Choosing Books for Young Children

Parents, caregivers, and teachers have a wide variety of books to choose from for young children. By sharing different kinds of books with children, they can enjoy different kinds of reading experiences.

Some books help children build confidence as they join in with a repeated rhyme. Others jump-start the imagination with tales about talking animals or a grandmother who flies. Books about familiar objects, people, and events are reassuring to young children, while books with unfamiliar topics can excite them about new ideas and places. 

Listed below are some examples of the kinds of books available for young children:
 

ABC and counting books, like Chicka Chicka Boom Boom, have fun and colorful illustrations of the alphabet and numbers.

Wordless picture books, like Good Dog, Carl, have stories that are told through pictures and few or no words.

Concept books, like Color Dance, have pictures or photos of familiar objects or ideas such as colors, shapes, opposites, or sizes.

Pattern books, like Brown Bear, Brown Bear, What Do You See?, have repeating text and predictable plots that let children join in.

Information books, like Bugs, have realistic pictures or photographs that introduce facts about a specific topic.

Traditional rhymes and stories, like The Little Red Hen, have nursery rhymes, fairy tales, fables, and folktales from various cultures.

Picture books, like Abuela, have words and pictures that tell a story about realistic or imaginary characters and events.

Poetry books, like Honey, I Love, haveseveral illustrated poems for young children.

Easy-to-read books, like The Foot Book, have limited vocabulary, rhyme, and repetition for beginning readers.