乐享大自然 Nature Playtime Series (Set of 5) - 海红豆树 Saga Tree + 含羞草 Touch-Me-Nots + 橡胶树 Rubber Tree + 木麻黄 Casuarina Tree + 火焰木 Flame of the Forest

The heartwarming Nature Playtime series combines several things close to our heart: Kinship + Heritage + Nature + SingLit + Mandarin!

Features we really appreciate and love in each book:

• Story is conversational and not too difficult
• Hanyu Pinyin included at the back!
  This encourages us to read the Chinese text and if we're stumped, the hanyu pinyin is just a convenient flip away!
• Bilingual Glossary of 5-8 key terms containing Chinese and English translations of vocabulary with hanyu pinyin, to help us make connections between the languages
• Character-building themes - shyness, bullying, forgiveness etc
• Featuring trees we can find in Singapore, deepening our ties with our land!
• Ask Popo Section 外婆万事通 - with an informative write-up on
  • the Latin, Malay and common names where available
  • where the tree grows
  • interesting facts
  • uses of the tree etc!
• Each book contains several related hands-on activities that we can try, including
  • Making five-stones filled with saga seeds
  • Making a musical shaker with reused plastic bottle and saga seeds
  • Leaf rubbings
  • Find the Difference
  • Paper Helicopter craft to explore topic of seed dispersal via wind
  • Seed "Propeller" toy using rubber seed
    and more!
    Note: Some activities require adult help

About the Nature Playtime Series

Emma and her grandmother, Popo are best friends. Back in Popo’s day, children played with whatever they could find around them, such as seeds, flowers and leaves of plants. As Popo relives the old ways of play, new worlds are opened for Emma and love is passed on from generation to generation.

关于《乐享大自然》丛书系列 爱玛和外婆是最要好的朋友。在外婆
小时候，孩子们找到什么就玩什么，当 中包括植物的种子、花、叶子等。外婆 重温童年时代的游戏方式时，也为爱玛 打开了一个新世界。爱，就这样由一代 传承给下一代。

Books in the set:

• 海红豆树 The Saga Tree
  
  ’Back then, we didn’t have any toys.“
  A little girl named Emma is crying, so hergrandmother, Popo, brings her to pick sagaseeds, where she learns about the tree hergrandmother still loves. Emma realisesthat times may change, but love does not.
  
  “那时，我们没有玩具玩。”
  一位名叫爱玛的小女孩哭了。她的外婆带她出去找海红豆。在外婆的教导下，她认识了海红豆树，也了解了那是外婆一直都很喜欢的一棵树。小女孩从中领悟到：不管时代如何变迁，爱，是永恒不变的。
  
  
• 含羞草 Touch-Me-Nots
  

  
  “Maybe they are shy, just like you.”
  Timid little Emma does not want to go to music class, until her grandmother, Popo, shows her the magic of touch-me-nots. With Popo’s gentle encouragement, Emma overcomes her shyness and finds her own song.
  
  “它们也可能很害羞，就像你。”
  在外婆带爱玛认识神奇的含羞草之前，胆小的她一直不肯去上音乐课。在外婆温柔的鼓励之下，爱玛终于克服了害羞的心理，也找到了属于自己节奏。
  

• 橡胶树 The Rubber Tree
  
  

  “When I was young, we had no money to buy toys.”
  School bullies are giving Emma a hard time. Her grandmother, Popo, recounts a trick cheeky boys would play using rubber seeds, which they also made into propellers. The homemade toy is a hit and builds bridges with Emma’s classmates.

  “我小时候没有钱买玩具。”
  爱玛在学校里被顽皮的同学欺负了，她很为难。外婆想起，在自己童年时，一些顽皮的男生除了会用橡胶籽来玩些捉弄人的小把戏，也会用它做成竹蜻蜓。外婆自制的橡胶籽竹蜻蜓很受欢迎，也帮爱玛化解了一些和同学之间的不愉快。
  
  
• 木麻黄 The Casuarina Tree
  
  

  ’I never want to play with you again.“

  Little brother Eli can be trouble, as Emma finds out while building sandcastles at the beach with their grandmother, Popo. Under the shade of the casuarina tree, Eli learns to share and Emma realises forgiveness is a better way.

  “我再也不要和你玩了！”
  爱玛在沙滩上和外婆堆沙堡时，发现弟弟爱力顽皮捣蛋的一面。在木麻黄的陪伴下，爱力学会如何分享，而爱玛则明白了，宽容是一种美德。
  
  
• 火焰木 The Flame of the Forest
  
  

  “We can sail the pods down the drain.”
  Emma and Eli are at a picnic with their grandmother, Popo, when their ball gets stuck in a tree. That’s when they discover the flame of the forest, a childhood favourite of Popo’s. Together, young and old fly its winged seeds and float pods in the drain, just like in the good old days.

  “我们可以把果荚放进水沟里，让它像小船一样游动。”
  爱玛、爱力和外婆一起去野餐。姐弟俩玩球时，球却被卡在树上了。巧的是，他们也因此发现了外婆小时候最爱的火焰木。于是，他们把长了“翅膀”的种子当作飞机玩，还把果荚放到水沟里，当小船玩。祖孙三人尽情地玩，重温昔日的美丽时光。
  

Recommended for Ages: 2-10
Pages: 32
Format: Softcover
Language: Simplified Chinese with Hanyu Pinyin
Author: 黄诗慧 Sophia Huang
Illustrator: 冯筱玲 Paula Pang
Translated from: English
Translated by: 

MST Conversation Starters:

• Have you wondered what games your grandparents, aunties and uncles played when they were young? Let's ask them!
• What is your favourite tree?
• If you could plant a tree next to our house, which tree would you choose and why?
• Do you know the names of any trees and plants in our neighbourhood? 
• Can you think of a time you had a disagreement with someone? How did you feel and how was it resolved?
• Emma's Grandmother made a toy using rubber seeds. Let's think of how we can create our own homemade toys using recyclable materials!
• Was there a time when you felt really shy too, just like Emma?

MST Ideas for Extension Activities:

• Several activities are available at the back of each book, we can try them out!
• Go on a neighbourhood walk, to check out interesting trees nearby. We can learn about the parts of a tree, textures, shapes and colours we see
• Search and learn more about the different trees in Singapore via NParks Flora & Fauna Web - containing lots of information about
  • amount of water and sun needed
  • whether it's native to Singapore
  • photos
  • how the flowers, seeds, leaves etc are like
  • maximum height
  • methods of pollination
  • method of seed dispersal etc!
    
• Try nature journalling - by drawing or pasting things, and writing snippets of what we saw, heard, touched or experienced