Books for Children

Picture Books

  • Abuela by Arthur Dorros
  • Animals Should Definitely Not Wear Clothing by Judi Barrett
  • Anansi and the Moss-covered Rock by Eric A. Kimmel
  • Blueberries for Sal by Robert McCloskey
  • Bread and Jam for Frances by Russell Hoban
  • Brown Bear, Brown Bear, What Do You See? by Bill Martin, Jr.
  • Caps for Sale by Esphyr Slobodkina
  • The Carrot Seed by Ruth Krauss
  • A Chair for My Mother by Vera B. Williams
  • Corduroy by Don Freeman
  • Curious George by H.A. Rey
  • If You Give a Mouse a Cookie by Laura J. Numeroff
  • The Polar Express by Chris Van Allsburg
  • The Snowy Day by Ezra Jack Keats
  • Strega Nona by Tomie De Paola
  • Swimmy by Leo Lionni
  • Sylvester and the Magic Pebble by William Steig
  • The Tale of Peter Rabbit by Beatrix Potter
  • There’s a Nightmare in My Closet by Mercer Mayer
  • The Very Hungry Caterpillar by Eric Carle
  • The Wheels on the Bus by Paul O. Zelinsky
  • Where the Wild Things Are by Maurice Sendak
  • Whistle for Willie by Ezra Jack Keats

Books to Act Out

  • Too Many Tamales by Gary Soto
  • Ibis: A True Whale Story by John Himmelman

Wordless Picture Books

These books are excellent for oral language development because the pictures drive the message. So you could reread a book many times and change the message every time. Pictures allow children to use their imagination and to draw on familiar experiences.

  • Look Up, Look Down by T. Hoban
  • Will’s Mammoth by Rafe Martin
  • Niki’s Walk by Jane Tanner
  • Deep in the Forest by Brinton Turkle
  • Do You Want to Be My Friend? by Eric Carle
  • Free Fall by David Weisner
  • The Snowman by R. Briggs
  • Good Dog, Carl by A. Day
  • The Story of a Little Mouse Trapped in a Book by M. Felix
  • Rosie’s Walk by P. Hutchins
  • Frog Goes to Dinner by Mercer Mayer
  • Deep in the Forest by B. Turkle

Bedtime Books

  • Hush! by Minfong Ho
  • My Caregivers Think I’m Sleeping by Jack Prelutsky
  • A Mouse Told His Mothe, by Bethany Roberts
  • Bedtime for Frances by Russell Hoban

Predictable Books

These stories are popular with young children because they quickly pick up the repeating patterns of the language. They will oftentimes select these books as it can build self-esteem and good attitudes towards reading.

  • Duck in the Truck by J. Alborough
  • Green Eggs and Ham by Dr. Seuss
  • Jim and the Beanstalk by R. Briggs
  • Jesse Bear, What Will You Wear? by N.W. Carlstrom
  • The Three Billy Goats Gruff by P. Galdone
  • Over in the Meadow by Ezra Jack Keats
  • Brown Bear, Brown Bear, What Do You See? by Bill Martin, Jr.
  • The Cake that Mack Ate by R. Robart
  • We’re Going on a Bear Hunt by M. Rosen

Concept Books

These books generally focus of an idea such as a shape, a color, a time of the season, numbers or ABC’s. They are excellent for developing the exact labels and names of common objects in a more conversational setting with your child.

  • Panda Bear, Panda Bear, What Do You See? by B. Martin, Jr.
  • Is it Larger? Is it Smaller? by T. Hoban
  • Chicka Chicka Boom Boom by B. Martin, Jr.
  • Growing Colors by B. McMillan
  • Hearing by M. Ruis, J.M. Parramon and J.J. Puig
  • Touch by M. Ruis, J.M. Parramon and J.J. Puig
  • Sight by M. Ruis, J.M. Parramon and J.J. Puig
  • Smell by M. Ruis, J.M. Parramon and J.J. Puig
  • Taste by M. Ruis, J.M. Parramon and J.J. Puig
  • Who Said Red? by M. Serfozo

Family Stories

  • The Berenstain Bears Series by S. & J. Berenstain
  • The Franklin Series by P. Bourgeois and B. Clark
  • The Jillian Jiggs Series by P. Gilman
  • Five Minutes Peace by J. Murphy
  • What Do Toddlers Do? by D. Slier
  • Edward’s Overwhelming Overnight by R. Wells

Once Upon a Time Books

  • A Beautiful Feast For Big King Cat by J. Archambault & B. Martin, Jr.
  • Grandfather Twilight by B.H. Berger
  • A Pocket for Corduroy by D. Freeman
  • This Is the Bear by S. Hayes
  • The Bear’s Toothache by D. McPhail
  • Where the Wild Things Are by Maurice Sendak

Poetry Books

Reinforces the rhyme and sound patterns of words and our language. They are easy to remember and can be used to link known words to new words in vocabulary development.

  • You Read to Me, I’ll Read to You by B. Hoberman
  • Play Rhymes by M. Brown
  • Tomie dePaola’s Mother Goose by Tomie dePaola
  • A Frog Inside My Hat: A First Book of Poems by F. Robinson, ed.
  • Chicken Soup With Rice by M. Sendak
  • The Lorax by Dr. Seuss

Information Books

Information books open a new world of knowledge. If your child is interested in a topic such as dogs, find a book with lots of pictures and share the information as you read it together.

  • From Head to Toe by E. Carle
  • Bugs are Insects by A. Rockwell
  • Bear Shadow by F. Asch
  • Air is All Around You by F. Branley
  • The Very Hungry Caterpillar by Eric Carle
  • The Very Hungry Spider by Eric Carle
  • Chickens Aren’t the Only Ones by R. Heller
  • Have You Seen Birds? by J. Oppenheim and B. Reid
  • Cats Do, Dogs Don’t by N. Simon

Oral Language Books

  • There Was An Old Lady Who Swallowed a Fly by P. Adams
  • Each Peach Pear Plum by J. Ahlberg & A. Ahlberg
  • Ten, Nine, Eight by M. Bang
  • Five Little Monkeys Jumping on the Bed by E. Christelow
  • In the Small, Small Pond by D. Fleming
  • Is Your Mama a Llama? by D. Guarino
  • Five Little Ducks by Raffi

Books to Get Your Child Ready for Kindergarten

  • The Three Bears by B. Barton
  • Blue Hat, Green Hat by S. Boyton
  • Jesse Bear, What Will You Wear? by N. Carlstrom
  • Spot Goes to School by E. Hill
  • Leo the Late Bloomer by R. Kraus
  • Brown Bear, Brown Bear, What Do You See? by B. Martin, Jr.
  • Monster Goes to School by V. Mueller

Folk Tales and Fables

  • The Gingerbread Boy by P. Galdone
  • The Three Little Pigs by P. Galdone
  • The Elves and the Shoemaker by P. Galdone
  • The Three Bears by P. Galdone