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Read and find out about how animals cope with winter in this colorfully illustrated nonfiction picture book. This is a clear and appealing book for early elementary age kids, both at home and in the classroom. Introduce kids to basic science ideas as part of discussions about the seasons and animals. Have you ever seen a butterfly in the snow? Probably not. Butterflies can't survive cold weather, so when winter comes, many butterflies fly to warmer places. They migrate. Woodchucks don't like cold weather either, but they don't migrate; they hibernate. Woodchucks sleep in their dens all winter long. How do these and other animals handle the cold and snow of winter? Read and find out in the proven winner Animals in Winter ! This is a Level 1 Let's-Read-and-Find-Out, which means the book explores introductory concepts perfect for children in the primary grades. The 100+ titles in this leading nonfiction series Top 10 reasons to love Books in this series support the Common Core Learning Standards, Next Generation Science Standards, and the Science, Technology, Engineering, and Math (STEM) standards. Let's-Read-and-Find-Out is the winner of the American Association for the Advancement of Science/Subaru Science Books & Films Prize for Outstanding Science Series.

32 pages, Hardcover

First published December 1, 1963

12 people are currently reading
359 people want to read

About the author

Henrietta Bancroft

6 books2 followers

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5 stars
137 (31%)
4 stars
169 (38%)
3 stars
115 (26%)
2 stars
14 (3%)
1 star
5 (1%)
Displaying 1 - 30 of 69 reviews
Profile Image for Mariah Roze.
1,067 reviews1,054 followers
December 2, 2016
This was a good, simple book that explained what happens to animals during the science months.
Profile Image for Luisa Knight.
3,244 reviews1,266 followers
January 29, 2025
I really like this series for the younger crowd. Particularly the vintage editions - the illustrations are so much better, in detail and art style.

This title goes through a general scope of various animals prepping for the winter and their habits. The info is just enough to not be overwhelming, and to stick with a 3 year old.

A win for early science!

Ages: 3 - 6

Content Considerations: nothing to note.
Profile Image for SaraKat.
1,980 reviews38 followers
January 5, 2019
A great picture book of different adaptations that are used by various animals to survive the winter. I am going to get my school librarian to gather up a bunch of copies from the elementary schools in my district to let my middle schoolers read it for a fun engagement. It covers education standards on migration and hibernation well and then adds in other ways that animals survive. The art is lovely.
Profile Image for Storm.
234 reviews35 followers
January 5, 2017
I do an Animals in Winter unit with my students based around this book. It's a perfect way to start the unit and start my students off being interested in what the animals around us are doing all winter long.
Profile Image for Kathy.
3,405 reviews61 followers
December 12, 2019
Good illustrations and information. Fun way to learn something new.
Profile Image for Tulasha.
11 reviews
August 29, 2020
The book is filled with a beautiful picture of animals and things that animals do during winter.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
Profile Image for Laurie.
919 reviews
May 23, 2022
It's challenging to find good nonfiction books for young kids. This is one of them. Each page spread explains how one animal is adapted to survive winter.
Profile Image for Hannah.
310 reviews7 followers
January 27, 2025
a very solid maybe, i liked everything about it, but i didn't LOVE it. i especially liked the information at the end about how to feed animals throughout the winter - could pair well with an activity like making birdseed ornaments.
Profile Image for Debra.
2,074 reviews11 followers
March 4, 2019
What beautiful illustrations!. The story starts in autumn and discusses migration and traveling south for warmer weather. Then it transitions into staying in the cold north for the winter, but hibernating. I love the illustration of a woodchuck's burrow. That was new information for me. Lastly, they talk about the animals that stay through the cold winter and how they prepare to survive when they must eat daily and move outside in the cold. Finally, there are suggestions of ways that you can help the animals that stay in your area over the winter.
Great cover! Wonderful artwork! and good information.
Profile Image for Jordyn Kilmer.
78 reviews
April 24, 2020
Genre: informational grade: 2-5
This book is a great way to teach kids about animals because it explain something that most kids wonder about but don’t really know the answer to. I know when I was a kid I never understood exactly what animals do during the winter and I always feel bad that they were stuck outside. This book does a great job of explaining that in a fun way that kids can’t understand and the illustrations really add to the book and make it even more fun for kids. This is a great book!
Profile Image for Morgan.
61 reviews1 follower
November 8, 2023
This book was very cute and one i would want to read to my students to get them more into science! It talks about what a lot of animals do in the winter, like what they eat and where they go for the time being to stay warm. The pictures are also very cute and i think the children would like to look at all of the animals. I think this would especially be good to read in the winter, so that the children can almost relate to the cold that the animals experience. I think it would be good for 1st to 2nd grade and a book the students would be very interested in.
Profile Image for Dawn.
1,049 reviews36 followers
February 28, 2026
Browsing books to give my friends' children as gifts since I won't gift anything I haven't first read myself.

For a child that lives in a climate with "traditional winter" and is a budding animal lover, this is the type of non-fiction that will inform and encourage their curiosity. I do really like the way this series presents science in a way that is fun and interesting. Seeing how all different kinds of animals respond and adapt to the cold weather provides motivation to pay attention to details when exploring the nature around them.
1,139 reviews4 followers
May 21, 2021
During the winter some animals migrate,some hibernate, and some must continue to search for food through the snow and the cold. In this book for young readers, children will learn about how many animals survive the winter. I really enjoyed the illustrations and felt the level of detail included was just right. I also liked the suggestions for helping animals through the winter which was included at the end of the book.
Profile Image for Kaila Daniels.
40 reviews
April 7, 2020
This book is good to use to introduce the season of winter to students. It describes different characteristics of winter, and also discusses how different animals live in winter differently. Some animals hibernate, some move south, some gather food for the winter, etc. This would also be a good book to do a mini lesson with students.
Profile Image for Allison Nicholas.
85 reviews4 followers
April 17, 2020
Early Primary

Informational Nonfiction

I appreciate that this book is engaging and entertaining while still being informational. Sometimes it's hard to find that in a book, but this one delivered! I also liked all the cute little reminders to be careful with feeding them or getting too close, but that they depend on you sometimes too. A sweet book for young readers :)
Profile Image for Lisa Nagel.
760 reviews26 followers
November 3, 2021
Informative and simply presented facts in what animals do in winter. Some hibernate, some store food, some need to find food. I also liked suggestions about how to support animals in the winter by planting certain plants in your yard and that if you want to feed animals to remember that they come to depend on you providing that food.
Profile Image for Calista.
5,437 reviews31.3k followers
February 8, 2024
A nice little non-fiction story about animal habits in the winter.

The pictures are nice and the animals are cute. The story is straight forward and not really a real voice about something different.

There are foxes in this story. I don't have a lot to say about it really.
861 reviews8 followers
February 6, 2020
General facts about different animals in winter. Really nice black and white illustrations with pops of color.
75 reviews
April 20, 2020
Genre: Informational Nonfiction
Grade Range: Early Primary (K-1)
I thought that this was a very fun book. I liked that it explained which kind of animals hibernate and which don't. The illustrations were also very helpful in understanding what the homes look like that the animals live in.
373 reviews1 follower
January 4, 2026
A great educational book for younger readers, and to be read aloud to children, too. Clear informative illustrations. Really liked this one!!
80 reviews
April 24, 2020
Genre: Informational Nonfiction
Reading Level: K-2

I loved the pictures in this book!! They were wonderful and kept me entertained. I think this book is a great read for kids to inform them on what happens to animals in the winter. Most common questions that a kid may have on winter animals can be answered in this book. So with the content and the beautifully illustrated pictures, this is a wonderful book and an even better book for kids.
Profile Image for Lynn  Davidson.
8,393 reviews38 followers
April 16, 2024
This is such a well-written and informative book, and the illustrations are beautiful. The reader learns about how some animals cope in winter - some that travel to warmer climates, some that hibernate, some that store food in preparation, and those that hunt for food all winter long.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 69 reviews