If you can't tell, this week, my theme is reading. Whether you're reading to your baby or to your child is reading to you, literacy is one of the most important things in a young childs life! We need to all put forth the effort to raise our children to be the best they can be!
If you haven’t heard of this resource yet, you really need to! There’s this great initiative put forth by the American Library Association’s “Association for Library Service to Children” called “Born to Read.” It’s this awesome resource that gives you all sorts of great ideas for books to read by age, story time suggestions and much more. I’m going to be writing a lot about some of the resources they have in the coming weeks/months. I found this great list of books to read aloud sorted by age group/development milestone.
Books with sharp color contrasts
Color vision is not well developed at birth. This is why pictures in books with high contrast are the best choice when the goal is to interest infants in visual stimuli.
Black and white books
What Does Baby See? by Begin Smart Books. Begin Smart, 2009
Black & White by Tana Hoban. Greenwillow, 2007
What is That? by Tana Hoban. Greenwillow, 1994
Look at the Animals! by Peter Linenthal. Dutton Children's Books, 2006
I Kissed the Baby! by Mary Murphy. Candlewick, 2004
Books with bright colors
My Car by Byron Barton. Greenwillow Books, 2001
Where is Maisy? ny Lucy Cousins. Candlewick, 2010
Look at Baby's House by Peter Linenthal. Dutton Children's Books, 2008
Quiet Loud by Leslie Patricelli. Candlewick, 2003
The Okay Book by Todd Parr. Little, Brown, 2004.
Faces
Babies are born predisposed to find faces interesting. Research has shown that an infant pays attention to human faces longer than anything else.
American Babies by Global Fund for Children. Charlesbridge, 2010
Baby Faces: Eat! by Roberta Grobel Intrater. Scholastic, 2002
Baby Faces: Smile! by Roberta Grobel Intrater. Scholastic, 1997
Baby Faces: Splash! by Roberta Grobel Intrater. Scholastic, 2002
Baby Faces by Margaret Miller. Little Simon, 2009
Clap Hands by Helen Oxenbury. Little Simon, 1999
Common objects to identify (first words)
Infants are most interested in pictures of familiar things. Picture books that pair a picture of a single object with a word help children to learn new vocabulary.
Baby's First Words by Vic Heatherton. Hinkler Books Pty Ltd., distributed by Ideals Publications, 2008
Words by Katie Cox. Make Believe Ideas Ltd, 2009
My Food (Getting to Know My World) by Heidi Johansen. Power Kids Press, 2008
Baby Bathtime by Dawn Serit. DK Publishing, c2010
My First Learning Library (My 1st Board Books) by Jane Yorke. DK Preschool, 2004 (first published 2001)
Early Learning Fun Words by Roger Priddy. Priddy, 2010
Concepts
Ten, Nine, Eight by Molly Bang. Greenwillow, 1983
The Very Hungry Caterpillar by Eric Carle. Philomel, 1981
Freight Train by Donald Crews. Greenwillow, 1978
Flaptastic Sizes by DK Publishing. DK Preschool, 2009
I Can Eat a Rainbow by Annabel Karmel. DK Preschool, 2009
My Shapes/Mis Formas by Rebecca Emberley. Little Brown, 2000
Kids Like Me Learn Colors by Laura Ronay. Woodbine, 2009
Kids Like Me Learn ABCs by Laura Ronay. Woodbine, 2009
Daily routines
Goodnight Moon by Margaret Wise Brown and illustrated by Clement Hurd. HarperCollins, 1947
Time for Bed by Mem Fox and illustrated by Jane Dyer. Harcourt, 1993
Uh-oh! by Rachel Isadora. Harcourt, 2008
Ten Tiny Babies by Karen Katz. McElderry, 2008
Baby Face: A Book of Love for Baby by Cynthia Rylant and illustrated by Diane Goode. Simon & Schuster, 2008
Brush, Brush, Brush (Rookie Toddler) by Scholastic Inc. and illustrated by Alicia Padron. Children's Press, 2010
Bye-Bye, Mommy (Rookie Toddler) by Scholastic Inc. Children's Press, 2009
Nursery rhymes
The Neighborhood Mother Goose by Nina Crews. Greenwillow Books, 2004
Hey Diddle Diddle by Moira Kemp. The Child's World, 2010
Humpty Dumpty by Annie Kubler. Child’s Play (International), 2010
Books to manipulate
As soon as they are able, young children are "hands-on" learners. Using books that they can rattle, touch and feel, lift-the-lap, etc. engages their senses and adds interest.
Touch and feel
Animals Talk by Emily Bolam. Tiger Tales, 2010
Colors by Emily Bolam. Tiger Tales, 2009
Counting by Emily Bolam. Tiger Tales, 2008
Bathtime (Touch and Feel) by DK Publishing. DK Preschool, 2009
Pat the Bunny by Dorothy Kunhardt. Golden, 2001
Bright Baby Bilingual Touch & Feel: Words (Bright Baby Touch & Feel) by Roger Priddy. New York: Priddy Books, 2008
I Like Bugs by Lorena Siminovich. Templar, 2010
That's not My Puppy: It's Coat is too Hairy by Fiona Watt and illustrated by Rachel Wells. Usborne Books, 2001
Lift-the-flap
Peek-a-Moo by Marie Torres Cimarusti. Dutton, 1998
Mommy, Where Are You? by Leonid Gore. Atheneum, 2009
Where’s Spot? by Eric Hill. Putnam, 1980
Where is Baby's Puppy? by Karen Katz. Little Simon, 2011
Playful language
When adults read books with playful language, they encourage their young listeners to to play with the sounds of language too. This play supports language development and phonological awareness.
Sputter, Sputter, Sput! by Babs Bell and illustrated by Bob Staake. HarperCollins, 2008
Perfect Piggies: A Book! A Song!: A Celebration by Sandra Boynton. Workman, 2010
The Baby Goes Beep by Rebecca O'Connell and illustrated by Ken Wilson-Max. Albert Whitman & Company, 2010
Jazz Baby by Lisa Wheeler and illustrated by R. Gregory Christie. Harcourt, 2007
American Sign Language
Many families of hearing infants want to help their babies to communicate wants and needs with signs as a temporary bridge to oral language development. American Sign Language is important for the Deaf community and for hearing children who will be communicating with Deaf relatives or friends.
My First Signs (Signing Smart) by Michelle Anthony. Cartwheel Books, 2009
What Do You See? (Signing Smart) by Michelle Anthony. Cartwheel Books, 2009
Teach Your Baby to Sign: An Illustrated Guide to Simple Sign Language for Babies by Monica Beyer.
Fair Winds Press, 2007
Diversity
To build a positive sense of self, children need to see themselves, their families and their cultural traditions in the books we read to them.
Global Babies Global Fund for Children. Charlesbridge, 2010
Fruits of India by Jill Hartley. Tara Books, 2010
My First Ramadan by Karen Katz. Henry Holt & Co, 2007
Mommy, Mama, and Me and Daddy, Papa, and Me by Leslea Newman and illustrated by Carol Thompson. Tricycle, 2009
I Can, Can You? by Marjorie Pitzer. Woodbine, 2004
Fiesta Babies by Carmen Tafolla and illustrated by Amy Cordova. Tricycle Press, c2010
Yum Yum Dim Sum by Amy Wilson Sanger. Tricycle Press, 2003
Stories to share
A Splendid Friend, Indeed by Suzanna Bloom. Boyds Mills, 2007
Barnyard Banter by Denise Fleming. Holt, 1994
Tip Tip Dig Dig by Emma Garcia. Boxer, 2007
A Good Day by Kevin Henkes. Greenwillow, 2007
Guess How Much I Love You? by Sam McBratney and illustrated by Anita Jeram. Candlewick, 2008
Clip-Clop by Nicola Smee. Boxer, 2006
Whose Chick Are You? by Nancy Tafuri. Greenwillow, 2007
Wee Little Lamb by Lauren Thompson. Simon & Schuster, 2009
Owl Babies by Martin Waddell and illustrated by Patrick Benson. Candlewick, 1992
Read to Your Bunny by Rosemary Wells. Scholastic, 1998
I Went Walking by Sue Williams and illustrated by Julie Vivas. Harcourt, 1990
“More, More, More,” Said the Baby by Vera Williams. Greenwillow, 1990
Who Likes Rain? by Wong Herbert Yee. Holt, 2007
If you haven’t heard of this resource yet, you really need to! There’s this great initiative put forth by the American Library Association’s “Association for Library Service to Children” called “Born to Read.” It’s this awesome resource that gives you all sorts of great ideas for books to read by age, story time suggestions and much more. I’m going to be writing a lot about some of the resources they have in the coming weeks/months. I found this great list of books to read aloud sorted by age group/development milestone.
Books with sharp color contrasts
Color vision is not well developed at birth. This is why pictures in books with high contrast are the best choice when the goal is to interest infants in visual stimuli.
Black and white books
What Does Baby See? by Begin Smart Books. Begin Smart, 2009
Black & White by Tana Hoban. Greenwillow, 2007
What is That? by Tana Hoban. Greenwillow, 1994
Look at the Animals! by Peter Linenthal. Dutton Children's Books, 2006
I Kissed the Baby! by Mary Murphy. Candlewick, 2004
Books with bright colors
My Car by Byron Barton. Greenwillow Books, 2001
Where is Maisy? ny Lucy Cousins. Candlewick, 2010
Look at Baby's House by Peter Linenthal. Dutton Children's Books, 2008
Quiet Loud by Leslie Patricelli. Candlewick, 2003
The Okay Book by Todd Parr. Little, Brown, 2004.
Faces
Babies are born predisposed to find faces interesting. Research has shown that an infant pays attention to human faces longer than anything else.
American Babies by Global Fund for Children. Charlesbridge, 2010
Baby Faces: Eat! by Roberta Grobel Intrater. Scholastic, 2002
Baby Faces: Smile! by Roberta Grobel Intrater. Scholastic, 1997
Baby Faces: Splash! by Roberta Grobel Intrater. Scholastic, 2002
Baby Faces by Margaret Miller. Little Simon, 2009
Clap Hands by Helen Oxenbury. Little Simon, 1999
Common objects to identify (first words)
Infants are most interested in pictures of familiar things. Picture books that pair a picture of a single object with a word help children to learn new vocabulary.
Baby's First Words by Vic Heatherton. Hinkler Books Pty Ltd., distributed by Ideals Publications, 2008
Words by Katie Cox. Make Believe Ideas Ltd, 2009
My Food (Getting to Know My World) by Heidi Johansen. Power Kids Press, 2008
Baby Bathtime by Dawn Serit. DK Publishing, c2010
My First Learning Library (My 1st Board Books) by Jane Yorke. DK Preschool, 2004 (first published 2001)
Early Learning Fun Words by Roger Priddy. Priddy, 2010
Concepts
Ten, Nine, Eight by Molly Bang. Greenwillow, 1983
The Very Hungry Caterpillar by Eric Carle. Philomel, 1981
Freight Train by Donald Crews. Greenwillow, 1978
Flaptastic Sizes by DK Publishing. DK Preschool, 2009
I Can Eat a Rainbow by Annabel Karmel. DK Preschool, 2009
My Shapes/Mis Formas by Rebecca Emberley. Little Brown, 2000
Kids Like Me Learn Colors by Laura Ronay. Woodbine, 2009
Kids Like Me Learn ABCs by Laura Ronay. Woodbine, 2009
Daily routines
Goodnight Moon by Margaret Wise Brown and illustrated by Clement Hurd. HarperCollins, 1947
Time for Bed by Mem Fox and illustrated by Jane Dyer. Harcourt, 1993
Uh-oh! by Rachel Isadora. Harcourt, 2008
Ten Tiny Babies by Karen Katz. McElderry, 2008
Baby Face: A Book of Love for Baby by Cynthia Rylant and illustrated by Diane Goode. Simon & Schuster, 2008
Brush, Brush, Brush (Rookie Toddler) by Scholastic Inc. and illustrated by Alicia Padron. Children's Press, 2010
Bye-Bye, Mommy (Rookie Toddler) by Scholastic Inc. Children's Press, 2009
Nursery rhymes
The Neighborhood Mother Goose by Nina Crews. Greenwillow Books, 2004
Hey Diddle Diddle by Moira Kemp. The Child's World, 2010
Humpty Dumpty by Annie Kubler. Child’s Play (International), 2010
Books to manipulate
As soon as they are able, young children are "hands-on" learners. Using books that they can rattle, touch and feel, lift-the-lap, etc. engages their senses and adds interest.
Touch and feel
Animals Talk by Emily Bolam. Tiger Tales, 2010
Colors by Emily Bolam. Tiger Tales, 2009
Counting by Emily Bolam. Tiger Tales, 2008
Bathtime (Touch and Feel) by DK Publishing. DK Preschool, 2009
Pat the Bunny by Dorothy Kunhardt. Golden, 2001
Bright Baby Bilingual Touch & Feel: Words (Bright Baby Touch & Feel) by Roger Priddy. New York: Priddy Books, 2008
I Like Bugs by Lorena Siminovich. Templar, 2010
That's not My Puppy: It's Coat is too Hairy by Fiona Watt and illustrated by Rachel Wells. Usborne Books, 2001
Lift-the-flap
Peek-a-Moo by Marie Torres Cimarusti. Dutton, 1998
Mommy, Where Are You? by Leonid Gore. Atheneum, 2009
Where’s Spot? by Eric Hill. Putnam, 1980
Where is Baby's Puppy? by Karen Katz. Little Simon, 2011
Playful language
When adults read books with playful language, they encourage their young listeners to to play with the sounds of language too. This play supports language development and phonological awareness.
Sputter, Sputter, Sput! by Babs Bell and illustrated by Bob Staake. HarperCollins, 2008
Perfect Piggies: A Book! A Song!: A Celebration by Sandra Boynton. Workman, 2010
The Baby Goes Beep by Rebecca O'Connell and illustrated by Ken Wilson-Max. Albert Whitman & Company, 2010
Jazz Baby by Lisa Wheeler and illustrated by R. Gregory Christie. Harcourt, 2007
American Sign Language
Many families of hearing infants want to help their babies to communicate wants and needs with signs as a temporary bridge to oral language development. American Sign Language is important for the Deaf community and for hearing children who will be communicating with Deaf relatives or friends.
My First Signs (Signing Smart) by Michelle Anthony. Cartwheel Books, 2009
What Do You See? (Signing Smart) by Michelle Anthony. Cartwheel Books, 2009
Teach Your Baby to Sign: An Illustrated Guide to Simple Sign Language for Babies by Monica Beyer.
Fair Winds Press, 2007
Diversity
To build a positive sense of self, children need to see themselves, their families and their cultural traditions in the books we read to them.
Global Babies Global Fund for Children. Charlesbridge, 2010
Fruits of India by Jill Hartley. Tara Books, 2010
My First Ramadan by Karen Katz. Henry Holt & Co, 2007
Mommy, Mama, and Me and Daddy, Papa, and Me by Leslea Newman and illustrated by Carol Thompson. Tricycle, 2009
I Can, Can You? by Marjorie Pitzer. Woodbine, 2004
Fiesta Babies by Carmen Tafolla and illustrated by Amy Cordova. Tricycle Press, c2010
Yum Yum Dim Sum by Amy Wilson Sanger. Tricycle Press, 2003
Stories to share
A Splendid Friend, Indeed by Suzanna Bloom. Boyds Mills, 2007
Barnyard Banter by Denise Fleming. Holt, 1994
Tip Tip Dig Dig by Emma Garcia. Boxer, 2007
A Good Day by Kevin Henkes. Greenwillow, 2007
Guess How Much I Love You? by Sam McBratney and illustrated by Anita Jeram. Candlewick, 2008
Clip-Clop by Nicola Smee. Boxer, 2006
Whose Chick Are You? by Nancy Tafuri. Greenwillow, 2007
Wee Little Lamb by Lauren Thompson. Simon & Schuster, 2009
Owl Babies by Martin Waddell and illustrated by Patrick Benson. Candlewick, 1992
Read to Your Bunny by Rosemary Wells. Scholastic, 1998
I Went Walking by Sue Williams and illustrated by Julie Vivas. Harcourt, 1990
“More, More, More,” Said the Baby by Vera Williams. Greenwillow, 1990
Who Likes Rain? by Wong Herbert Yee. Holt, 2007