Oklahoma Ag in the Classroom

Ag-Related Books for Children and Young Adults

Agriculture in the Ancient World

Angeletti, Roberta, The Cave Painter of Lascaux (A Journey Through Time), Oxford, 1999. (Grades 1-3)

A child wanders away from her classmates and meets up with a tour guide dressed as a cave man. The characters tell readers about the people who painted the animals in the Lascaux Cave and what the paintings meant to them.

Arnold, Caroline, Stone Age Farmers Beside the Sea: Scotland's Prehistoric Village of Skara Brae, Clarion, 1996. (Grades 4-7)

A clear and informative text and revealing photographs offer readers a complete picture of life in the prehistoric Scottish Village of Skara Brae, where the community farmed, herded, hunted, and fished from 3100 B.C. to 2500 B.C.

Baylor, Byrd, One Small Blue Bead, Charles Scribner's Sons, 1992 (Grades pre-K-3).

Baylor tells in verse the story of a prehistoric boy whose tribe believes they are the only humans in existence. An old man questions this notion but can set out on a quest of discovery only if someone takes over his work. Boy, who up to then had contributed little to the groups' welfare, volunteers to take the old man's place. Months go by, and at last the old man returns, accompanied by living proof of his hypothesis - a stranger, a boy from a different tribe, who brings with him a turquoise bead. The bead becomes for the tribe and for readers the symbol of connection with other human beings.

Brooks, Felicity, Bond, Shirley, Cook, Janet, Evans, Cheryl, Gower, Teri, Smith, Guy, Lyon, Chris Lyon, Living Long Ago: Food and Eating, Usborne (Grades K-3).

Patent, Dorothy Hinshaw, Mystery of the Lascaux Cave, Benchmark, 1998. (Grades 4-7)

The author discusses what is known, surmised, or guessed about the Magdalenian peoples who produced this burst of art in the form of engraved and colored bulls, bison, horses, and other animals that flow and posture along the cave's walls and ceilings. Includes informative sidebars, time lines, maps, and glossaries.

Woods, Michael, and Mary B. Woods, Ancient Agriculture: From Foraging to Farming, , Runestone, 2000. (Grades 3-6).

Overview that includes a general chapter on the Stone Age as well as chapters on ancient America, Greece, and Rome. Focuses on basic agricultural information while offering plenty of interesting and detailed asides. Well-placed and well-captioned full-color photographs and reproductions enhance the text; chapter openers and sidebars are set off on parchmentlike backgrounds. A useful map at the beginning of the book shows the geographical areas where the cultures flourished as well as the time frames for each civilization.