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Books for Kids on Rocks, Fossils and Earth Science

Rocks, fossils, gems, and minerals are fascinating. If I hadn’t gone on to study Marine Biology I think geology would have been my chosen science, one of my favourite modules I took in my degree was all about the Evolution of the Earth – no not of the animals but how our planet came to be as it is. A lot of that was looking at the rocks and minerals and seeing what they told us about the world. Like me Kids are also fascinated by rocks, think of a trip to the beach how many rocks will they secrete in their pockets to bring home to add to the hundreds they already have, or how about sitting playing with the pebbles on a stream. Cultivating this interest and extending it to science is easy and there are so many activities that you can do around rocks as well as some fantastic hands-on resources that children will love to use and explore.

Recommended books to read and keep on rocks, fossils and Earth science for kids of all ages. With fiction and non-fiction recommendations but full of factual accounts plus hands-on activity books there are ideas to inspire and inform kids to want to learn more.

We have included affiliate links to products and resources that we recommend and have used in this article.

Covering all areas of Rocks, Fossils and Earth Science Dirtmeister’s Nitty Gritty Planet Earth book from National Geographic Kids and is written in a combination of cartoons and factual information. Starting with how the planet was formed it moves forward and explains rocks, fossil formation as well as volcanoes and earthquakes.

Dirtmeister’s Nitty Gritty Planet Earth: All About Rocks, Minerals, Fossils, Earthquakes, Volcanoes, & Even Dirt! (National Geographic Kids)
  • Tomecek, Steve (Author)
  • English (Publication Language)
  • 128 Pages – 06/09/2015 (Publication Date) – National Geographic Kids (Publisher)

 Books about Rocks for Kids

Let’s Go Rock Collecting (Let’S-Read-And-Find-Out Science. Stage 2)
  • hands-on and visual|acclaimed and trusted|great for classrooms|Entertain and educate at the same time|Have appealing child-centered topics|Developmentally appropriate for emerging readers|Focused; answering questions instead of using survey approach|Employ engaging picture book quality illustrations|Use simple charts and graphics to improve visual literacy skills|Feature hands-on activities to engage young scientists|Meet national science education standards|Written/illustrated by award-winning authors/illustrators vetted by an expert in the field|Over 130 titles in print meeting a wide range of kids’ scientific interests
  • Gans, Roma (Author)
  • English (Publication Language)
  • 32 Pages – 05/01/1997 (Publication Date) – HarperCollins (Publisher)

The first book in our selection about rocks is Let’s Go Rock Collecting – this is a beginner reader book and follows a couple of rock collectors as they explore the world and discover more about rocks. It’s ideal for introducing the different types of rocks, how those rocks are formed as well as some of the uses of the different rocks around the world. I like using this as an introduction with younger children to the subject as although more of a story it is very factual and children can start to get a grasp before going too in-depth.

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National Geographic Kids Everything Rocks and Minerals: Dazzling gems of photos and info that will rock your world
  • Tomecek, Steve (Author)
  • English (Publication Language)
  • 64 Pages – 10/11/2011 (Publication Date) – National Geographic Kids (Publisher)

 An ideal introductory non-fiction book for your Rocks, Fossils, and Earth Science collection National Geographic Everything Rocks and Minerals goes over the basics and has some fantastic images included of rocks around the world.

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The Rock and Gem Book: And Other Treasures of the Natural World (DK Our World in Pictures)
  • Hardcover Book
  • DK (Author)
  • English (Publication Language)
  • 192 Pages – 05/10/2016 (Publication Date) – DK Children (Publisher)

The Rock and Gen Book goes much more in-depth than the National Geographic book above and provides information about the uses as well as the details about the formation of the rocks. As part of the learning about rocks is learning about why some forms of rocks are better suited for some uses than others this is a great non-fiction book for your non-fiction collection.

Recommended books to read and keep on rocks, fossils and Earth science for kids of all ages. With fiction and non-fiction recommendations but full of factual accounts plus hands-on activity books there are ideas to inspire and inform kids to want to learn more.

Books about Fossils

Digging Up Dinosaurs (Let’s-Read-and-Find-Out Science 2)
  • Aliki (Author)
  • English (Publication Language)
  • 32 Pages – 11/01/1988 (Publication Date) – HarperCollins (Publisher)

One of our favourite Fossils Books which we have featured here on Rainy Day Mum twice creating some fizzy fossil eggs and fossils from modeling clay Digging up Dinosaurs by Aliki is a factual story about the work of a Paleontologist and covers how some of the fossils that are dug up are formed.

Curious About Fossils (Smithsonian)
  • Waters, Kate (Author)
  • English (Publication Language)
  • 32 Pages – 03/01/2016 (Publication Date) – Grosset & Dunlap (Publisher)

Aimed at young children Curious about Fossils provides a great introduction to fossils including information about their Victorian discovery and doesn’t just cover fossils being dinosaurs so looks at plant fossils, sea creatures and even common fossils like sharks teeth.

Eyewitness Fossil (DK Eyewitness)
  • DK (Author)
  • English (Publication Language)
  • 72 Pages – 06/06/2017 (Publication Date) – DK Children (Publisher)

Packed full of more information than you can think of about fossils DK Eyewitness Fossil non-fiction book covers everything from the types of fossils, how they are formed and then examples and details about the fossils including an interesting section about fossils of the future. We do like the Eyewitness books as they have great images which can be used with younger children but the information is fantastic to a high school level.

Love fossils – love dinosaurs then these fantastic dinosaur activities for kids are great why not have a go at one whilst reading the fossil book.

Books about Earth Science for Kids

For young children the Magic School Bus Series combines fact and fiction to create a story that informs. There are also fact books that accompany the series our 3 recommendations for Earth Science are below

The fiction part of the series The Magic School Bus Inside the Earth is perfect to read aloud from preschool level and introduces what happens underneath the soil as the school bus and children jounery through the layers of the earth.

The Non-fiction accompanying book is The Magic School Bus Presents Volcanoes and Earthquakes this picture filled book is ideal for younger children to read about the planet that we live on and what happens underneath the soil.

A beginner chapter book The Magic School Bus Voyage to the Volcano is a fun tale of what happens when the kids and Miss Fizz venture to visit the volcanoes in Hawaii.

Love the look of these books and want to know more about the series check out this great article all about The Magic School Bus Books.

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Earth! My First 4.54 Billion Years (Our Universe, 1)
  • Hardcover Book
  • McAnulty, Stacy (Author)
  • English (Publication Language)
  • 40 Pages – 10/24/2017 (Publication Date) – Henry Holt and Co. (BYR) (Publisher)

Learn about planet Earth from Earth herself in this picture book ideal for younger readers (beginning school age) in Earth My First 4.54 Billion Years. Covering the formation of the planet, movement of the continents and more this is filled with images and has extra snippets of information about the earth.

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Super Earth Encyclopedia (DK Super Nature Encyclopedias)
  • Hardcover Book
  • DK (Author)
  • English (Publication Language)
  • 208 Pages – 07/04/2017 (Publication Date) – DK Children (Publisher)

I really like the DK Super Earth Encyclopedia not only does it peel back the crust of the earth and look at the layers it also covers how natural elements have transformed and changed the world leading to how our “living” earth is working now and looking at the future of the earth in terms of climate change and more.

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How the World Works: A Hands-On Guide to Our Amazing Planet (Explore the Earth)
  • Hardcover Book
  • Dorion, Christian (Author)
  • English (Publication Language)
  • 18 Pages – 02/23/2010 (Publication Date) – Templar (Publisher)

Covering a lot more than just under the earth How the World Works looks at ocean currents, rainfall and the water cycle as well as how weather patterns are formed. Mixing Science and Geography this pop-up and learn book is a fantastic addition to your bookshelf.

Activity Books for Learning About Rocks, Fossils and Earth Science

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The Earth Science Book: Activities for Kids
  • Zike, Dinah (Author)
  • English (Publication Language)
  • 128 Pages – 02/01/1993 (Publication Date) – Jossey-Bass (Publisher)

With a combination of information and activities, The Earth Science Book Activities for Kids by Dinah Zike is fun to pick and choose different activities from to investigate and explore this fun combination of Science and Geography.

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Geology Lab for Kids: 52 Projects to Explore Rocks, Gems, Geodes, Crystals, Fossils, and Other Wonders of the Earth’s Surface (Volume 13) (Lab for Kids, 13)
  • Romaine, Garret (Author)
  • English (Publication Language)
  • 144 Pages – 07/01/2017 (Publication Date) – Quarry Books (Publisher)

I love this book for inspiration of hands-on activities to do with kids – Geology Lab for Kids covers real investigations and activities kids can do getting hands-on with rocks, fossils, minerals and the earth’s surface. Perfect for some practical science that you will all enjoy.

Activities for Studying Rocks, Fossils, and the Earth

Edible science experiment to make Slow Cooker Walnut and Cranberry Fudge as an example of Metamorphic Rocks
Help your children understand the formation of the different types of rocks with this simple edible sedimentary rock activity that they can make and eat.
Help your children understand the formation of the different types of rocks with this simple edible igneous rock activity that they can make and eat.

Investigate how metamorphic rocks are formed with this Edible Science Experiment

Make Sedimentary Rock that you can Eat

Try 2 different ways to explore how igneous rocks are formed.

Make these dinosaur fossils with kids out of 3 kitchen ingredients and then paint them to make them more realistic or leave them natural.

Start to understand the process of how fossils are made making your own mould fossils in salt dough. You could also investigate how cast fossils like those of trilobites are made with our guide on how to make cast fossils for kids. Or how about look at one of the forms of trace fossils with our trace fossil activity for kids.

Three dimensions layers of the earth section model to make - ideal for earth science, work out the scale and produce a representation of the different layers of the earth.

Create a 3D Model of the Layers of the Earth with our Template

Pinterest image of a layers of the earth sugar cookie activity to learn about earth science.

Make some Layers of the Earth Sugar Cookies

Pinterest collage of books that are great for kids of all ages that want to read and learn about rocks, fossils and earth science.
Author
Cerys Parker

Cerys is a marine biologist, environmental educator, teacher, mum, and home educator from the UK. She loves getting creative, whether it is with simple and easy crafts and ideas, activities to make learning fun, or delicious recipes that you and your kids can cook together you'll find them all shared here on Rainy Day Mum.

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