The Best Books for Early Literacy

Blue Goose

While farmer Gray is out for the day, his animals decide to brighten up the barnyard with their corresponding color. Blue goose paints the sky with white duck, red hen and yellow hen paint the shutters orange etc… When the story starts out, everything is Gray as the farmer leaves. As the story progresses, the animals fill the pages with color. Towards the end (night time) blue goose paints everything blue to signify bed time.

One of the most important concepts to know before starting kindergarten is that of colors. Another important feature is that of storytelling. It is important for kids to know story structure, and how to tell stories, in a way that makes sense. Blue Goose is a classic story that tackles both of these concepts.

Recommended for: Introducing story format (beginning, middle, end), learning colors

Up, Down, and Around

Vegetables grow in all different ways. Some grow upwards like corn, some grow downwards like carrots and some grow around and around like pumpkins. In Up, Down, and Around, Ayres describes the way different vegetables grow through using rhyming words. Understanding the concept of rhyme is an important aspect of early literacy because children who are introduced to rhyme in stories are more likely to understand the rhythm of language.

Up, Down, and Around also encourages children to eat their veggies and honestly, any book that can convince my daughter that veggies are yummy deserves a permanent spot on her bookshelf.

Recommended for: Introducing rhyme, practicing compare/contrast

Chicka Chicka Boom Boom

There are countless books out there that teach the alphabet and most of them probably deserve a spot on this list too. But, for this post, we’re going to focus on Chicka Chicka Boom Boom. This book has been around since before I was born and is still widely popular in the book lover’s world.

If you aren’t familiar with this title, all of the lowercase letters of the alphabet try to fit on top of a coconut tree. When the tree overflows, all the lowercase letters fall off and their family members (the uppercases) come to their rescue. Throughout the story, we hear the alphabet two times which is great for practicing the ABC's with your little one.

Also, if you want to kick it up a notch, you can always practice your American Sign Language skills by signing the alphabet as you say each letter. This way, your little one learns both the written and ASL alphabet!

Recommended for: Introducing the alphabet, practicing ASL

Numbers/Numeros

Along with your little one’s learning their ABC's, comes the practicing of their 1,2,3's. This board book is perfect for introducing numbers and counting to your child. Along with the English and Spanish words for each picture and number, it is touch-and-feel so your little one stays engaged while you read.

Numbers/Numeros counts from 1-10 using English and Spanish. Rather than just teaching them their numbers, adding in the Spanish language will help your child be more advanced in their learning. Early childhood (ages 0-5) is said to be the best time to introduce foreign languages so doing it in conjunction with other early learning skills is a great way to engrave the language into their mind.

Recommended for: Practicing numbers 1-10, introducing the Spanish language

All Fall Down

All Fall Down is a board book that puts the reader in different situations like stacking blocks and playing with dinner. This book uses rhythm and rhyme to build up the character’s actions to the consequence that follows. For example, a little girl is playing with her dinner and stacking her mashed potatoes and peas. When she smacks it, the potato tower falls down and makes a mess everywhere.

Every action has some kind of consequence. When babies are born, they don’t realize this and may not realize it until they are 4 or 5 years old. The sooner parents can begin teaching the concept of cause and effect, the better. This will help them because better decision makers later on in life.

Recommended for: Teaching Cause & Effect, Rhythm & Rhyme

The Peace Book

Todd Parr has written over 30 children’s books since he started his career. Each one of them is perfect for teaching life lessons and learning simple sentences. As a little girl, I always loved checking his books out from the library largely due to the vibrant and colorful illustrations they offer. Young children, especially babies and toddlers tend to migrate toward the “prettier” books rather than appreciate a book for its story. That is why you should have at least one Todd Parr book on your little one’s bookshelf at all times.

In this particular book, Parr focuses on how we can live peacefully. He encourages the readers to love one another and treat each other and the world kindly. At the end of each of his Todd World stories, he offers a short letter to the reader encouraging them to be who they are and to help make the world a better place. It can be difficult trying to teach younger children important lessons like these, but with the vibrant illustrations and use of simple sentences, it makes it so much easier for children to understand.

Recommended for: Practicing simple sentences, learning life lessons

Duck & Goose: Let’s Dance

In this installment of the Duck & Goose series, Duck and Goose teach the reader how to do the Duck & Goose dance. Throughout the story, Duck and Goose give the reader instructions on how to correctly do the dance and at the end of the story, you can find the lyrics to the song as well as a URL to download the song for free onto your computer or mobile device.

Before starting school, it is essential for children to know how to follow directions. Duck & Goose’s dance is the perfect way to get your little one moving while also teaching them that valuable life skill.

Recommended for: Teaching Rhythm, following directions

Listening Time

Listening time is one of many books in Verdick’s Toddler Tools series. If you’re trying to raise an early reader, then I cannot recommend this series enough. Toddler Tools comes in board book style and offers simple but intriguing illustrations to go along with the story.

In this particular story, children are learning how to sit still and listen quietly. Each page includes a tip for being a good listener such as “sitting criss-cross applesauce” and staying calm and still.

These books are especially great because at the end of each story, there are tips for parents and caregivers on how to implement each story topic.

Recommended for: Teaching skills needed for Kindergarten readiness

My First Signs

This is by no means a required topic for early literacy, but I always include it in early literacy book lists because it has so many benefits. Whether you have a deaf family member or just want to teach your child a unique language skill, books like My First Signs are a great addition to your bookshelf.

Teaching babies and toddlers ASL has risen in popularity over the years and for good reason. For the first year (sometimes more) of their life, our children can’t use words to tell us what they want or what is wrong. This is a frustrating time for parents and children. By teaching them basic signs like diaper, eat, drink or bed, you open up a whole new world of communication with your little one. There is also the added benefit of knowing more than one language too!

Recommended for: Introducing basic ASL

Pomelo’s Opposites

Knowing opposites like left/right and up/down are important concepts to understand in life. They are especially important when it comes to describing and analyzing information. There are a plethora of children’s books out there that teach opposites, but this particular book is my go-to.

Pomelo’s Opposites tackles simple opposites like Black & White and Near & Far, as well as more complex opposites like Concave & Convex and Stalactite & Stalagmite. Don’t let the higher page count scare you off. Each page only contains one object or action, so despite being a longer (in terms of pages) children’s book it keeps children interested with its simplicity and fun illustrations.

Recommended for: Teaching opposites