If You Find a Leaf by Aimee Sicuro

Today, my daughters and I braved the blast of cold that has entered the Northeast, fast and furious. As the wind blew harder, the girls delighted in the leaves that seemed to dance down the street. The girls raced the leaves until the wind died down. “I’m going to write about this walk,” my middle daughter Adi exclaimed. The leaves have brought us many joys this autumn season.

A few weeks back, I read the girls, Aimee Sicuro’s, If You Find a Leaf on an afternoon that felt long. They were drawn into the simple story of all the things the main character can imagine that leaves could become.

The book begged the kids to go off and create. As soon as we finished the last page, they ran outside to grab leaves and got right to work dreaming up their own leaf creations.

Then, one day at school, I found myself as a substitute in fourth grade. First up on the day’s schedule was a meeting with the class’ first-grade buddies. I quick hallway conversation with the first-grade teacher and we had a plan for the meeting. After reading aloud If You Find a Leaf, we took a quick walk outdoors with the kids so that they could gather leaves. Then, when we returned back to the classroom, collaboration and teamwork took over. It was so fun watching the first and fourth graders work together to make decisions and compromise as they worked together to create.

If You Find a Leaf is a book that draws you in to take a closer look and then immediately invites you to look closer at your own world. What happens when you find a leaf?