Grandpa shows his happiness by dancing. Grandpa decides to travel to another side of town one day to dig for water. He persuades Kit to join him. Water is found and the water gushes from the ground. Kit finally understands Grandpa's talent for listening to the water and this makes him much more connected to his grandpa. Dancing With Water has a life lesson that teaches strong family connections.

Tonya Engel contributed her talents as an illustrator with her stunningly beautiful oil paintings. The illustrations are unique and are a special part of this book.

Dancing With Water is recommended for ages 4-8. It was published by Kokila, a division of Penguin/Random House. It has an ISBN of 978-0-593-61790-8.

Teachers who teach in early elementary classrooms will want to add this beautiful picture book to their classroom library. A life lesson with family connections is a lesson for young children to value. Dancing With Water also provides the opportunity for teachers to add STEM curriculum activities for children to learn about water.

*Read Dancing With Water in a story time session. Call attention to the fact that Kit's grandpa digs wells for people to access clean water.

*Engage children in a discussion of the reasons that everyone needs clean water for daily living. Provide a glass of clean water and one with dirt in the water. Which one would your students want to drink?

*Call attention to the fact that Grandpa is very happy each time he discovers water to dig a new well. Engage children in a discussion of an accomplishment that they have made that brings happiness. Would they like to dance when they are successful with an accomplishment?

*Provide activities for children to use water in the classroom. How does clean water make life enjoyable?

*Add curriculum activities that fit into a STEM curriculum to learn about water. An example of an activity is to heat water and watch the water boil. What happens then the water boils? Children can also experiment with water with freezing it into ice cubes. Measure the time that it takes for water to freeze. Thaw the ice cubes with another activity and measure the time that it takes to thaw the cubes. Which takes longer?

Gwendolyn Wallace is an award-winning children's book author. Her books focus on black children and their creativity in society. She focuses on change in our society for black children. A few of her books are Joy Takes Root, The Light She Feels Inside, and an upcoming publication Imagine New Suns.

Tonya Engel is a talented artist and illustrator. She is the recipient of the 2020 Septima Clark Book Award and the 2022 Boston Globe-Horn Book Honor. She enjoys nature and traveling.