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Last summer, our family discovered Wicked Bugs… and it was an instant hit.

My oldest son has always been fascinated by insects.

And I’m not just talking about your run of the mill bugs. Oh no.

I kid you not, one of his favorite books at age three was titled Body Baddies: All About the Mini Monsters Living on You! by John Woodward. (The image of the guinea worm still gives me nightmares!) His other favorite book at the time was 1001 Bugs to Spot.

(I bet you I could still find all the dung beetles in record time!)

Nowadays, he’s graduated from Body Baddies and 1001 Bugs to Spot to other insect books… and he can’t get enough.

When I heard that Amy Stewart’s New York Times bestselling book Wicked Bugs now has a young reader companion, I had to check them out!

Table of Contents

‘Wicked Bugs’: A Great Way to Connect with Your Bug Lover

I love this trend of having young reader editions as complements to adult bestsellers. (In fact, I love it so much that I have Hidden Figures and its young reader edition on deck!)

There’s something magical about sharing a book alongside your child. It fuels conversation, builds connection, and makes memories. And summer is the perfect time to have a family book club!

‘Wicked Bugs’ is the Perfect Summer Read

Wicked Bugs is the New York Times bestselling book by Amy Stewart. Stewart is known for writing about the wonders and horrors of the natural world. You may recognize Stewart’s name as she also wrote the bestselling book The Drunken Botanist about the many plants, herbs, and fungi humans have used to make alcohol over the years.

In Wicked Bugs, Stewart will have you itching for more as she wows and disgusts you with creepy-crawly facts and stories. And now, you can share the fun with your children! Wicked Bugs: The Meanest, Grossest Bugs on Earth is the young reader edition of Stewart’s popular book.

This fact-filled book will entertain, wow, and horrify the bug lover in your life. Featuring full-color illustrations, young readers will learn about the amazing powers of those six and eight-legged creepy crawlies. Kids will learn about a multitude of insects including the Bombardier Beetle, the Giant Centipede, the Schmit Sting Pain Index, Chigoe Flea, and Death-Watch Beetle, among many others!

My 10-year-old devoured this book last summer and we had an absolute blast discussing it together!

Here are some of our family’s favorite science books

It can be fun to watch a fantastic documentary after reading a great book

Over two years ago, I was introduced to a fantastic educational video streaming service called CuriosityStream. And it was love at first sight.

Our family still uses CuriosityStream all the time- it is the best $2.99 I spend each month.

For less than the cost of one of those fancy Starbucks beverages, our family has access to high-quality on-demand educational documentaries without commercial interruption.

You can read my review here:

How to Use Educational Video Streaming in Your Homeschool

But you don’t have to take my word for it. CuriosityStream offers a FREE 7-day trial.

When you finish the book, add some gameschooling and take the learning to the next level

One of my favorite things to do, as a homeschool mom, is to pair a fantastic book with an educational game… and I have the perfect game to pair with this book. It is called Totally Gross: The Game of Science and my kids love it.

Totally Gross: The Game of Science is an uproarious game that combines science facts with gross-out challenges. My kids’ favorite part? The slime/booger that you use to move your place on the board! (Yes, there is slime included!) This homeschool mom’s favorite part? As they move that booger, they are learning biology, chemistry, geology, astronomy, zoology, anatomy, and physics!

One day, we cleared our homeschool schedule. We made a few “ick-speriments” including a giant spider web and a cup o’ blood. Then, we had a raucous game of Totally Gross. We had such a blast that the kids asked to play another fun science game. Later that evening, I left a deck of Professor Noggin science cards on the table. As I made dinner, the kids took turns sharing facts from the deck.

All in all, we had a science-filled and fun-filled day! (If you are looking for more ways to pair fantastic books and educational games, check out my gameschool challenge!)

Other science games we love:

Love science?

You’ll love this post:

How to Make Homeschool Science Amazing and Fun

Our homeschool science curriculum choices

My oldest two participate in a homeschool nature class and everyone dabbles in:

Our homeschool curriculum choices, by year

I get a lot of questions about our curriculum choices. You can read more here:

Do you love family read alouds?

Here are some related articles:

Do you love fantastic children’s books, too?

Be sure to follow My Little Poppies because we share snapshots of our homeschool day… and heaps of fantastic books!

You are also invited to join the {Virtual} Family Book Club at My Little Poppies, a private Facebook Group for parents who love to read fantastic books to their children… and chat about them!

Did you know I sell Usborne books?

I started selling Usborne six months into our homeschool journey because the Usborne encyclopedias are the best. If you need an Usborne fix, I’m your girl.

**Now, it’s your turn. Tell me: Do you have a favorite science book right now? Share here!**

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