Top kids books for growing minds
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Links for each book to purchase are within the title or highlighted in each description!
Kids can learn so much from books in a short space of time, so much so that its ideal to have amazing books around that peak their interests.
Books that open a child`s mind to wonderful ideas allows them to have multi-level learning.
Here`s a list of my top kids books for “accidental” teaching.
1- Julia Donaldson-
so for this author there are so many books that kids love. They have quirky stories and encourage kids to do amazing things. All of the books have rhymes throughout and make reading them a pleasurable and fun.
The Snail and the whale – This book is about a snail who travels the world and ends up saving the whale by being brave and enlisting help. The brave snail encourages it`s friends after retelling their tales.
Teaching points- Bravery, Adventure, Thinking outside the box, not being afraid to go against the tide, kindness and partnership.
The highway rat – This is a story of a rat who rides a horse, whom he is terribly cruel to and steals from the villagers along his travels. Everyone fears the rat and in the end a cunning Duck tricks the rat to seeing how his mean traits do him no good. All in the name of food.
Teaching points– Kindness, why not to be a thief, kindness has no bounds and Greed. Thinking in places of fear.
The Gruffalo and The Gruffalo`s child– This is a famous book set and is so full of imagination. In the first book its a great story of how a mouse is becoming prey to the creatures of the woods, however he distracts them with the fear from The Gruffalo. The mouse describes these scary features and explains that even this monster is scared of this Tiny mouse. The whole plan is a rouse and works well in securing the mouse`s fate.
Within the second book it`s a similar story in which the Gruffalo`s child goes out at night in search of this big scary creature. She finds him and is just as taken by this little mouse`s story and runs home to safety.
Teaching points- Imagination, outward thinking, no matter how big or small you are you can survive and succeed and magic.
Zog- This is the story of a group of growing dragons all learning their skills from their teacher and using them in the real world. Zog befriends a princess that he has supposedly captured and finds his dream career.
Teaching points- Skill building, the value of practice and hard work, Trusting your instincts, kindness and non-conforming.
Room on the Broom- This story explains of a very kind witch who encourages animals of all kinds to join her journey. When faced with a fearsome dragon the teamwork of the animals saves the witch and she kindly rewards them.
Teaching points- Teamwork, Kindness, not discriminating , bravery and loyalty especially in the face of fear.
Stick man- The journey of a family stick man who is used for multiple things, when all he wants is to return home. He finally receives his gift from a Jolly Santa after helping him out.
Teaching points: Not everything is as it seems, persistence is key and kindness goes a long way.
That is all I will list for Julia Donaldson as these are mine, and my kids favourites, however looking up any of her books and choosing at random is worth while. you can also buy a fun filled bumper pack which gives a great selection.
2- Dr Suess –
Another author who has a multitude of book full of rhyming and amazing imaginative stories. I bought a full collection on a whim and was not disappointed. These books encourage kids and adults to be inventive and full of fun. Some stories are full of tongue twisters and moral dilemmas.
or you can get a collection of the books here
3- Kind- Alex Shaufer –
This book is a huge demonstration of kindness and a reminder that we are all different. Not everyone has the same starts in life or talents and until we get to know people and make room for them, we will never know what we are missing. My favourite part of this book is that it is illustrated by some of the best kids book artists and a percentage of each book sold goes to charity.
You can get a copy here Kind
4- Guess how much I love you –
This lovely book can become part of a bedtime routine and act as a reminder for no matter how terrible the day is or how much emotions have been blown, that as their parent you always love them. 
For the individual book click here, however this book also makes for an amazing gift and has a pre-made gift set.
What I personally did was purchase on of these larger nutbrown hare along with the book and stitched my boys initials on each teddy. 1 copy of the book and a personalised hare to make them feel special.
4- The Lion Inside–
This story is of a mouse and a lion, who have opposing traits and eventually work as a team to be strong and support each other. (well that`s a really basic idea of the book)
It`s so good for kids feeling scared or worried about life who need a little confidence that they can achieve anything they want. It reminds us that no matter what we look like on the outside, we have different strengths within us all. Find The Lion Inside here.
5- The colour monster–
is a great book for teaching kids all about emotions. They often use this in schools and nursery`s to allow kids to easily symbolise emotions. Simple colour links with each character makes communicating easier about how we feel.
What we also use at home is each colour emotion that is hand painted on a wooden spoon. A simple object that encourages us, kids and parents to show how we feel without lashing out. You can get a set here
6- I need a new bum-
This one is so full of fun, and of course kids love bums or anything that sounds rude. Simple and effective for making kids laugh, full of description words and crazy ideas. This is a series of books and is a follow up to I`ve broken my bum.
7- Theres a monster in your book-
This is an interactive book for kids and adults. Each page as you turn brings the book alive and sucks you into the story as you read along and do the actions. Really exciting.
This is also a series of books including an Alien, Unicorn and dragon and a few others.
I am by no means an expert however i have truly loved these books as much as my kids. They are often the best thrillers and enjoyable moments for us all.
Have I missed a few?
What are your all time favourite kids books?
Or what books would you have on your list?
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