Dairy-themed book ‘Curious Clover’ launches for reading month

With National Reading Month taking place in March and Read Across America Day quickly approaching on March 3, Discover Dairy has a new book available, titled Curious Clover, to help bring dairy farming to life for elementary and middle school students.

The book is available in both English and Spanish and includes accompanying interactive resources to encourage literacy, creativity, and farm-to-table connections. The Discover Dairy program is managed through the Dairy Excellence Foundation. With a $15 donation to the foundation, individuals can receive a printed copy of the book to share with students and families.

“Every time someone turns the page and meets Clover in our Curious Clover book, they get a firsthand look at where their food comes from. This book is a new and exciting way to include agriculture in your March reading plans,” said Brittany Snyder, Dairy Education Program Manager at the Dairy Excellence Foundation. “In addition to the book, we have an activity sheet and lesson plan — in both English and Spanish — to really get families and communities engaged with where their milk comes from. Whether you’re a teacher, parent, or advocate for the dairy industry, we hope you’ll help us share this book with someone who might enjoy it this spring.”

The Curious Clover book and complementary activities are designed to encourage students of all ages to build curiosity about the world around them while learning about the journey of milk from the farm to the fridge. If individuals make a donation by February 14, the books will be delivered before March 1 in time for National Reading Month. Individuals can make a donation for a book online.

“We read Curious Clover the other month and colored our own ‘Clovers’ to take home during Christmas break. Their assignment was to take their Clover on an adventure and to share that adventure with us during our sharing time in morning meetings. This is an amazing program,” shared Cassandra, a second-grade teacher from Wisconsin.

After reading the Curious Clover book, students can color their own Clover cut-out coloring sheet and physically take her on adventures. Families and teachers can help children document these adventures with photos, journal entries and more. Free Curious Clover lesson plans, in both English and Spanish, are also available for the pre-k through fifth-grade age level.

“We’re all striving to nurture and grow kind, diverse students in this world, and Curious Clover is a great way to teach some of those lessons while fostering a love for creativity and reading. Consider sharing this book with families, teachers, and other community members, or send a book to someone who might appreciate it during National Reading Month,” Snyder added.

Discover Dairy, managed by the Dairy Excellence Foundation, is an engaging, interactive, multi-level educational series that shows upper elementary and middle school students where milk comes from and how dairy farmers contribute to our communities. The Discover Dairy program also includes the popular Adopt a Cow program, which impacts more than one million students each school year and connects classrooms directly to a calf from a progressive dairy operation.