Outdoor Farm, Indoor Farm

Illustrated by Xin Li
Texas 2 x 2 List
The Nature Generation's 2025 Green Earth Book Award Short List

Discover how both outdoor and indoor farms sustainably grow the food we eat throughout the year in this vibrant, rhyming picture book.


Outdoor farm,
tractors toil.
Indoor farm,
zero soil.

With energetic, enchanting verse and sunshiny, colorful illustrations, discover how the food you eat is grown both outside—and inside! Join two children as they explore the inner workings of an outdoor farm and an indoor farm. You’ll see how a variety of amazing machinery like tractors and drones along with innovative farming techniques yield the wonderful food we all love to enjoy.
Lindsay H. Metcalf grew up bumping along in her dad’s Allis-Chalmers tractor. Lindsay has covered many change-makers as a reporter, editor, and columnist for the Kansas City Star and other news outlets. Visit lindsayhmetcalf.com. View titles by Lindsay H. Metcalf
A graduate from Central Academy of Fine Arts in Beijing with a graphic design degree, illustrator Xin Li has also studied interaction design and new media. She was the winner of the SCBWI Winter Conference 2021 Portfolio Showcase. Visit lixin.no. View titles by Xin Li

Classroom Activities for Outdoor Farm, Indoor Farm

Classroom activities supplement discussion and traditional lessons with group projects and creative tasks. Can be used in pre-existing units and lessons, or as stand-alone.

(Please note: the guide displayed here is the most recently uploaded version; while unlikely, any page citation discrepancies between the guide and book is likely due to pagination differences between a book’s different formats.)

2025 Kansas NEA Reading Circle List

"Spare, bouncy rhymes pair with soft, rounded illustrations...A full spread of detailed notes at the end describes why farms are changing and how each type works...A captivating glimpse into the shifting agricultural landscape." —Kirkus Reviews

“Short, simple, rhyming sentences and diverse characters throughout make this perfect for early elementary students… [I]t’s a wonderful resource for children interested in farming. An excellent addition to libraries looking for books about farming and sustainable food systems.” –School Library Journal

Outdoor Farm, Indoor Farm Book Trailer

About

Texas 2 x 2 List
The Nature Generation's 2025 Green Earth Book Award Short List

Discover how both outdoor and indoor farms sustainably grow the food we eat throughout the year in this vibrant, rhyming picture book.


Outdoor farm,
tractors toil.
Indoor farm,
zero soil.

With energetic, enchanting verse and sunshiny, colorful illustrations, discover how the food you eat is grown both outside—and inside! Join two children as they explore the inner workings of an outdoor farm and an indoor farm. You’ll see how a variety of amazing machinery like tractors and drones along with innovative farming techniques yield the wonderful food we all love to enjoy.

Author

Lindsay H. Metcalf grew up bumping along in her dad’s Allis-Chalmers tractor. Lindsay has covered many change-makers as a reporter, editor, and columnist for the Kansas City Star and other news outlets. Visit lindsayhmetcalf.com. View titles by Lindsay H. Metcalf
A graduate from Central Academy of Fine Arts in Beijing with a graphic design degree, illustrator Xin Li has also studied interaction design and new media. She was the winner of the SCBWI Winter Conference 2021 Portfolio Showcase. Visit lixin.no. View titles by Xin Li

Guides

Classroom Activities for Outdoor Farm, Indoor Farm

Classroom activities supplement discussion and traditional lessons with group projects and creative tasks. Can be used in pre-existing units and lessons, or as stand-alone.

(Please note: the guide displayed here is the most recently uploaded version; while unlikely, any page citation discrepancies between the guide and book is likely due to pagination differences between a book’s different formats.)

Praise

2025 Kansas NEA Reading Circle List

"Spare, bouncy rhymes pair with soft, rounded illustrations...A full spread of detailed notes at the end describes why farms are changing and how each type works...A captivating glimpse into the shifting agricultural landscape." —Kirkus Reviews

“Short, simple, rhyming sentences and diverse characters throughout make this perfect for early elementary students… [I]t’s a wonderful resource for children interested in farming. An excellent addition to libraries looking for books about farming and sustainable food systems.” –School Library Journal

Media

Outdoor Farm, Indoor Farm Book Trailer

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