Types of BooksWhat types of books should I be reading with my child? When is my child ready for chapter books? I have done some research and found some categories of books based on the age of the reader. I hope these suggestions will help in answering these questions. These are suggested categories, for example, if your child enjoys reading books that are suggested for a younger child let them read those books, as time goes on start suggesting a higher level book either on the same topic or written by the same author. On the other hand if you child is reading books that are suggested for an older child, just make sure they are understanding what they are reading and that the subject matter of the book is appropriate for them. The more variety and choice kids have in what they read, they will be able to determine if a book is too easy, too hard, or just right!
Baby BooksThese types of books are more for playing with and maybe chewing on than actually reading to your baby. They are usually made from cloth so they can be washed, or a covered cardboard so they can be wiped off. These types of books are about shapes, colors, animals, cars, trucks, and a lot of other fun topics.Board BooksThese types of books are made of cardboard pages that are easier for smaller fingers to turn. I have seen these books in the shapes of cars and fire trucks, complete with wheels and a steering wheel attached! The pictures are bright with a few more words on each page than the baby books.I have seen books about different textures, with examples of those textures in the book. For example, for the word rough, there would be a piece of sandpaper on the page, for smooth, a piece of plastic wrap or something else that is smooth to the touch. Some of these books even make sounds to go with the story! Picture BooksThe stories in these types of books are still told in a large part through the pictures, however they do have more words on the pages and the characters are developed more in the story.These are the stories your children will want to hear again and again. You know the stories, where they know when you skip over some parts or don’t do the funny voice just right. The characters tend to have grand adventures while doing their everyday activities. Picture Books – NonfictionThese types of books explain a wide variety of topics in an interesting and fun way. Also, children in second grade or above who are having difficulty with a science topic could read a picture book about it, gain some understanding, and then be ready to move on to the more in depth areas about the topic.These books are a great starting point for researching a topic for a report for school or just answering basic questions. The Pot the Juan Built by N. Andrews-Goebel Red-eyed Tree Frog by J. Cowley The Planets by Gail Gibbons Life and Times of the Peanut by C. Micucci You Can’t Take a Balloon into the Metropolitan Museum by J. P. Weitzman & R. P. Glasser You Can’t Take a Balloon into the National Gallery by J. P. Weitzman & R. P. Glasser Big BooksBig Books are picture books on a grand scale! These types of books are great for kids to read with an adult, they are very handy for teachers to read in a classroom. Here is a list of a few books that have been made into Big Books.My Friends by Taro Gomi Brown Bear, Brown Bear, What Do You See? by Bill Martin Caps for Sale by Esphyr Slobodkina Over in the Meadow by Olivia A. Wadsworth Cat on the Mat by Brian Wildsmith Toot, Toot by Brian Wildsmith The Little Mouse, the Big Red Strawberry, and the Big Hungry Bear by Don Wood Picture Books for Older ReadersThese types of books still give most of the information about the story with pictures, however, they have more text than the picture books for younger readers.The information is solidly presented and works well for biographies, scientific topics, and historic events. Corn is Maize: The Gift of the Indians by Aliki Pablo Remembers: The Day of the Dead by G. Ancona What Do Illustrators Do? by E. Christelow Ballpark: The Story of America’s Baseball Fields by L. Curlee Bodies from the Bog by J. Deem Top of the World: Climbing Mount Everest by S. Jenkins Talking Walls by M. B. Knight Muscles: Our Muscular System by S. Simon Coolies by Yin Wordless StorybooksWordless Storybooks are great to use to help develop reading comprehension and sequential order skills. First, just go through the story telling it with the pictures. Second, write down a story to go with the pictures, either you or your child write the story, depending on their abilities. Third, record the story on a CD or tape that your child can listen to or share with friends.These types of books can also help your child learn more about a topic, especially if they are a visual type of learner. Here are some wordless or nearly wordless books groupes by topic.
Math More, Fewer, Less by T. Hoban Rosie’s Walk by P. Hutchins Science Time Flies by E. Rohmann Social Studies Window by J. Baker Middle Passage: White Ships, Black Cargo by T. Feelings Visual Arts You Can’t Take a Balloon into the Metropolitan Museum by J. P. Weitzman & R. P. Glasser Language Handsigns: A Sign Language Alphabet by K. Fain
Some stories to enjoy with your child! Anno’s Journey by Mitsumasa Anno Sidewalk Circus by Paul Fleischman & Kevin Hawkes Full Moon Soup by Alastair Graham Rosie’s Walk by Pat Hutchins Skates by Ezra Jack Keats Dinosaurs! Board Book by Peter Sis Tuesday by David Wiesner Harold and the Purple Crayon by Crockett Johnson Easy-to-ReadThe easy-to-read books types of books make a great go between until the reader is ready for Early Chapter Books. There are still more pictures and white space than words on the page, and some are even set up in sections or chapters.As a child learns to read more on their own, these books help to make them feel like they are reading Chapter Books. Concept Development BooksConcept development books are books that help children understand an idea such as colors, numbers, or the concept of opposites. They can also be a resource for an older elementary student researching a topic such as sound or musical instruments.Here is a list of some concept development books for you to explore with your child!
The Very Hungry Caterpillar by Eric Carle The Magic School Bus in the Haunted Museum: A Book about Sound by Joanna Cole Animals by Zoe Davenport Garden by Zoe Davenport Olivia’s Opposites by Ian Falconer Ten Little Ladybugs by Melanie Gerth It’s Summertime! by Elaine Good Count and See by Tana Hoban Big Ones, Little Ones by Tana Hoban Is It Red? Is It Yellow? Is It Blue? by Tana Hoban Is It Larger? Is It Smaller? by Tana Hoban Musical Instruments by Gallimard Jeunesse & Claude Delafosse Where is My Friend? A Word Concept Book by Betsy Maestro Otto Goes to School by Todd Parr Hardworking Puppies by Lynn Reiser Boats by Anne Rockwell Things That Go by Anne Rockwell How Animals Got Their Colors: Animal Myths from Around the World by Michael Rosen & John Clementson Who’s Counting? by Nancy Tafuri Brian Wildsmith’s 1, 2, 3’s by Brian Wildsmith Long Train: 101 Cars on the Track by Sam Williams & Ken Wilson-Max Early Chapter BooksThese types of books are for the reader that is ready to move on from the easy to read books, but not quite ready to read a middle school level books.These books have more text than pictures; have a simple and interesting plot with a lot of action and dialogue to keep the story moving. Read AloudsRead aloud books are books you read aloud to and with your child. This is also a way an older child could share a favorite book with a younger sibling and improve their reading skills at the same time.Here's a list of books that would be great to share as a read aloud!
The Pot of Wisdom: Ananse Stories by Adwoa Badoe Akiak: A Tale from the Iditarod by Robert J. Blake Stellaluna by Janell Canon Ramona the Pest by Beverly Cleary Chameleon Chameleon by Joy Cowley The Courage of Sarah Noble by Alice Dalgliesh Abuela by Arthur Dorros Spider Boy by Ralph Fletcher Julie’s Wolf Pack by Jean Craighead George From the Mixed-Up Files of Mrs. Basil E. Frankweiler
by E. L. Konigsburg Alice, Rose, and Sam by Kathryn Lasky To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee The Tales of Uncle Remus: The Adventures of Brer Rabbit by J. Lester John Henry by Julius Lester The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe by C. S. Lewis Make Way for Ducklings by Robert McCloskey Homer Price by Robert McCloskey Island of the Blue Dolphins by Scott O’Dell Aesop’s Fables by Jerry Pinkney Hardworking Puppies by Lynn Reiser Secrets at Hidden Valley by Wilo Davis Roberts Davy Crockett Saves the World by Rosalyn Schanzer Where the Wild Things Are by Maurice Sendak Baseball in April and Other Stories by Gary Soto The Sign of the Beaver by Elizabeth George Speare The Great Fuzz Frenzy by Janet Stevens
Click here for more Read-Alouds! Books for DecodingBooks for decoding are books that are written with a family of words in mind. Dr. Seuss books are an excellent example of this type of book. Your child can decode what a word is based on what they know about other words that are familiar to them.Predictable BooksPredictable books use rhymes, repeated phrases, and pictures to help the reader make predictions about what will happen in the story.Biographies and AutobiographiesThese types of books are ones that either the author wrote about themselves or someone wrote about someone else's life. It can be very interesting to read about the childhood of a now famous person or to compare your life to someone else's.Here is a list of biogrpahies and autobiographies for the primary grades. 26 Fairmont Avenue by T. DePaola The Man who Walked Between the Towers by M. Gerstein Salt in his Shoes: Michael Jordan in Pursuit of a Dream by D. Jordan Wilma Unlimited: How Wilma Rudolph Became the World’s Fastest Woman by K. Krull Harvesting Hope: The Story of Cesar Chavez by K. Krull A Vision of Beauty: The Story of Sarah Breedlove Walker by K. Lasky So you want to be President by J. St. George Little Stevie Wonder by Q. Troupe Little House on the Prairie by Laura Wilder For ideas on how to have a variety of these types of books available, click here. Click here to see types of books for older children. Click here for suggestions of series books for kids of all ages! Click here for information about reading lists.
|
