OCDEL’s 2026 Literacy Road Trip Book Lists Focus on Trees and Rocks

Pennsylvania’s Office of Child Development and Early Learning has released two nature-related book lists for children as part of its 2026 Summer Learning & Literacy Road Trip.

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The theme of this year’s road trip is exploring the natural world. OCDEL recently curated two book lists - one with the theme of rocks and another focusing on trees - for children to read this summer.

The two book lists are intended to encourage children to look closely at their surroundings. Selections on the lists blend storytelling with science and discovery.

The eight books on the list about rocks include:

• Rhoda’s Rock Hunt (Molly Beth Griffin)

• Everybody Needs a Rock (Byrd Baylor)

• If You Find a Rock (Peggy Christian)

• The Pebble in My Pocket: A History of Our Earth (Meredith Hooper)

• Rocks, Fossils, and Arrowheads (Laura Evert)

• A Stone is a Story (Leslie Barnard Booth)

• Little Kids First Big Book: Rocks, Minerals, and Shells (Moira Rose Donohue)

• A Rainbow of Rocks (Kate DePalma)

The 12 books on the list about trees include:

• Listen to the Language of Trees (Tera Kelley)

• The Busy Tree (Jennifer Ward)

• We’re Going on a Leaf Hunt (Steve Metzger)

• Do Trees Have Mothers? (Charles Bongers)

• Who Will Plant a Tree? (Jerry Pallotta)

• Tall Tall Tree (Anthony D. Fredericks)

• The City Tree (Shira Boss)

• Be a Tree! (Maria Gianferrari)

• Abuela’s Wishing Tree (Mitzi Fernandez Spitzer)

• A Tree Grows Up (Marfe Ferguson Delano)

• A Tree is Home (Pamela Hickman)

• Leaf Man (Lois Ehlert)