books Archives -Imaginations Running Wild-

Zoo Books for Little Readers

May 25, 2023May 24, 2023 Jennifer

Preschoolers love animals and learning all about them! Here are 12 great zoo books to read together to learn about the animals at the zoo. I’ve also included some zoo actvities at the end too. Be sure to watch John Lithgow read his book, Never Play Music Next to the Zoo — this read-aloud is fantastic!

Zoo Boks collage — Zoo Books for Preschoolers

12 Zoo Books:

1. Good Night, Gorilla by Peggy Rathmann–

It is bedtime at the zoo and the night watchman walks around the zoo, checking on each animal and wishing them a good night. But the watchman is so tired that he doesn’t realize the gorilla has stolen his keys and is letting out all of the animals! One by one, the animals follow the night watchman through the zoo and all they way to his home. Then they creep undetected into the bedroom and settle down for the night. It looks like everyone is going to sleep indoors tonight, until the gorilla wants a bedtime cuddle. Hey, gorillas don’t sleep in beds! Now its back to the zoo for everyone. This sparsely worded book lets preschoolers tell what is happening in the story and is sure to bring on a case of the giggles!

2. What the Ladybug Heard at the Zoo by Julia Donaldson–

In this sequel to the What the Ladybug Heard, the ladybug is visiting the zoo when it overhears two robbers’ plan to kidnap Monkey Joe, They want to use him to steal the Queen’s jewels! Yikes! Ladybug comes up with a plan to foil the bad guys. All of the zoo animals and the Queen’s pups help out and stop the robbers.

3. Ellie by Mike Wu–

We read Ellie by Mike Wu, a story about a sweet elephant who shows that it doesn’t matter what old or how big you are, everyone can help in their own way. All of the animals are worried about losing their home as word spreads that the zoo is closing. Ellie, a baby elephant is worried too, but what can she do? Ellie puts her painting talents to use to help the zoo. Soon people are buying her paintings and the money made goes to keeping the zoo open!

4. Fiona’s Train Ride by Richard Cowdrey–

The animals at the zoo are so excited about the new baby red panda! Fiona and her friends (a sloth, tortoise, cardinal, and skunk) want to visit the baby, but the zoo is a big place and its too far for the tortoise and the sloth to walk. The zoo train passes by giving Fiona a great idea! That night after the zoo closes, Fiona and her friends decide to take the train to see the new baby. Who is going to drive the train? Fiona will! Uh-oh, Fiona is a little too wide to fit though train door (cue the giggles from my son!) and gets stuck. With a little help from her friends, she gets free and is able to take her place as the engineer. All aboard! The animals gather into the train and off they go to see the baby. The cute little baby is sleeping next to its mother, so Fiona and her friends whisper, “hello,” before leaving, careful not to wake the baby.

5. The Underpants Zoo by Brian Sendelbach–

The Underpants Zoo was always a hit with my library preschool storytime group! They would giggle the whole way through and we had to stop reading multiple times so the kids could talk about the pictures (an anteater with ants in its underpants — whaaaaat?!?!?). My son loves this book too and he really enjoys pouring over the silly pictures.

6. 1 Zany Zoo by Lori Degman–

This book is so much fun! Find out what happens at the zoo before all of the people arrive. The excitement and silliness from the rhyming text and the bold, emotive illustrations make this book lots of fun to read. Not only does the reader get to learn the names of animals at the zoo, but we get to count along too! Your preschooler is going to ask to read this one over and over again!

7. King of the Zoo by Erica S. Pearl–

Carlos, a chameleon, is the self proclaimed king of the zoo. Chameleon’s color changing ability is pretty amazing! However, Carlos’ friends point out that other animals at the zoo are amazing too. Just look at how big the elephants are and how well the kangaroos can jump! Everyone has something amazing about them. Carlos is starting to feel blue and wonders if maybe he isn’t so great after all. Just then, a little girl sees Carlos and is so excited because he is her favorite animal at the zoo. That’s right, Carlos is the favorite! He perks right back up and realizes that he doesn’t have to be everyone’s favorite animals to still be amazing.

8. A Sick Day for Amos McGee by Philip Stead —

I love, love, love this book! My son and I have read this several times together and I have shared it at library storytime because it is such a sweet story about the power of kindness. Amos McGee works as a zookeeper, where he befriends an owl, a turtle, an elephant, and a penguin. Each animal has its own special needs, which Amos beautifully takes into account as he interacts with them. When Amos gets sick, his friends return the kindness he gave them, and the animals travel to Amos’ house to take care of him. The soft illustrations are perfect for this gentle story.

9. Bizzy Bear: Zookeeper by Benji Davies–

This interactive board book is so cute! My son has several of the Bizzy Bear books and he loves all of the things to touch and move on every page. These stories are great for young children to become interested in books. In this story, Bizzy Bear is helping out at the zoo. He gets to give the crocodile a bath, help the hippo brush its teeth, and feed the penguins! My son loves penguins and was so excited to see them in this book. He got to turn the wheel and make the penguins and fish swim around. The awesome pictures are accompanied by short rhyming text, making this books an ideal choice for children who can’t sit still too long.

10. Zoogie Boogie Fever!: An Animal Dance Book by Sujean Rim–

What animals do at night after all of the people have left? They have a dance party! Suddenly a disco ball appears and the giraffes spread the word that it is time to dance. Learn about different styles of dance with zoo animal friends. This book is funny, fast paced, rhyming and full of great illustrations. Little readers will love watching each type of animal show off their moves. The animals’ ability to avoid detection from the zookeeper will leave you laughing. The conga line with all of the animals brings the dance party to a fantastic conclusion.

11. Pinky Got Out by Michael Portis–

Pinky, a flamingo at the zoo, sees a girl dressed in pink touring the zoo with her class, and he decides to join in the fun. The girl and her classmates spot Pinky trying to blend in with the other animals. Readers will have fun spotting Pinky too! This books is tons of fun to read; both children and adults will enjoy the humor.

12. Feeding Time at the Zoo by Sherry Shahan–

We borrowed this book from the library and were immediately captured by the great photographs of animals. While we enjoyed the illustrations of animals in our other stories, it was nice to see what they really look like! Read this zoo book together and learn what animals eat.

Thank you for reading zoo books with us! Check your local library for these and great zoo books to read together. To help cover the costs of this site, I joined Amazon’s Affiliate program and I provided affiliate links to the books I listed. If you buy an item through one of my links, I may receive a small commission (at no additional cost to you). Thank you for support. Happy reading!

More Zoo Fun!

Paper Bag Tiger Puppet: using puppets to act out stories is tons of fun! Here is a template to make a tiger puppet out of a paper bag that your preschooler can use to tell their own zoo stories 🙂

Zoo-themed I Spy: how many of each zoo animal can you spy?

Spring

Earth Day Books

April 17, 2023April 17, 2023 Jennifer

Earth Day is celebrated every year on April 22. Learn about all of the ways that we can help our planet. These stories show that no matter how old we are, all of us can make a difference. We can turn off lights when we leave a room, participate in a neighborhood clean up, plant some flowers, and reuse items! Check out this list of Earth Day books for more ideas! As part of Earth Day studies, my son also made a tissue paper Earth craft that turned out so cute: https://imaginationsrunningwild.com/2022/04/18/earth-day-tissue-paper-craft/

Earth Day Books for Preschoolers:

1. Every Day is Earth Day by Jane O’Connor —

Learn all about Earth Day with Fancy Nancy. In this story, Nancy teaches young readers that there are lots of little things all of us can do everyday to help our planet. Nancy is so enthusiastic about helping the planet, that she takes things a little too far. Her parents teach her (and the readers) that a bunch of little things add to big help, so it is ok to have the light on while we are reading, but not to waste electricity by leaving the light on when no one is in the room. Nancy has other great tips to share too!

2. Biscuit’s Earth Day Celebration by Alyssa Satin Capucilli–

Biscuit learns all about Earth Day in this sweet book. The little girl and her cute pup, Biscuit, help clean up around in their community and plant new plants. It is important to help all of the creatures, big and small, and that is why we need to take care of our planet, Biscuit learns. Simple, short text and adorable illustrations will keep your preschooler engaged.

3. Peppa Pig and the Earth Day Adventure by Candlewick Press–

Preschoolers love Peppa Pig and Peppa loves the planet! Peppa and her family help the planet by sorting their recycling and composting food waste. To celebrate Earth Day, the family goes to the botanical gardens, where they get to see beautiful flowers and learn about the plants. Peppa’s appreciation for all that the planet has to offer, from flowers and animals, to muddy puddles, will inspire your child to take a look at the natural world and find stuff to appreciate too.

4. Earth Day Birthday by Pattie L. Schnetzler —

This beautifully illustrated, rhyming book is a celebration of the animals found on Earth. Each animal is important to our planet. The illustrations capture the beauty of nature and the lyrical text (set to the tune of The Twelve Days of Christmas) will capture your preschooler’s attention. The book also includes ideas on how to help the planet. I’ve read this one with my preschool storytime group many times over the years and they always love it!

5. It’s Earth Day! by Mercer Mayer —

My son loves the Little Critter stories! They are sweet, humorous, and he can relate to Little Critter’s struggles to do everything by himself. In this story, Little Critter learns about recycling on a class field trip. He is so excited to tell his family what he learned and start recycling as a family so that they can all do their part to help protect the environment.

6. Katie Saves the Earth by Fran Manushkin —

Katie Woo stories are so cute! In honor of Earth Day, Katie organizes a yard sale because it is important to reuse items. Katie is helping keep stuff out of landfills and cutting back on the use of new resources by helping others to reuse items. Are there places to donate your old items? Can you think of ways to reuse them?

7. The Earth Book by Todd Parr-

We love Todd Parr’s illustrations! His use of bold colors and silly illustrations really appeal to us. Parr has the fantastic ability to break down big subjects and present them at a preschool level. In The Earth Book, preschoolers learn how they can help the planet too! There are so many little ways that we can help, such as using both sides of a sheet of paper when we draw. Your preschooler will be inspired to do their part after reading this one!

Thank you for reading Earth Day stories with us! I hope you and your preschooler will be inspired to take up some Earth Day projects together. Check your local library for these and other Earth Day books. To help cover the costs of this site, I joined Amazon’s Affiliate program and I provided affiliate links to the books I listed. If you buy an item through one of my links, I may receive a small commission (at no additional cost to you). Thank you for support. Happy reading!

Animals

Snail Stories for Preschoolers

March 21, 2023March 20, 2023 Jennifer

While adults tend to view snails as garden pests, preschoolers are fascinated by them! Here are 6 snail stories for preschoolers to enjoy! These stories might just give you a whole new outlook on snails and you may think they are pretty great after all.

6 Awesome Snail Stories:

1. Snail Crossing by Corey R. Tabor–

This book is hilarious!!! And it is so darn cute. We love the snail’s determination and positive attitude. The message of helping others and working toward your goals makes this book a winner. We just keep rereading this one and we laugh every single time –seriously, it is a family favorite! My son even insisted that we buy copies for 2 of his cousins.

2. Snail and Worm by Tina Kugler–

Get ready to laugh with Snail and Worm! These two best friends will crack you up as they explore the world around them. Each book contains three short stories filled with jokes, hilarious misunderstandings, and friendship. You can’t help but fall in love with these two.

3. The Snail and the Whale by Julia Donaldson–

In this rhyming book, snail yearns to explore, but is hindered by its size. When a whale offers to help snail take a journey, it is a dream come true. But whale gets stuck and it is up to the small snail to help its new friend. It goes to show that no matter who small you are, you can still help others.

4. The Story of Fish and Snail by Deborah Freedman–

Friends Fish and Snail enjoy reading books! Fish, the braver of the two, travels into new books and then returns to retell Snail the fantastical story! One day, Fish is excited to have Snail come with on a book adventure, but Snail is too scared to go. They end up arguing and Fish goes off alone. Snail misses its friend and decides to bravely go into another book in search of Fish! Reunited, these best friends have an awesome adventure as adorable kitty-pirates!

5. Escargot by Dashka Slater —

Escargot is a cute little French snail who just happens to be a picky eater. While he loves lettuce, there is no one you will get him to try a carrot. Preschoolers will enjoy this interactive book and will have fun trying to get Escargot to try a carrot!

6. Norman the Slug with the Silly Shell by Sue Hendra–

This is a funny story about a slug, named Norman, who wants to be a snail so he can join in the snails’ fun. Norman puts all sorts of silly things on his back in attempt to have a shell of his own. Preschoolers will giggle at the funny things that Norman tries to use as his shell! Norman settles on a donut and, after strapping it his back, goes to play with the snails. Suddenly a hungry bird comes swooping down and grabs Norman’s donut. Up in the air goes Norman! Norman uses his slug slime powers and makes so much slime that he slips free, landing safely back home.

THANK YOU

Thank you for checking out my list of snail stories for preschoolers! I hope you enjoy these books! I joined Amazon’s Affiliate program to try and help cover the costs of this site. If you buy something through one of my links on Amazon, then I get a small percentage of the sale (no extra cost to you). Thank you for your support! Happy reading 🙂

Snail Craft:

Paper Plate Snail: this snail is so cute and fun to make too! Draw a spiral around the plate and let your little one paint the snail’s paper plate shell.

Animals, Spring

Bug Books

March 3, 2023March 1, 2023 Jennifer

Here are a dozen great bug books for your preschooler to enjoy! Preschoolers love bugs and exploring outside. Feed their natural curiosity with these stories about butterflies, ladybugs, ants, bees, caterpillars, dragonflies, lightning bugs, and other insects. There are so many cute bug stories available, that I made additional booklists for LADYBUGS and BUTTERFLIES! At the end of this post are some fun bug crafts that you can make at home 🙂

12 Bug Books

1. Ten Little Ladybugs by Melanie Green —

When my son was 3 years old, this was one of his favorite books! He still loves ladybugs 🙂 This book hits all of a preschooler’s requirements for an entertaining read–it has a rhyming story, bright pictures, and stuff to touch! The story starts with 10 ladybugs, but one by one, they wander off. Read this and find out where they are all going.

2. Leo the Lightning Bug by Eric Drachman —

This story about a little firefly named Leo who is having a hard time getting his “light” to come on. He practices and practices, only to be ridiculed by his friends. However, Leo is determined and sets out to practice again. A a storm comes and lightning strikes across the sky. Leo mistakenly thinks that he made the light!

3 A Good Place by Lucy Cousins —

Four bug friends–a bee, a ladybug, a beetle, and a dragonfly–are looking for a good place to live. Each bug has different requirements for their home. The bee wants flowers, the ladybug wants leaves, the beetle wants dead wood, and the dragonfly wants water. The friends keep trying different spots, but nothing is quite right. Will they ever find a good place to live? You betcha! Butterfly comes along and brings to an amazing garden that has everything they need. Great pictures and humor make this bug book a winner!

4. The Very Hungry Caterpillar by Eric Carle —

This story is a preschool favorite! The fantastic illustrations coupled with one of kids’ favorite bugs captures little ones’ attentions. The caterpillar eats more and more each day until it eats so much that it gets a tummy ache! Soon the caterpillar prepares for its transformation into a butterfly. Get ready to be wowed by the beautiful butterfly picture at the end. This is a must read if you haven’t read it yet. Borrow it from your local library or watch this read-aloud from Brightly Storytime Eric Carle has several other bug stories to enjoy too: The Very Clumsy Click Beetle, The Very Quiet Cricket, The Very Lonely Firefly, The Very Grouchy Ladybug, and (even though not technically a bug, but kids call spiders bugs) The Very Busy Spider.

5. Waiting for Wings by Lois Ehlert —

Lois Ehlert is an amazing author and illustrator! This is a sweet, gently story about a flower garden awaiting the arrival of the beautiful butterflies. The book uses a rhyming format to teach about a butterfly’s life cycle in short, but informative text. My son and I love the pictures throughout this book. They are so bright and vibrant! This book not only uses color well, but it also utilizes paper as an artform within the book. There is a smaller book inside the book, and less wide pages that utilize the larger pages’ artwork. This artistic style makes reading this book more of an experience. At the end, there is a section that shows each caterpillar, it’s chrysalis, and matching butterfly. My son and I love to look at this part — it’s perfect for young biologists.

6. The Honeybee by Kristen Hall–

This is a truly educational book wrapped up in gorgeous pictures. In this book preschoolers will learn about the importance of bees, how honey is made, and a year in the life of a bee. In addition to all of the great things your preschooler will learn about bees, this book also provides a great look the four seasons and lends itself well to conversations about changes in weather and hibernation. The end of the book provides bee facts for further discussion.

7. Ant and Grasshopper by Luli Gray–

This book has bright, exciting pictures that will capture preschoolers’ imaginations! Based on the Aesop’s Fable of the same name, this book shows that it is important to work hard and plan ahead, but that it is also important to be a good friend and enjoy some fun!

8. The Bug Book by Sue Fliess–

Preschoolers will love this rhyming book filled with fantastic, real bug pictures! Sue Fliess managed to pack a quick fact about most of the bugs into this short book. The pictures are the real seller here — children can see up close how many legs bugs have, a look at wings, and different camouflage.

9. Bugs! Bugs! Bugs! by Bob Barner–

With bright, bold pictures and short, rhyming text, young children will really like this book! Learn the names of several different kinds of bugs and something special about each bug. I love that the end of this book sows the bugs in actual size, as well as a spread about how many legs each had, whether they can fly, and whether they can sting. This is a quick read, but be prepared to read this one multiple times!

10. Inch by Inch by Leo Lionni–

An inchworm convinces the birds not to it by proving its usefulness in measuring various parts of the birds. When the inch worm meets a hungry nightingale, the bird asks the inch worm to measure its song. How is the inchworm supposed to do that? Check this one out from your library to find out the inchworm’s cleaver plan!

11. What the Ladybug Heard by Julia Donaldson —

This is one of my son’s favorite stories! He loves ladybugs and was really excited to read this story about two robbers who are outsmarted by the ladybug. All of the farm animals follow ladybug’s plan and the two thieves are stopped! This book is so funny and has great pictures that my son loves looking at.

12. The Very Impatient Caterpillar by Ross Burach —

Preschoolers can relate to caterpillar who is finding it very hard to be patient when good things are to come. This is such a funny story about a caterpillar who just can’t wait to turn into a butterfly. The book provides a good look at the metamorphosis process that caterpillars go through to turn into butterflies.

Check your library for these and other bug books. To help cover the costs of this site, I joined Amazon’s Affiliate program. If you buy a book through one of my links, then I may get a small percentage of the sale (at no additional cost to you). Thank you for your support! Happy Reading 🙂

More Bugs!

Bug Crown: print and color these bug pictures and glue them onto your own construction paper crown to make a Bug Crown!

Egg Carton Ant: paint an egg carton and add some pipe cleaners to make your own cute ant craft.

Mosaic Butterfly: make a beautiful mosaic butterfly from scraps of construction paper.

Toilet Paper Roll Bee: your preschooler will love making this cute bee craft out of an empty toilet paper roll!

Butterfly Note Holder: Create a cute butterfly note holder on a clothespin and then write a name, a message, or draw a picture on the note to customize it.

Animals, Spring

12 Spring Stories for Preschoolers

January 31, 2023February 3, 2023 Jennifer

Spring is so beautiful with all of the greenery and pretty flowers popping up everywhere! Here is a list of 10 spring stories that are perfect for preschoolers. For more spring books that preschoolers and kindergarteners will enjoy, check out my list of BUNNY BOOKS and GARDEN STORIES to share with your little learner!

12 Lovely Spring Stories:

1. Little Blue Truck’s Springtime by Alice Schertle —

Our favorite blue truck is back in this lovely springtime book. Baby animals, green grass, and beautiful flowers are found on every page. In this gentle, rhyming story, Blue and Toad venture out on a beautiful spring day. Who do they see along the way? Open the flaps to see all of the cute baby animals!

2. Wee Little Bunny by Lauren Thompson —

A baby bunny sets out to explore on a beautiful spring day. Bunny is super busy chasing dragonflies, making new friends, and checking out the world around it. When mama bunny calls, baby bunny races home to tell mama about its fun adventure. This book is not very long and has fantastic illustrations, making it a great choice for wiggly preschoolers.

3. There Was an Old Lady Who Swallowed a Frog by Lucille Colandro —

The silly old lady gets spring fever and she begins swallowing all sorts of things, starting with a frog. After swallowing dirt, seeds, rain, sunlight, gloves, and a rake, she burps everything back up and gets a garden! With rhyming text and silly pictures, preschoolers will enjoy this book. A great look at sequencing. Try asking: What did she swallow first? What are the steps to create a garden?

4. I See Spring by Charles Ghigna —

With cute illustrations and rhyming text, preschoolers will definitely enjoy this book. This book provides a nice overview of the season. The illustrations show rainy days, rainbows, pretty flowers, birds building a nest, kites flying in the breeze, and lots of kids having fun! A quick, but enjoyable read.

5. When Spring Comes by Kevin Henkes —

This book provides a fantastic look at the transition from winter to spring. Henkes is a great storyteller and his use of alliteration really captures the coming of the spring season. Adorable pictures will keep preschoolers glued to the pages.

6. Olaf Waits for Spring by Victoria Saxon–

Olaf the curious snowman from the movie Frozen, can’t wait to experience spring! His friends tell him about all of the wonderful things that happen in the spring — the ice thaws and they can go sailing, yummy fruit grows, flowers bloom, and baby animals are born! Olaf decides to sit atop a mountain and wait out the winter storm for spring to come. Fortunately, Elsa, Anna, and Kristoff come along to explain that spring happens gradually and we have to be patient.

7. And Then It’s Spring by Julie Fogliano–

A child patiently awaits the arrival of spring. Slowly, green begins to appear outside as grass sprouts up and leaves unfold. The changing of the seasons is a time to be patient as nature slowly reveals the first shoots coming up from the seeds and the arrival of spring. There’s something really soothing about this text and with Erin E. Stead’s illustrations.

8. Spring is Here by Will Hillenbrand —

This cheerful book about friends, Mole and Bear, is perfect for preschoolers! It has lots of word repetition, short text, cute pictures, and humor. Bear is still hibernating and Mole wants him to wake up. After trying all sorts of ways to wake Bear with no luck, Mole hatches a new plan. Mole decides to bake a special treat whose alluring aroma will surely wake Bear!

9. Goodbye Winter, Hello Spring by Kenard Pak–

Kenard Pak’s seasons series is fantastic! In this springtime edition, a boy and his dog head out into wilderness to explore. They are greeted with signs of spring. Birds are chirping and ice is dripping and green is popping up all around them. The illustrations are gorgeous and show the gentle changing of the season from winter to spring.

10. Hopper Hunts for Spring by Marcus Pfister–

Author of the classic children’s story, The Rainbow Fish, brings you a new friend, Hopper the young hare. This little hare is on a mission to find spring, who he hopes will be his new friend. He looks in a hole and cave and the hollow of a tree, but he can’t find spring. Along his travels he meets new animal friends, a mole and a bear, but still no spring. Back home with his mother, Hopper learns that spring isn’t just one thing, but changes in the world around him. While Hopper didn’t meet spring in the way he thought he would, he did make new friends and get to enjoy the changing of the seasons.

11. Dr. Seuss’ Spring Things —

Thing 1 and Things 2 from Dr. Seuss’ The Cat in the Hat have a spin-off board book series. Each book features a very short rhyming story, bright pictures, and holiday/seasonal images. In this spring book, Thing 1 and Thing 2 explore the outdoors and find ducklings, baby chicks, frogs, a spring rain storm, flowers, muddy puddles, and more! Ask your child what their favorite spring thing is! Also, check your library for more Thing 1 and Thing 2 adventures.

12. The Spring Book by Todd Parr–

Todd Parr leads readers on a colorful journey through springtime. Bright illustrations show flowers in bloom, lots of greenery, animals awakening from hibernation, and babies being born. Parr briefly touches on some of the springtime celebrations, holidays, and activities such as gardening and cultural festivals. This book is a great choice for children who can’t sit still very long, as there is little text and engaging pictures.

I hope you enjoy these spring stories! Check your public library for these books and other preschool spring stories. I joined Amazon’s Affiliate program to try and help cover the costs of this site. If you buy something through one of my links on Amazon, then I may get a small percentage of the sale (no extra cost to you). Thank you for your support! Happy reading

Spring Crafts:

Spring Wreath Craft: create a cute paper wreath to decorate for spring!

Toilet Paper Roll Bee: your preschooler will love making this cute bee craft out of an empty toilet paper roll!

Hatching Chick: turn an paper plate into a hatching chick craft.

Winter

Ice Skating Stories

January 25, 2023January 29, 2023 Jennifer

I recently took my son ice skating for the first time. Oh boy, was it hard! I was so impressed that he kept trying even though it was a struggle. In the end, neither one of us were very good at ice skating, but we had a lot of fun 🙂 Here are 8 ice skating stories to share with your preschooler that show not only how fun ice skating can be, but also that have to keep trying when we are new learning things and not to give up even though it can be hard.

Eight Ice Skating Stories:

1. Dream Big, Little Pig by Kristi Yamaguchi–

In this story written by Olympic gold-medalist Kristi Yamaguchi, a pig named Poppy is determined to be an ice skating star. Successful ice skating takes balance, grace, and coordination, things that don’t come easily to pigs. However, Poppy is surrounded by family and friends who believe in her, and most importantly, Poppy believes in herself. After a lot of practice, Poppy’s determination pays off as she feels the magic of gliding around on the ice! Poppy’s story continues in, Big World, Little Pig!

2. Angelina Ballerina Loves Ice-Skating! by Katharine Holabird–

In this cute book, Angelina trades her dance slippers for ice skates! She and her sister are so excited that winter is here so that they can ice skate with their friends. However, the weather is not cooperating and it is snowing too much to ice skate. Although disappointed not to be skating, Angelina and her friends come up with fun indoor activities to do together! Eventually it stops snowing and everyone is able to ice skate together.

3. Five Little Penguins Slipping on the Ice by Steve Metzger–

This book is a cute penguin version of the Five Little Monkeys. Preschoolers will love the rhyming, sing-songy story and vibrant illustrations. One by one, the little penguins and get hurt while playing on the ice and their mama has to call the doctor. Eventually no one is having any fun at all, until mama comes up with a new plan!

4. Pink Around the Rink by Victoria Kahn–

Pinkalicious can’t wait to ice skate! After she colors her white ice skates pink with a marker, she is ready to skate! Turns out ice skating is harder than it looks. After some wobbles and spills, Pinkalicious improves. While skating, the pink color begins to come off her skates and Pinkalicious is so embarrassed. What she doesn’t realize, however, is that she is leaving lovely pink designs all over the ice. I love that this story not only shows that we have to keep trying when learning something new, but also that beautiful things can happen when we least expect them.

5. Flora and the Penguin by Molly Idle–

Molly Idle’s Flora and her Feathered Friends wordless picture book series is fantastic! In this book, Flora wants to ice skate and who better to teach her than a penguin! The beautiful illustrations tell a story of friendship between these two. No relationship is conflict free. Flora and her new friend have their ups and downs, but in the end, they learn to work together. Preschoolers will love lifting the flaps to reveal the duo’s beautiful ice skating moves!

6. Tallulah’s Ice Skates by Marilyn Singer–

Tallulah is a very accomplished dancer and feels compelled to be the best at ice skating too. She wants her friend to practice an ice skating routine with her, but her friend just wants to have fun. Determined that being the best at ice skating is the most important thing, Tallulah goes off on her own to practice. Readers will be rewarded with watching Tallulah’s discovery that don’t have to be the best at everything and that sometimes it is important to just have fun.

7. Horse and Buggy On Ice by Ethan Long—

In this sparsely worded story about friends, Horse and Buggy, the duo take to the ice! Horse is very confident about his skating abilities and he glides along the ice, spins, and leaps in the air. Buggy is worried that her friend will get hurt. When Horse does fall, he quickly gets back up again, reassuring Buggy that he is alright. The illustrations are so funny and perfectly capture’s Horse’s exuberance and Buggy’s worry. Your child will crack up at the end where the two friend skate around the ice together, this time with little Buggy holding Horse up high over her head!

8. Mice on Ice by Rebecca Emberley —

My son loves this book! Ed Emberley’s illustrations are fantastic as always and capture the fun the little mice are having on the ice. My son loves the colors in the vibrant pictures and the rhyming text. This short story is perfect for preschoolers will have trouble sitting still through long stories. You won’t want to miss what picture the mice’s skates carve in the ice, and who shows up to join in the fun!

I hope you enjoy these ice skating stories! Check your public library for these books and other ice skating stories. I joined Amazon’s Affiliate program to try and help cover the costs of this site. If you buy something through one of my links on Amazon, then I may get a small percentage of the sale (no extra cost to you). Thank you for your support! Happy reading 🙂

Animals, Winter

Snow Animals Books

December 29, 2022December 29, 2022 Jennifer

Although some animals hibernate in the winter or migrate to warmer places, there are still plenty of animals who love the snow! In fact, penguins in Antarctica live in snow all year round. Here is a list of 12 snow animals books to read and learn about who lives in the snow.

12 Books about Animals Who Live in the Snow:

1. Who Lives Here? Polar Animals by Deborah Hodge–

This is a fact book about animals who live in the extreme cold. Each page talks about a different animal in a couple, easy to understand sentences that are accompanied by cute pictures. Along the side are additional facts that you can chose to share or not depending on your child’s interest. This book had some of my son’s favorite animals–snowy owls and penguins!

2. The Magical Snow Garden by Tracey Corderoy–

A little penguin named Wellington, who lives in the snow, dreams of his own flower garden. His friends tell him that it is much too cold for flowers to grow here. Nonetheless, Wellington is determined so his best friend, Rosemary, helps him create his own flowers out of bits of paper, springs, gears, and other things that can be repurposed. Together, they create a beautiful garden. Sadly, a snow storm destroys the beautiful flowers. Wellington’s friends won’t let him give up, and together they rebuild the garden better than ever. Preschoolers will adore the cute, whimsical illustrations in this book. And everyone can benefit from the message, “we don’t know until we try.”

3. Winter Dance by Marion Dane Bauer —

This is a sweet story that teaches kids about how animals spend the winter. As the first snowflake falls on the fox’s nose, fox wonders what he is supposed to do in winter. The other forest animals tell him how they prepare for winter. Some fly south, others store food, and some hibernate. Unfortunately none of these ideas will work for fox. Finally, another fox comes along and shares what foxes do in winter — they dance in the falling snow! With such beautiful illustrations, kids will love looking over the pictures and seeing the two foxes twirling about in the snow.

4. Tacky the Penguin by Helen Lester–

Here’s a bird who thrives in the snow– meet Tacky, the funniest penguin! He can’t sing, dive, or march the way other penguins do; Tacky does everything his own way. At first this seems to be bad thing, but when the hunters come looking for penguins, Tacky’s odd behavior drives them away! Turns out being yourself is pretty great.

5. Little Owl’s Snow by Divya Srinivasan–

Little Owl is so cute! In this Little Owl story, the forest animals are preparing for winter. Some gather and store food, some hibernate, and some stay awake to play in the snow. Soon winter arrives and leaves a blanket of snow in Little Owl’s forest home. Even though Little Owl misses his hibernating friend, hedgehog, he enjoys the snow with his other friends. Preschoolers will love this bold, bright pictures and gentle story.

6. Ten on the Sled by Kim Norman–

This rhyming, sing-song story follows the pattern of the Ten on the Bed song. The caribou has a sled and soon his nine snow-loving friends join him for a sled ride. One by one, the animals fall off and they form a giant snowball. The animals race the giant snowball down the hill, losing friends as they go. By the bottom of the hill, only the caribou is left on the sled. Your kiddo will giggle as wolf wipes out and fox flips out of the sled. Caribou is lonely and he invites all of his friends to join for another sled ride!

7. Animals Hidden in the Snow by Jessica Rusick–

This book is both tons of fun and offers great information about animals in the snow. Each page takes a look at a different animals and asks the reader to try and spot the animals hiding in the snow. Animals use camouflage to blend in with their surroundings so you have to look carefully. Turn the page to learn interesting facts about the animal you find.

8. A Polar Bear in the Snow by Mac Barnett–

My son really enjoys Mac Barnett’s stories! In this story we get to follow a polar bear on an adventure across a beautiful snow landscape. Sparse text filled with questions to the reader will keep preschoolers engaged. Shawn Harris’ paper collage images are awesome and wonderfully capture the bear’s journey.

9. Polar Bear Babies by Susan Ring —

Learn about the survival skills baby polar bears need for life in the harsh arctic in this short book. The babies need to learn to swim, catch fish, and run around the snow. The cute images of the baby bears greatly appealed to my son.

10. Cozy by Jan Brett–

We were trying to guess what the big wholly animal is and, oh boy, were we wrong. It is a musk ox and they live in Alaska. In this snowy story, Cozy gets separated from his family and gets lonely all by himself. Not to fear because soon other animals seek warmth in Cozy’s fur. We get a great look at different types of animals that live in snow–lemmings, hares, snowy owls, foxes, and wolverines in addition to the musk ox. Cozy’s adventures continue in the sequel, Cozy in Love.

11. Here is Antarctica by Madeleine Dunphy–

This book shows us lots of animals that survive that in the cold in Antarctica. The reader gets to learn about both water and land creatures. The animals who live on the land, live in snow year round. These include three types of penguins (emperor penguins, macaroni penguins, and adelie penguins), leopard seals, crabeater seals, south polar skuas, and the southern giant petrels.

12. Fox Versus Winter by Corey R. Tabor–

Get ready to learn about who migrates, who hibernates, and who stays to enjoy winter in this humorous book. While Fox is one of the animals who doesn’t hibernate or migrate, Fox does NOT like winter. Almost all of his friends either hibernate or migrate, except Rabbit who goes off alone, leaving Fox lonely. Fox gets an idea to make new friends out of snow, but they are not as much fun as his old friends. What’s Fox to do? He decides to fight winter! Get ready to laugh as Fox gets a flame thrower and tries to melt winter. Winter fights back and Fox gets covered in snow. Just then, Rabbit appears. Rabbit teaches Fox to appreciate winter and Fox finds that with a friend by his side, everything can be enjoyable.

I hope you enjoy these snow animals books. I joined Amazon’s Affiliate program to try and help cover the costs of this site. If you buy something through one of my links on Amazon, then I get a small percentage of the sale (no extra cost to you). Thank you for your support! Happy reading 🙂

More Books about Animals in Snow:

Penguin Stories: 10 books about penguins to read with your little one!

Polar Bear Books: 8 books about these beautiful white bears.

Winter Stories: 15 stories about winter that have lots of animals in the snow.

Animals

Preschool Penguin Theme

December 28, 2022December 27, 2022 Jennifer

Penguins are so cute! Preschoolers are fascinated with these awesome birds so I rounded up books, crafts, a song, and some free worksheets so you can add a penguin theme to your preschool activities!

Everything You Need for Creating a Penguin Theme:

Books

Penguins — 10 books about these adorable birds! My son loves penguins and we have read so many penguin books together. We’ve gathered up a list of our favorites to share with you!

Crafts

–Basic Shapes Penguin: print off the free template, color your pieces, and glue them together to form a penguin!

–Toilet Paper Roll Penguin: turn an empty toilet paper roll into a cute penguin with paint, construction paper, and googly eyes. My son really liked this craft and we have a couple cute little toilet paper roll penguins around our house now!

–Egg Carton Penguins: turn an egg carton into a bunch of roly-poly penguins!

Online

-Watch the Monterey Bay Aquarium penguins on their live Penguin Cam! https://www.montereybayaquarium.org/animals/live-cams/penguin-cam

-Learn about the Gentoo Penguin from this short video by Nat Geo Kids: https://youtu.be/xnu5htZpruE

Song

To get the second and third verse and list of the actions, check out my post: https://imaginationsrunningwild.com/2022/11/27/penguin-action-rhyme/

Worksheets

–Penguin Counting: count how many pictures are in each box and then circle the number.

-Fill in the missing letters in this penguin alphabet worksheet: PENGUIN ALPHABET MAZE

–P is Penguin: trace the letters in the word PENGUIN and color the picture.

Uncategorized

Interactive Books for Preschoolers

December 8, 2022January 2, 2023 Jennifer

Looking to keep your preschooler interested in books? Try these 13 interactive books that are begging the reader to take part in the story! From saying silly words and making funny faces, to shaking and twisting the book, these books will keep your child engaged and wanting to read more! Also check out my list of FUNNY books and SILLY RHYMING stories for more great preschool book recommendations.

13 Interactive Books to Read:

1. Nickelodeon PAW Patrol: A CarryAlong Play Book —

My preschooler loves Paw Patrol! This pup show is preschool favorite and this carry-along book is tons of fun! It has pull tabs to add to the enjoyment as preschoolers learn how the Paw Patrol saves the Turbots and monkeys from an exploding volcano! Marshall uses his water cannons to cool the lava, Skye, Chase, and Ryder swoop in for some daring rescues, and Rubble used his digger to stop the flow of lava.

2. There’s a Unicorn in Your Book by Tom Fletcher —

A unicorn appears in this cute interactive book! Unicorn is sad and it is up to the reader to help unicorn feel better. By waving out fingers to make magic dust, swishing the book, telling unicorn jokes, and being a good friend, the reader helps make unicorn feel better. A sweet story about the power of talking to a good friend.

3. I Saw Anaconda by Jane Clarke–

My son says this anaconda book is awesome because it has so many flaps! Every page is interactive and my son giggles as the anaconda eats everything in sight. Plus, he learned about some new animals (a stork, piranhas, and a skink). We bought this for a couple of other preschool age kids we know because my son enjoys it so much.

4. There’s a Dragon in Your Book by Tom Fletcher —

Tom Fletcher makes funny, interactive books that preschoolers just love! Just look at this cute little dragon — adorable!!! Oh no, it has flames. In a book! Quick, help keep your book safe. Preschoolers will enjoy all of the activities the book tells them to do in order to keep the dragon from sneezing flames.

5. Kiwi Cannot Reach! by Jason Tharp —

This story is laugh-out-loud funny and interactive. Kids will love helping Kiwi attempt to reach the rope that is hanging from the top of the page. The ending will result in lots of giggling and requests to read it again and again! We had checked this out from the library and my son loved it so much that I ended up buying it for him — it is still a favorite at bedtime! Check this out from your local library.

6. Cat Secrets by Jef Czekaj–

This is a fun, interactive book that your preschooler will enjoy! In order to learn the top-secret cat secrets, the reader must prove they are a cat! Meow, purr, nap, and do other cat-like things to earn the cats’ trust so that the secrets can be revealed to you. Keep a lookout for the sneaky mouse!

7. There’s an Alien in Your Book by Tom Fletcher —

This is a fun, interactive book about a little alien who crash lands in your book! Meeting an alien seems scary at first, but the reader learns that being mean is not the answer. Fletcher incorporates a gentle message of acceptance mixed in with lots of humor that will keep your preschooler entertained. My son enjoyed the interactive components to the book and had fun shaking and flapping the book to try and rid it of the alien.

8. Don’t Wake the Dragon by Bianca Schulze —

This interactive bedtime book is so much fun! My son loves when he gets to be part of the story. In this book, the reader has to help keep the dragon asleep. Of course, the castle happens to be really noisy! Gently rock the book back and forth and sing a lullaby so that the dragon goes back to sleep. Hopefully your little one will be ready to fall asleep too!

9. Froggy Gets Dressed by Jonathan London —

Froggy is preschool fan-favorite! His books are full of excitement, fun sounds, bright pictures, and struggles that little kids can relate to. In this story, Froggy is supposed to be hibernating for winter, but he wakes up to explore the snow. He has to put on all of his warm clothes, with “zuts” and “zaps” before he is ready to explore. Ask your preschooler to say all of the fun sounds out loud with you! Unfortunately, he keeps forgetting something important and has take all of his clothes on and off over and over again. Just when he thinks he has everything he needs, his mommy yells that he forgot his underwear! Yikes!!! Poor Froggy trudges back inside. By now he is too tired to play outside, so he climbs back into bed and falls asleep. Kids can pretend to get dressed along with Froggy to add some interactive fun to this book.

10. Bunny Will Not Smile by Jason Tharp–

This is a silly, interactive story where the reader tries to help the bear, named Big, get Bunny to smile. Big has tried everything he can think of and now it is time for reinforcements — you, the reader! Make a funny face; now an even funnier face! Read this book to see if your funny faces made bunny smile!

11. Press Here by Herve Tullet–

This book is tons of fun! Start by pressing the yellow dot on the cover and then follow the instructions on the inside pages. Each page instructs the reader to push the button, shake it up, tilt the book, and more. Get ready to giggle as the dots multiply, change direction, and grow in size. I was just as impressed as my preschooler at this awesome book!

12. Don’t Push the Button! by Bill Cotter–

Don’t push the button! That’s it. Seems pretty simple right? But what do you think happens when you push the button? Maybe we should find out? Uh-oh, we turned the monster another color. Yikes, now we added dots. Oh no, now there are 2 monsters! Push, shake, and tickle your way through the story to get the monster back to normal. This story is tons of fun and sure to bring out the giggles as you read this one!

13. Do You Want a Hug? (Disney Frozen) by Kevin Lewis–

Join Olaf in a game of hide-and-seek in the wintery world of Frozen’s Arendelle. This is a fun interactive book, where the reader gets to “play” with Olaf. Olaf’s joy is contagious as he asks the reader to give him a hug. Olaf runs splat into the book page and bonks his nose. He mistakenly thinks that the reader is playing a game and that he can’t get a hug until the game is over. Olaf suggests Leap Troll and Ring Around the Reindeer before settling on hide-and-seek. All right, no peeking as Olaf hides. Can you find him?

Check your library for these and other interactive books for preschoolers. To help cover the costs of this site, I joined Amazon’s Affiliate program. If you buy a book through one of my links, then I get a small percentage of the sale (at no additional cost to you). Thank you for your support! Happy Reading 🙂

Christmas, Winter

Christmas Picture Books!

December 1, 2022November 30, 2022 Jennifer

There are so many wonderful Christmas picture books available! It was really hard to narrow down our favorites for this list, but I did not want an endless list 🙂 So here are my family’s 25 favorite Christmas picture books in no particular order because there is no way we could rank them! If these 25 aren’t enough, check out my list of Elf Books and Santa Stories!

25 Christmas Picture Books:

1. Bear Stays Up by Karma Wilson–

Sweet Bear is supposed to be hibernating, but his friends want him to stay awake to experience Christmas with them! Bear gets to experience his first Christmas tree, bake cakes, hang up stockings, and sing Christmas songs. By staying up and participating in all of the fun activities with his friends, Bear discovers that giving is one of the best Christmas presents of all!

2. The Grinch’s Great Big Flap Book by Dr. Seuss–

My kiddo loves lift-the-flap books! Being able to interact with the book, whether its a touch-and-feel or lift-the-flap, makes reading extra fun for little ones. This book tells the story of the Grinch, a Christmas-hating meanie, who tries to keep Christmas from coming to Whoville. The Grinch learns that Christmas isn’t about presents or a big feast for dinner, but about family, togetherness, and love. With this new revelation, the Grinch’s heart grows! He embraces the Christmas spirit and returns everything he stole. The citizens of Whoville welcome the Grinch to spend Christmas with them in this sweet ending. This is a long story, but being able to lift-the-flaps really kept my son’s attention throughout the book. He was excited to see what pictures were underneath the flaps!

3. The Chicken Who Saved Christmas by Rebecca Elliott–

In this bright, sparkly book, Santa is sick in bed and unable to deliver to toys to children! “Calamity” cries chicken, who rallies the farm animals to save the day. The bright, cheerful illustrations with touches of sparkles will capture your child’s attention as the animals nurse Santa back to good health and get the sleigh ready. With so much happening, Chicken forgets to get the reindeer ready. The reindeer say they can’t fly on empty stomachs, but it’s time to head out and deliver presents! Is Christmas ruined? Not to worry, Santa is feeling better and he uses a bit of Christmas magic to make the farm animals fly and they pull the sleigh full of toys!

4. Click, Clack, Ho! Ho! Ho! by Doreen Cronin–

In this sparely worded picture book, Duck attempts to come down Farmer Brown’s chimney but gets stuck! The other animals attempt to unstuck Duck, but get themselves trapped in the chimney too. Now Santa has arrived and needs to get down the chimney. Will he get stuck too? Get ready for giggles as Santa gets everyone successfully down the chimney and soot goes flying everywhere! Pay special attention to Duck’s backpack to find out why he was trying to get down the chimney in the first place.

5. Construction Site on Christmas Night by Sherri Dusky Rinker–

In this sweet story, Excavator, Bulldozer, Crane, Dump Truck and Cement Mixer build a new home for fire engines. They get the job done just in time for the fire engines to spend Christmas in their new home. As the construction crew heads back to the yard to settle down for the night, they find that they get their own Christmas surprises. The rhyming story and great pictures will delight preschoolers, as will discovering the gift each machine receives.

6. Counting to Christmas by Nancy Tafuri–

This lovely books shows a young girl’s activities as she counts down the days of December from the first to Christmas Day. Each day she does something news: “Days 1, 2, and 3/ I paint, cut,/ and paste.” I love how the child wants to create home-made gifts and forgoes all of the commercialism associated with the holiday. She also remembers her animals friends and makes sure to have something special for the animals to enjoy on Christmas too! At the end, the author gives how-to instructions and recipes for the yuletide cards, popcorn-cranberry garland, spicy gingerbread cookies, and outdoor animal treats mentioned.

7. The Day Santa Stopped Believing in Harold by Maureen Fergus–

We’ve all read stories where children start to doubt Santa exists, but in this funny twist, Santa starts to doubt that a little boy named Harold exists. Santa has plenty of good reasons to doubt Harold. For one thing, the handwriting on the letter looks like an adult’s handwriting. And when Harold came to sit on Santa’s lap this year, he looked different than the last time Santa saw him. Seems pretty suspicious. So Santa decides to hide out at Harold’s house this Christmas and see if he really does exist. Kids will love the ending!

8. Dinosaur vs. Santa by Bob Shea–

We are huge Bob Shea fans! We love his sense of humor and fun illustrations. In this story, Dinosaur is getting ready for Santa’s Christmas visit! Dinosaur has lots to do–decorating, making presents for Mom and Dad, trying not to be naughty. And since Dinosaur is determined to win, he defeats each task! ROAR! He’s doing great, but on Christmas Eve, he hears some rustling downstairs and sneaks a peek. Uh-oh, will he get caught and not get any presents? Check out this story from your library to find out!

9. The Donkey’s Christmas Song by Nancy Tafuri–

A very special baby is born in a manger and all of the animals are excited to welcome the new baby . Each animal takes a turn saying hello, but donkey is too shy. However, baby Jesus welcomes donkey with his own sweet smile. The donkey brays, hee-aw, making the baby laughs with joy! This book is a sweet and beautifully illustrated story celebrating the first Christmas.

10. Gingerbread Christmas by Jan Brett–

Gingerbread Baby and his friend, Matti, take his gingerbread band to the town’s Christmas Festival. The gingerbread band are a huge a hit! Everything is going great until the children start smelling the yummy gingerbread and get hungry. Yikes! Run away, gingerbread band! Matti uses snow to disguise the gingerbread instruments while Gingerbread Baby leads the audience on a merry chase. Gingerbread Baby finds a great spot to hide in the Christmas tree where he is safe from the hungry crowd. Fantastic pictures and lots of humor make this book a great choice for Christmas stories.

11. How to Catch an Elf by Adam Wallace–

My son loves Adam Wallace’s “How to Catch ” series! In this Christmas book, Santa’s helper elf is target by the children. They set all sorts of traps, but with Santa on his side, no one catch this elf! Better luck next Christmas! Kids will giggle at the silliness and enjoy the bright, engaging pictures.

12. I Got the Christmas Spirit by Connie Schofield-Morrison–

A little girl and her mom are out and about during the holiday season. The little girl takes in all of the noises and sights around her, and picks up on the rhythm of the season. The author does a great job of highlighting the sounds that the girl hears– CRUNCH! CRUNCH! CRUNCH!–and the flashing lights in the store windows–BLING! BLING! BLING!–giving readers not only an opportunity to make some noise and participate with the story, but also plants the idea to be more thoughtful about their own surroundings. Throughout the story the little girl sees and spreads joy and imparts a lovely message for the reader to do the same.

13. Little Blue Truck’s Christmas by Alice Schertle–

The rhymes, sweet message, and Christmas tree countdown make this a perfect choice for preschoolers! Blue and Toad deliver trees and joy to their animals friends. Will there be a tree left for Blue? Preschoolers will love the light-up tree at the end of the story!

14. Llama Llama Holiday Drama by Anna Dewdney–

Llama Llama books are so relatable for preschoolers! Each story features an emotion/struggle that young children also face. In this story, Llama Llama is finding it hard to wait for Christmas. Even though he is plenty busy shopping for presents, baking cookies, decorating the tree with Mama, Christmas is not coming fast enough. With mounting frustration, Llama Llama just can’t wait any more! Mama knows just what to do –a warm cuddle and a gentle reminder that “Gifts are nice, but there’s another: The true gift is, we have each other.”

15. Merry Christmas, Little Critter by Mercer Mayer–

Little Critter books are always so cute and funny. My son just loves these books! In this story, Little Critter writes his letter to Santa and awaits Santa’s visit. Little Critter and his family do lots of fun things together. Children can lift-the-flaps throughout the book and learn more about Little Critter’s fun Christmas season activities!

16. The Night Before Christmas by Clement C. Moore and Jan Brett–

You just have to read the Clement C. Moore’s poem, The Night Before Christmas, as part of your Christmas stories! In this beautifully illustrated edition by Jan Brett, readers will love seeing Santa and his elves delivering Christmas presents while the children are tucked into bed. Each page’s illustrations are a treasure trove of detail that perfectly compliment the poem.

17. The Not Very Merry Pout-Pout Fish by Deborah Diesen–

My son loves the original Pout-Pout Fish story so he was excited to read this Christmas tale. Mr. Fish learns that Christmas is bigger than store-bought gifts — it is all about giving from the heart and bringing joy. With sing-songy rhymes and detailed pictures, this picture book is a fun Christmas-time read. We love pouring over the pictures and seeing all of the fun little details.

18. Pete the Cat Saves Christmas by Eric Litwin–

It’s preschoolers’ favorite story character, Pete the Cat! This time Pete has lend a paw to Santa who is too sick to deliver the presents! This is one of the original Pete the Cat stories and has great rhymes and a fantastic message of giving your all. I love that this book reinforces the idea to little kids that you don’t have to be big to make a huge impact! As it says in the story, “Small is Cool!”

19. Samurai Santa: a very ninja Christmas by Rubin Pingk–

My son is obsessed with this book! He loves the epic snowball fight. This book is a lot of fun and captures the excitement of a good snowball fight. It’s ninjas vs. a snowman army led by a samurai, who turns out to be Santa in disguise, making this the best Christmas present ever for little Yuki.

20. Santa Bruce by Ryan T. Higgins–

We love the Mother Bruce series and just adore Bruce, the grumpy bear, the clueless geese, and the happy-go-lucky mice. In this Christmas book of mistaken identity, the woodland animals think that Bruce is Santa! The illustrations throughout the book will crack your kids up! Since all of the animals think they told Santa their wishes, Bruce, the geese, and the mice set to make sure everyone gets something for Christmas!

21. Stick Man by Julia Donaldson–

Julia Donaldson is one of my family’s favorite authors! My husband randomly chants, “Oh Stick Man, oh Stick Man, it’s me. How I long to be home in the family tree!” Can you tell we’ve read this one a lot!?! Stick Man gets separated from his family and longs to go home. Travel along with Stick Man on his crazy journey, as one thing after another keeps him from making his way back to the family tree. On Christmas Eve, Santa arrives to grant Stick Man’s wish and takes him back to him family. The rhymes and repetition really hooked my son and he couldn’t wait to see what happened to Stick Man.

22. Suzy Goose and the Christmas Star by Petr Horacek–

I love this book about Suzy Goose who wants a star for the top of the animals’ Christmas tree. Suzy sees bright star, high in the sky, and no one can stop her from trying every possible way to get it! Preschoolers love telling Suzy that her ideas won’t work. Though all hope seems lost as Suzy loses her way, her animal friends guide her home where she finds the perfect star. This beautifully illustrated story captures the magic of the season and strength of hope.

23. Little Unicorn’s Christmas by Rhiannon Fielding —

My son and I love the Ten Minutes to Bed series! In this Christmas edition, Santa needs Twinkle, the little unicorn, help to deliver presents. With only ten minutes until bed, Twinkle and Santa combine their magic to zip around the world and deliver presents. Kids will love this rhyming, brightly colored book and be delighted by Twinkle’s cuteness! Twinkle makes it home with one minute to spare and gets into bed right on time. When she wakes up the next morning, there’s a special present just for her.

This book is so funny! Get ready to laugh your way through this updated gingerbread man story, featuring a tough cookie. Cookie claims to be a delicious sugar cookie, but he isn’t sweet and cookie isn’t fast. Cookie taunts Fox, who immediately catches Cookie. Fox tries to take a bite, but hurts his tooth! What a tough cookie! An unlikely friendship forms between the two and Fox sets out to help Cookie be his best cookie-self in this hilarious picture book.

25. You are My Merry by Marianne Richmond–

This a lovely story for a parent to read to their child. Each page reaffirms a parent’s love for their child, highlighting different aspects of how special their child is to them. Read these sweet rhymes and nurturing words while cuddling close with your little one this Christmas season.

Check your library for these and other Christmas picture books. To help cover the costs of this site, I joined Amazon’s Affiliate program. If you buy a book through one of my links, then I get a small percentage of the sale (at no additional cost to you). Thank you for your support! Happy Reading 🙂