Originally published in TEACH Magazine, March/April 2025 Issue
By Kelsey McCallum
World Water Day is celebrated annually on March 22, in an effort to raise awareness of water scarcity and the global water crisis. Often many of us take water availability for granted—just a turn of the tap and it’s right at our fingertips. But did you know that more than one quarter of the world’s population lacks access to safe water (including a number of communities in both Canada and the United States)? Remedying this issue is one of the UN’s Sustainable Development Goals to achieve by the year 2030.
To get your students thinking about the value of water, we’ve handpicked a collection of new children’s books that will surely make a splash in your classroom or library this World Water Day—and every day after that, inspiring them to make every drop count!
Dancing with Water
By Gwendolyn Wallace
Illustrated by Tonya Engel
Kokila (August 2025)
Grade Level: K–2
This picture book tells the intergenerational story of a nonbinary child who is taught the tradition of well digging from their grandfather. Young readers who follow along will learn about the importance of clean water and why it must be protected.
Discovering Sources of Water in Max Axiom’s Lab
By Myra Faye Turner
Illustrated by Erik Doescher
Capstone Press (January 2025)
Grade Level: 3–5
Students can join super scientist Max Axiom as he explores a number of different water sources around the world and what it takes to move water from these sources to our faucets. The book also includes experiments that kids can try at school or at home to further their understanding.
Magic in a Drop of Water: How Ruth Patrick Taught the World About Water Pollution
By Julie Winterbottom
Illustrated by Susan Reagan
Rocky Pond Books (March 2025)
Grade Level: K–3
This STEM picture book illustrates the life and research of ecologist Ruth Patrick, who made a breakthrough discovery about river ecosystems that forever changed how scientists view the problem of pollution.
Making a Splash: How Humans Consume, Control and Care for Water
By Colleen Nelson
Illustrated by Sophie Dubé
Orca Book Publishers (May 2025)
Grade Level: 4–7
Students can learn more about the important role water has played throughout history and what its future looks like by reading this middle-grade non-fiction text. They’ll also be introduced to a variety of inventions that are improving equity and access to water, as well as the people around the world who are fighting to protect it.
Marjory’s River of Grass: Marjory Stoneman Douglas, Fierce Protector of the Everglades
By Josie James
Christy Ottaviano Books (April 2025)
Grade Level: K–3
Through this picture book biography, young readers will discover how Marjory Stoneman Douglas, environmental journalist and conservationist, fought to preserve the Florida Everglades—a diverse wetland system that was once regarded as a useless swamp. Backmatter includes inspiring quotes from Marjory, along with actions that readers can take to help protect our world’s most precious resource: water.
Riverkeeper: Protecting an American River
By Nancy F. Castaldo
Holiday House (April 2025)
Grade Level: 5–7
This middle-grade resource introduces readers to a group of environmental activists who founded the organization Riverkeeper in order to clean up the polluted Hudson River. Nancy Castaldo’s informative text offers both a history of one of America’s first environmental movements, and a guide for how individuals and groups can conserve and clean up their own local waterways.
Sea in My Cells
By Laura Alary
Illustrated by Andrea Blinick
Pajama Press (May 2025)
Grade Level: K–2
Sea in My Cells presents a lyrical celebration of the water cycle. Through her accessible free verse, author Laura Alary teaches children to appreciate the magic of this essential resource by taking them on a journey from their kitchen sink to the ocean to the clouds and back again.
Tallulah the Mermaid and the Great Lakes Pledge
By Denise Brennan-Nelson
Illustrated by Brooke O’Neill
Sleeping Bear Press (March 2025)
Grade Level: K–3
Tallulah is the first official mermaid of the Great Lakes. She’s ready to get to work taking care of the creatures who live in its waters and keeping the lakes safe and clean, but it’s a big job to handle all by herself. She could certainly use some help! Backmatter includes information about how readers can become honorary mermaids and do their part to protect the Great Lakes too.
The Girl Who Tested the Waters: Ellen Swallow, Environmental Scientist
By Patricia Daniele
Illustrated by Junyi Wu
MIT Kids Press (February 2025)
Grade Level: K–2
This eye-opening biography tells the story of Ellen Swallow, the first female student at MIT. A fierce advocate for healthy environments and a pioneer of the field of ecology, Ellen studied Boston’s polluted water systems and made a discovery that would drastically change how we think about clean water today.
Whales in the City
By Nancy F. Castaldo
Illustrated by Chuck Groenink
Farrar, Straus and Giroux Books for Young Readers (March 2025)
Grade Level: K–2
Whales in the City illustrates the history of whales in New York Harbor: from their prevalence during pre-colonization, to their disappearance due to overfishing and pollution, to their eventual return thanks to a group of concerned citizens who were able to clean up the harbour. This environmental success story is sure to uplift budding activists, conservationists, and marine biologists alike.
Water Is Life: The Ongoing Fight for Indigenous Water Rights
By Katrina M. Phillips
Lerner Publications (January 2025)
Grade Level: 3–6
Many Indigenous peoples across America have to fight for access to clean water, all because of a history of relocation and resettlement that forced them from their ancestral homelands and sacred water sources. This non-fiction text introduces middle-grade readers to that history, while also exploring the ways Indigenous peoples are standing up for their water rights today.
Zeke the Weather Geek: There’s Mud in My Flood!
By Joan Axelrod-Contrada and Ann Malaspina
Illustrated by Paula Becker
Kids Can Press (May 2025)
Grade Level: 2–5
Zeke is excited for the arrival of spring, but his spirits are dampened when he notices cracks in the river ice. If it melts too soon, the whole town could flood! This early chapter book is jam-packed with information about the science of weather, including flood safety, the spring weather cycle, the impact that climate change is having on floods, and more.
Kelsey McCallum is an Associate Editor for TEACH Magazine. She holds a BSc from the University of Guelph and a Graduate Certificate from Centennial College. She currently lives in Toronto, ON, with her partner and their cat, and is forever in search of good books and beautiful sunsets.
