First Peas to the Table

Maya loves contests, so she is excited when her teacher announces they will plant a school garden like Thomas Jefferson’s garden at Monticello.

And they’ll have a “First Peas to the Table” contest, just like Jefferson and his neighbors had each spring. Maya plants her pea seeds with a secret head start—found in Jefferson’s Garden Book—and keeps careful notes in her garden journal. But her friend Shakayla has plans of her own for the contest… Susan Grigsby’s light-hearted classroom story also presents scientific and historical information. Nicole Tadgell’s watercolors add both appeal and botanical accuracy.

ISBN: 978-0807524527 PUBLISHED: 2012 FORMAT: Picture book

Booklist

The first-person narrative relates events and Maya’s changing perspective in a believably childlike voice, while the pencil-and-watercolor illustrations capture the story’s tone as well as the characters’ emotions.

Kirkus Reviews

History, science and a guidance lesson all rolled into one, this could surely be the spark for many a school garden.

School Library Journal

This beautifully illustrated story has a mixture of both fiction and facts about the life cycle of peas….Teachers will find a multitude of ways to use this book and this team’s In the Garden with Dr. Carver.

Library Media Connection

This picture book seamlessly meshes together a little science, a little history, and a strong storyline.