Our children loved going to the pond and finding tadpoles. We’d search for discarded paper cups and scoop up a few to take home. Usually they lived long enough for us to watch the legs begin to emerge. I didn’t think of how to connect the tadpoles to our children at the time. Tadpoles by Betsy James takes children through the lifecycle of a frog and connecting it to siblings in a unique way.

Children are usually excited about a new baby in the house until the new wears off. Children begin to realize the new baby is taking some of the attention they used to get, like being carried instead of having to walk. The new has worn off of Molly’s little brother. She wants to be carried. She wants the baby attention she was used to. Molly doesn’t realize how much she has changed. Mom guides her through an adventure to the pond into realizing she can do big things now. She helps Molly scoop up a few tadpoles to take home. They place them in an a child friendly bowl so Molly can watch and tend the tadpoles. I like the way Mrs. James includes Dad. He helps with getting more pond water and finding natural food for tadpoles. Molly is thrilled with watching her tadpoles grow. She even enjoys showing them to baby Davey. All the while she doesn’t realize how much Davey is growing into a toddler who is learning to walk.

Betsy James’ Tadpoles has child friendly illustrations. Molly is even drawing a chart showing the stages of her tadpoles’ growth. Baby Davey’s growth is paralleling the tadpole growth but Molly doesn’t realize it until Davey causes an accident that allows tadpoles, Molly, and himself to awaken to the reality of growing and changing is a wonderful thing. Tadpoles will help children see their siblings and nature with new eyes. It can help parents know how to guide older children through the first years of a sibling.

I think I’d like to take a sketch pad and a sandwich bag down to the pond and see if the frogs have a few eggs to share. I’ll be sure to take good care of what God has created for us and return them to the pond in a few weeks. Have a great summer. Gail Cartee

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