As an expecting mom, at 28 weeks pregnant, I find myself wanting to put a kid’s library full of baby books in my son’s room. I imagine myself reading bedtime stories to him and to entertain him when he’s wanting all my attention. And as an author, I value the lessons that baby books can teach our little ones and how books can expand their mind.
Investing time reading to your child has extremely important and exciting benefits. Hearing books read aloud teaches a child to love language and makes learning to speak and read much more natural and enjoyable. Stories read aloud also foster imagination, understanding, and good listening.
You can start to build a reading habit with your child right away, helping to establish it as something to look forward to. You might try decorating a designated reading nook, setting aside a special time of day for reading, and making trips to the library so your child can see the beautiful variety of books there. Children also love to imitate, so reading in front of your child is likely to inspire your child to ask for books and read-aloud time. The time invested building this habit is well worth it for your child’s own growth, as well as your own relationship as you share this sweet routine.
Top 10 Books To Read
If you are looking for a great place to start, here is a list of ten children’s books to read aloud that caught my interest. These baby books will also make great gifts for expecting moms.
1. Kindness Makes Us Strong by Sophie Beer
With beautiful, happy artwork to captivate your child, this book portrays children offering kindness to others in all sorts of ways. Your child can learn to celebrate sharing by seeing other children celebrate and enjoy it. The book’s inspirational subject matter and rhythmic texts make it a must-have in your reading nook!
2. I Give You the World by Stacey McCleary
This softly illustrated book makes a wonderfully slow and soothing bedtime story. It gently introduces your child to the wonders of the world, encouraging a love of nature in all of its beautiful seasons.
3. Grandma Prays for You by Jean Fisher
This story of a grandma bear praying for her grandchildren reminds children how loved and cared for they are by relatives near and far. The book describes lovely everyday moments and the prayers that touched them, making it additionally a great way to expand your child’s vocabulary for describing ordinary activities.
4. Once Upon a Potty by Alona Frankel
There really is a book for every occasion of your child’s life–including learning to use the potty. Read this one leading up to and during your child’s potty training to make it both fun and simple to understand. It is even helpful to read it while your child is on the potty! The book even comes in boy and girl versions so that each child can recognize their anatomy and the process each is going through.
5. First 100 Numbers by Roger Priddy
This book is fantastic for your little one because it can be so interactive. The numbers are all written out in words so that to practice reading them. There are also brightly colored photographs of the numbered objects to point out, name, and count together.
6. Farmblock by Christopher Franceschelli
Franceschelli’s book will introduce your child to life on a farm throughout the seasons. It displays lots of animals and farm activities. Read about making jam for the farmer’s market so that your little one’s imagination is inspired for the next time you shop there! One really fun feature of this book is how interactive the pages are with gate folds and cut outs.
7. Baby Loves: A First Book of Favorites by Abrams Appleseed
Your little one will be excited to find photographs of many everyday loved objects in this book. It is also a great interactive read that asks you to find each object on a page of similar objects. Your child can practice picking out a banana from a page of other fruits!
8. Sing-Along Songs by Roger Priddy
This is a book of illustrated classic children’s songs. It comes with a CD to guide and liven up your family musical exertions. Your child can follow along with the embossed illustrations during songs like “The Wheels on the Bus”, learning to understand what the songs mean, as well as learning to sing along!
9. Who? A Celebration of Babies by Robie Harris
In a very simple, rhythmic way, this book encourages your child to think about and name the many important people in a child’s life. Your child will see mamas and dadas of other babies, learning to expand the concepts beyond your home.
10. God is Great, God is Good by Sanna Baker
This book gives your child a unique introduction to texts and concepts found in the book of Job that are not often depicted for children. Because it is presented in the poetic question form of the book of Job, your child gets to interact in a beautiful and simple way with big ideas about God and creation. This one is sure to captivate!
I hope you like the selections of baby books I’ve found. Feel free to purchase any of the books you like by clicking the title. Share with other moms that may be looking for some good reads for their little ones.
Respectfully,
Ashley M. King
