
Look Where We Live!
A First Book of Community Building
In this engaging nonfiction picture book, five young friends spend the day participating in activities designed to raise money for their local library. Along the way, they learn what it means to be a part of a community. A map opens the story with each of the places the children will be visiting. Parents and teachers will appreciate that the author stresses the roles of all community members. For ages 4-6.
32 pages.
©2015.
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KendraSchroeder
Review posted February 18, 2023
This book would be a great addition to a community unit for preschool or early elementary children. It focuses on different public places within a community: libraries, community garden, and more. Questions to the reader and posed at various points in the book to reflect on own community experiences.
haleynicole14
Review posted January 25, 2023
This was a bit wordy for a young child but still a positive book about helping your community
KateB
Review posted January 22, 2023
Excellent text & illustrations in this book for young people about the definition of community, workers who contribute to community, and age-sensitive ways to engage in the community. There are concrete questions for thought, such as what would you grow in a community garden. How could you earn money to donate to the public library? Examples include selling toys and lemonade at a yard sale. It encourages generosity and action. Would be great for a children’s message in church! (I received a free copy from the Ford Family Foundation, which invites reviews in exchange for a free book, one book at a time. I
eckirby27
Review posted January 19, 2023
What a cool way to explain community building to kids. My toddler loves this book and being able to draw comparisons to our own community has been fun. Would definitely recommend this to anyone that spends time with children.
amercier
Review posted January 10, 2023
This is a very sweet book about how we are all puzzle pieces that fit together to make a community, and we are all important. I enjoyed the metaphor coming together at the end with the instructions on how to make a puzzle. This book is very cutely illustrated, easy to follow, I like the format of it, and I appreciate that it has a "words to know" section in the back in case children are unsure of a word.
Pbutsch
Review posted November 12, 2022
I used this book in my classroom of 3-6 year olds! A sweet connective book emphasizing the importance of community building. They loved it!
Cfrances
Review posted October 14, 2022
What a great picture book to capture the many ways children and families can participate in their communities, and appreciate others who work to keep communities strong. The format offers a side-by-side narrative along with factual information; these parts could be read together or separately depending on the ages and attention span of children. A useful springboard for discussion and action!
hippybabies
Review posted October 13, 2022
This is a wonderful introduction to community building and public life. I bought this book for my son who is is in first grade and always has questions regarding his neighborhood and how they work together. My kids were really engaged, and loved looking for clues in the illustrations. It's a well done, and its message is positive and inclusive.
elderinthewoods
Review posted August 29, 2022
What a delightful surprise to find this in our PO Box today! The illustrations are beautiful. As a rural resident, I had to change some of the language and add a few explanations for my kindergarten to understand the story. It’s is about community building, which is very relevant out here, but the vocabulary and the plot center on city life. We made it work :-) The simple map, overview of community places and helpers, vocabulary list, and optional activity at the end make this book a great supplement to our homeschooling social studies curriculum. Thank you, Ford Family Foundation!
[email protected]
Review posted July 24, 2022
Awesome book! We loved going on the journey though all the different parts of the community and the questions started some great discussion with my kids about what it means to be a part of the greater community.
CHANELC
Review posted June 30, 2022
good book, but a lot of information for a little one
grrbonka
Review posted June 18, 2022
This is a lovely book. I love the illustrations. A child can learn many things about the community he/she lives in. It talks about a community garden, the library, and visiting a grandpa in a retirement home, among other things. It shows how communities are built in many different ways. Ideas for the parent to pursue. Will go into the little free library on my block.
yoncallalibrary
Review posted May 14, 2022
Great book for kids to learn about fundraisers in their neighborhood.
alysiacox
Review posted April 13, 2022
This was a great way to talk about our family and how we move about our community. It was great to see a spectrum of ways of living.
Mel Halter
Review posted April 7, 2022
This book has excellent illustrations and is great for introducing kids to community. I use it fir the beginning of my community helpers unit for my kindergarten students.
Janet Honea
Review posted April 4, 2022
This is a fun and colorful exploration of community building. Look Where We Live not only gives simple examples and definition of community, but also engages readers with thoughtful questions about their own communities and how to be a productive member.
Kim Bosse
Review posted April 1, 2022
This was a fun book and lead to great discussions. The puzzle at the end was a bit hard for the younger preschoolers.
nancyovchinnikov
Review posted February 27, 2022
This is such a cute book introducing kids to community building. Great stuff!
Jenn26
Review posted February 26, 2022
So fun! Kids love it.
jlhendren
Review posted January 12, 2022
It was a little above my age group, however, it contained good information that I was able to adapt to fit my kiddos. I would recommend it to elementary grades, for sure!
melaiakilduff
Review posted December 18, 2021
This book is great for teaching maps, places in a community, where to find helpers, and city vs. town.
Shayneochoa
Review posted November 10, 2021
My students and children love reading this book and exploring the different types of neighborhoods. My students are in 3rd grade and my daughter is 3. It has so many options for teaching and vocabulary.
Jshadwick
Review posted October 31, 2021
Super cute, excited to use for a community building unit
KeciaKubota
Review posted October 17, 2021
A great book added to our "Zen Zone" library! A place where youth in our after school and summer programs get to relax when overstimulated. This book gives a great first look at the elements of community building!
talkyler
Review posted October 13, 2021
This was a very enjoyable book to read to my prek class. Every page was engaging and fun; weaving places in our community with the importance of actively participating as members of a community.
kennedyc
Review posted October 8, 2021
Great book for young readers/listeners to learn about community building and the importance of community.
chasteenbrazil
Review posted October 6, 2021
Good child’s book my son enjoyed it
Hilary
Review posted September 7, 2021
The book begins with a map and drawings of different kids with their names. This is “the best part” according to my daughter. She loved flipping back to the map to see the path they traveled and pointing out each kid in the pictures. The map helped us talk about our community. We also talked about how community has and has not changed since COVID. It was a great way to open up that discussion.
Valeria Jacome
Review posted August 30, 2021
This book is a great way to teach students about what it means to be a community and how we can help build a stronger community. The characters in the book go around in different locations of the community. By reading this book, it allows teachers and students to discuss ways that each of these places contributes to foundations of society and how it works with responsibilities and actions.
daniderrick
Review posted August 16, 2021
An excellent resource for talking with young kids about community. Would pair great with Me on the Map for a mapping lesson.
annarodgers5
Review posted August 13, 2021
Best for younger elementary-age kids. The story is very, very loose, but each page still presents a lot of great information about different ways you can help your community. There are also questions on many of the pages to get kids interacting with what they're reading about.
DaphneMalpass
Review posted August 1, 2021
I like the message but there's not really a story to it. It's a good way of introducing kids to how the world/community functions.
Kokocat
Review posted July 27, 2021
Nice book to help children understand the interdependence of everyone in the community to help each other accomplish a goal. The plot is not very exciting and may not engage all readers.
Theresa Habeck
Review posted July 23, 2021
Look Where we Live! is a terrific book for young learners to learn about community. The illustrations are engaging, and each page includes information and additional discussion questions.
palotala
Review posted July 17, 2021
I love this entry-level book to start young ones down a community builder's path. I plan on lending it to friends with little ones, especially those working on widening their perspectives to think about their neighbors and community.
tkwilson
Review posted June 30, 2021
Such a cute book. Glad they offer this
annelisehjensen
Review posted June 27, 2021
I think this book is an excellent way to convey to children the concept of community. I love the clear and concise definitions of words that are easy for children to understand. The pictures are also very informative and “speak a thousand words”.
Gabiolga
Review posted June 17, 2021
Wonderful overview for kids of the different elements of a community!
Linda K Joyce
Review posted June 17, 2021
I selected this book for our library and it will be a great addition. The library is solely funded by donations, community support and volunteers. This book illustrates the importance of the community. Thank you for this gift to add to our collection. Linda J Canyonville Community Library
aaronwilder13
Review posted June 11, 2021
My kids love this book.
fons
Review posted June 4, 2021
This book is super cute! Lots of fun pictures with interactive questions built into the story. There are also some great SEL lessons or topics weaved in. I also enjoyed the art activity at the end, my students would love that!
jessicashumate
Review posted April 28, 2021
My daughter spends a lot of time looking through the engaging pictures of this book. Because of the pandemic, I think dialogue about our community has become even more important in our home.
JJDittmer
Review posted April 17, 2021
Love the book! Read it to a group of 3rd grade students and really sparked some great conversations and thinking from them.
Cindy Miller
Review posted April 12, 2021
I enjoyed reading Look Where We Live by Scot Ritchie to my grandson. I can't wait to share it with my granddaughter. I like the diversity I see in the book, not only people but occupations and activities. I would recommend this book to anyone who reads to children.
classykira85
Review posted March 16, 2021
This book is great, for children to learn about transportation and their town around them.
DonnaS
Review posted February 25, 2021
Fabulous! What measurably effective ways kids can contribute to their communities! Engaging pictures, clear guidance. Makes me wish I was within the pages joining in on all the fun!
andrewtaylor
Review posted February 4, 2021
Great book that opens up discussion of the community around us. Kids really enjoyed the details and pictures as well.
anneeelizabeth3
Review posted February 1, 2021
This book explains the many ways community building may function to create a positive constructive life-giving environment. Delightful pictures full of action. I would suggest that when shared with a 4–5-year-old child to look at the pictures and discuss them. It is much more suited to reading to a 6–8-year-old and would lead to interesting conversations. I highly recommend this book.
Mdlavern
Review posted January 30, 2021
This book was wonderful and opened conversations for children.
chandler1979
Review posted January 25, 2021
This is a cute book to introduce kids to just how much everyone in the community is connected. I like the questions in place to help engage the reader or listener in how they can help their own community.
Nstein910
Review posted January 7, 2021
Great book teaching kids about community, interacting with each other, and how we live.
nancyracoon
Review posted January 6, 2021
A delightful book about community. My 4-year-old had many fun questions about the illustrations.
mgraeper
Review posted October 27, 2020
This is a great age appropriate book
FeFiFoFanaAna
Review posted October 15, 2020
I read it to my 5th graders and they actually liked it. We were able to transition into a discussion of the town we live in and I like how inclusive the book is .
lisagreenwrites.co
Review posted October 14, 2020
I chose this book as I thought it would be a great way to break down community building- and it did! Look Where We Live! A First Book of Community Building is a book that is well done, has terrific artwork, and uses font extremely well. It has multiple ways each of us can participate in our community's well-being. For example, community cleanup is one of the items addressed. At the bottom of each "lesson", it states in bold type the result of our action. This is a great book for kids to learn about the community in which they live and how we can all make a difference somewhere no matter what our age!
[email protected]
Review posted October 12, 2020
This is a sweet and informative book about five friends exploring their community. My children really enjoyed it and said it reminded them of pre-COVID when we got to explore our community. It encourages kids to be involved in their community! The drawings are very detailed and my young kids liked looking at them.
mluedtke
Review posted October 6, 2020
An engaging book to help young readers engage with what it means to engage in positive change in their neighborhoods and build community.
Alyssa Thompson
Review posted September 17, 2020
We loved this book! The diversity is exactly what I was looking for when adding books to our collection.
tahutton
Review posted September 16, 2020
I absolutely love this book and how it explains to students the places around town in a way that they will understand.
bngbrookie
Review posted September 2, 2020
Excellent youth-friendly introduction to community building! My 6 year old loved it and we hope it will be read for years to come!
stokesfolks
Review posted August 31, 2020
I loved reading about this fun community. It made me nostalgic for the times before Covid-19. The art is very cute and colorful. So much fun!
apotter
Review posted August 24, 2020
My 3 year old LOVES this book! It’s such a great introduction to what a community is and what makes a community strong. He loves the adventure of the story:’following the kids and animals through their day raising money for the library. Such a special book.
annsbananz
Review posted August 6, 2020
My kids love identifying the characters throughout the story and answering questions asked throughout the book about the who, what, and where of their own community. The page about the community garden is their favorite!
EMeyers
Review posted July 27, 2020
Great book with lots of detailed pictures. My nearly 2 yr. old daughter likes it. It's a longer book, but she likes seeing the overall community map and all the things our community has too. Fun!
AmberYelliott
Review posted July 16, 2020
This book is a wonderful addition to my pre-k book selection. Teaching kids about engagement and community partnerships. I loved the activity at the end of the book, beautiful touch at the end.
AndreaBaugh23
Review posted July 5, 2020
This book is a cute book with great illustrations that was used in my class during our community helpers unit. It doesn't flow like a story more like a nonfiction book but that was what I needed it for so it was great. It kept the students engaged.
holtman
Review posted June 15, 2020
Neat little book. It does a good job teaching about community and ways to be involved in a community. Enjoyed the diversity of the characters and inclusion in the community for all.
Kowen84
Review posted June 14, 2020
This book is great because it shares the community that our children grow and see. I'm interested in the rest of the series.
Danielle
Review posted June 13, 2020
A great book to promote local community and launch into conversations about who, where, what, when and how your neighbors create a community in your area.
jennabee
Review posted June 12, 2020
Such a fun look at a community. My kids had fun looking for the kids on each page. I like how it covered important community landmarks and explained the important role they play in our lives.
kwalker
Review posted May 21, 2020
Our daughter loves this book.
eggltiff
Review posted May 7, 2020
This is a cute book. My 5 year old loved looking at the pictures and listening to the story. We talked about events that we have done in our community to help relate it better. It has a list of vocabulary at the back with definitions.
brittneyprofessional
Review posted April 21, 2020
Look Where We Live! Was a great way to encourage ideas about the community with my pre-k learner. He loved the visuals and was making connections between jobs and people of the community that contribute to our safety and our basic needs. He was able to accurately identify and explain what most of the art was representing such as the community gardens/gardeners and the police officers. He loved learning about the facts within the book and talking about what the towns people where doing to contribute to society within the context of the book pages.
Firechild94
Review posted April 4, 2020
This book was a great introduction to a community for my kids. It was very informative and helpful.
Jan Diamantine
Review posted March 18, 2020
Wonderful. Great colors and story.