September brought the first full month of school, and with it the beginnings of a good routine. I’m thankful that reading is still a part of both kids’ bedtimes, because without that I’m not sure when else I would fit in read-aloud time. I can’t go to bed myself without reading, so I hope it’s a habit Jona and Violet continue even when they can read on their own. Here’s what we read last month.
{children’s books we read in September}
{I Am Too Absolutely Small for School by Lauren Child} In the spirit of back to school, we picked this one up at the library and for some reason Jona got a kick out of the title and liked to say it in a funny voice a lot. Lola is a bit nervous about starting school, but her big brother Charlie reassures her that she will have fun. With humor, a sweet sibling relationship, and even an imaginary friend, this book is absolutely perfect for the beginning of the school year. Jona loved it.
{A Family Is a Family Is a Family by Sara O’Leary} A teacher asks her class to describe their families, but one child is afraid to share because of how different she thinks her family is. After listening to the other children, all of whom have very different families, she is encouraged and learns that all families are different and special. This was a favorite for both Jona and me. Jona loved the humor (one child mentions her mom must have ordered a new baby online, which cracked Jona up) and I loved the inclusive story about what makes a family.
{Rhyming Dust Bunnies by Jan Thomas} I picked up this book since they’d been talking about rhyming in Jona’s kindergarten class, and Jona said it’s one he liked from preschool. This family of dust bunnies loves to rhyme, but Bob can’t quite follow along. While the others try to help him understand rhyming, he tries to warn them about a more immediate concern… a human with a broom! It’s pretty silly and maybe not my favorite, but Jona loved it.
{The Boy Who Cried Bigfoot by Scott Magoon} In this take on The Boy Who Cried Wolf, a little boy does everything he can to convince everyone he’s spotted Bigfoot. He’s in for quite a surprise when the creature he’s been making up stories about actually appears. I loved the illustrations in this one, and it was a repeat request for Jona.
{Chicken in School by Adam Lehrhaupt} This was another school-themed pick, and I chose it because we had previously enjoyed Chicken in Space by the same author. Zoey the chicken–who is not like ordinary chickens–decides to open a school at the farm. She and her “students” may have different ideas about what the school should teach, but they all end up having a good time (and a good snack!). This was a fun one for back to school.
{Creature ABC by Andrew Zuckerman} Now that Violet is getting a little older I’m trying to find a few books that she will enjoy as well, and this is one of them. Jona could “read” this one to her by naming the letters and the animals, and he loves any opportunity to teach his little sister something. Violet enjoyed naming the animals as well as well as her favorite letter, “V for Violet!” (Which sounds more like “B uh Biolet!”) The photographs made this alphabet book stand out from the rest as well.
{Can I Be Your Dog? by Troy Cummings} Arfy is looking for a home. Each day he asks the postal carrier to deliver a letter to a prospective new owner, but no one is willing to adopt him. He is pleasantly surprised when he gets an offer from the one person he didn’t even think of–the mail carrier herself. This was an adorable book!
{Do Not Bring Your Dragon to the Library by Julie Gassman} This is one that Jona checked out from his school library and really enjoyed. I love kids books set in a library, and Jona likes reading about dragons, so there was something for everyone. I thought the story was cute, although if you’re looking for a kids book about the library I prefer The Not So Quiet Library by Zachariah Ohora.
Have you read any fun children’s books lately? Any back-to-school favorites from your childhood?
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