8 Great Picture Books for New Kindergartners

My oldest will be starting kindergarten in a month. He describes himself as "a little nervous but mostly excited" about this upcoming change. I would describe myself as "mostly freaked out" that my baby is old enough for school.

He is full of questions about kindergarten: what will his teacher be like? what will his classroom look like? what will he do all day? will there be food? will there be games? what will he learn? will he make friends?

For those of you who have a new kindergartner who is brimming with questions, excitement, and/or nerves about school, here's a list of books to help prepare for the big day.

In The Pirate of Kindergarten (by George Ella Lyon), Ginny must wear an eye patch to correct double vision and becomes the pirate of her kindergarten class! This fun book could be especially helpful for kids who have any concerns about being different from the other children in their class.

My kids love the Little Critter books. In First Day of School (by Mercer Mayer), Little Critter is nervous about heading to school, and we get to see how he prepares and gets ready for his first day back!

Kids aren't the only ones nervous for their first day of school (as I am experiencing right now). In Dad's First Day (by Mike Wohnoutka), Dad is way more nervous than Oliver for the first day of school. Kids will love seeing that they aren't the only ones with nerves about school.

The Twelve Days of Kindergarten (by Deborah Lee Rose) is a fun twist on a rhyme your kids will probably recognize -- the twelve days of Christmas. In this version, the kindergartners are given a fun new activity in class each day.

For especially anxious kids, Wemberly Worried (by Kevin Henkes) would make a great pre-K read. Wemberly is nervous about everything to do with the start of school. This book is a great way to discuss your little one's worries and learn together how Wemberly fared on her first day!

Some kids' biggest concern for school is simply being away from mom. For those with separation anxiety, The Kissing Hand (by Audrey Penn) is a great read. A kiss from mom on Chester the raccoon's hand is the perfect way for him to remember her and feel comforted by her, even while he's at school.

With its fun rhyming sequence and silly ideas, Off to Kindergarten (by Tony Johnston) will have your little one laughing about their first day. Bill's list of items to bring to school on his first day grows longer and sillier as the book goes on!

The 'how do dinosaurs' books are always a hit at our house, so How Do Dinosaurs Go To School? (by Jane Yolen) is perfect for the big day! This funny book with its colorful cast of dinosaurs teaches kids about what is and isn't appropriate behavior in the classroom.

12 Days of Christmas Book Advent Countdown

One of my favorite Christmas traditions when I was a kid was ticking off another day on our advent calendar. Some years our advent calendar had a treat to eat on each day, or a little prize . . . but this year we're doing the ultimate book-lovers' advent treat: a new book to read each day as we count down to Christmas!

16 Favorite Halloween Picture Books

One of the best parts of each holiday for us readers is finding the perfect holiday-themed picture books to share with our kids! Such a fun way to spend time together and get psyched up for the next holiday. So today we want to share 16 of our favorite (non scary) Halloween picture books to read aloud to kids.

What's in Your Library Bag?

On one of our recent trips to the library, my 3 year old wandered off and found his favorite section. Before I knew it, our library bag (and the stroller) were full. He had books on Audi's, Porche's, monster trucks, the history of the automobile, airplanes, Heavy Duty Construction Equipment, Planes, Toy Story, Knuffle Bunny, Cars 2, and he even found a learn to speak Klingon book. I didn't even know he knew where the nonfiction section was. There was a part of me that wanted to have him choose 4 or 5 and put the other 10 back, but I resisted. Instead I shared his joy and excitement for all the fun new books he found for us to read. You can see his pile contrasted with my pile.

Library Tip: Give your children autonomy to pick whatever books catch their interest. This is a great time for kids to be spontaneous, explore their interests and create their identity as a reader. As a parent, it feels nice to say "YES! great choice." 

Check out this months library list. I hope you find a few that both you and your children enjoy reading.

Hippospotamus (recommended for 4-8) by Jeanne Willis is a humorous read about a hippo that has a red spot on his bottomus and none of the animals can figure it out. They each have their own idea of what it might be. I will not spoil it for you, but it is lighthearted and fun. 

Ribbit  (recommended for 3-7) by Rodrigo Folgueira is a sweet book about friendship with an unusual twist that will keeps kids on their toes. Great for teaching children about reaching out to make friends. 

The Robot Book  (recommended for 1-4) by Heather Brown is colorful, interactive and has a heart or at least the Robot does. This is a fun board book for littles, but my preschooler also loved it. 

Bread and Jam for Frances  (recommended for 4-8) by Russel Hoban will make you feel better if you have really picky eaters like I do. I tried so hard to feed them the very best as infants...lentil soup, green smoothies, quinoa and greek yogurt. This book keeps it real (with a ray of hope) and is fun for parent and child together. 

Ella Sets the Stage  (recommended for 4-8) by Carmela D'armico makes all of us feel better about what we do well, rather than what we don't do. I found it to be a great reminder as an adult and something I would like to reinforce in my children. There are a few Ella books, but I could not remember her name. I described one of her other books to the librarian and she couldn't think of it. Not even 5 minutes later, my 1 year old started haphazardly pulling books off the shelf and there was Ella. I had to include one of her books, it seemed serendipitous.  

Andrew Drew and Drew (recommended for 4-8) by Barney Saltzberg is interactive flap by flap. The drawings start as a line and as you open each flap the drawings grow and  and the drawings develop. My preschooler really loves to open the flaps for each drawing. It reminds me a little bit of Harold and the Purple Crayon, which I love. 

Fortune Cookies (recommended for 3-6) by Albert Bitterman had me hooked right at the title. I love fortune cookies, I even made a trip to a little factory in San Francisco to see the little old ladies making them. So fun! The book is fun, because you pull the little fortunes out of the cookies. The story line unfolds as each fortune comes true, but maybe not the way the little girl expected. 

Mr Tiger Goes Wild (recommended for 3-6) by Peter Brown has beautiful artwork, a playful story line and a good message. I saw @thelittlebookcollector list this on Instagram. I really love this book. I was raised in a home where we were reminded of manners often, including "shoulders back," and sometimes it just seemed more comfortable to eat with my elbow on the table. I loved Mr. Tiger and his boredom with being so proper. 

If I Built a Car (recommended for 5-8) by Chris Van Dusen let's a child's imagination run. As I listen to my preschooler chatter nonstop, sometimes I wonder what is real and what is play for him. His imagination is exploding in a wonderful way. I think he loved this book for that reason. If you built a car, what would it be like? 

Happy reading aloud!

Elizabeth