Our Favorite Back to School Books

After the long summer, going back to school can feel a bit daunting for our students. The transition can be especially hard for younger children who are less comfortable leaving their families for long days in the classroom. A great way to ease the transition is with read-aloud books. A thoughtful selection of books can facilitate conversations about feelings of nervousness or apprehension, giving parents the opportunity to discuss anxiety and work to turn those nerves into excitement. Books can also serve as a time to model appropriate behavior when sitting and listening to a book. It allows you to talk about expectations, what your child is expecting and what their teacher will expect. Books can also function to front load your child with information and lessons that they will be learning in school. By introducing or revisiting books that focus on early learning subjects, such as alphabet and letter sound books, number books, nursery rhymes, and matching and opposite books, you’re building their confidence and preparing them to succeed.

Here is a selection of books that we at Baby Animal Prints love, most feature our furry friends: 

1. The Pigeon Has to Go to School by Mo Willems (Pre-K—2)
2. Brown Bear Starts School by Sue Tarsky and Marina Aizen (Pre-K—K)
3. You’re Finally Here! by Melanie Watt (Pre-K–2)
4. Please, Louise by the brilliant, recently deceased Toni Morrison (K—2)
5. Jump! by Tatsuhide Matsuoka (Toddler—K)
6. Ocean Life by Jill McDonald (Toddler—K)
7. Splat the Cat: Back to School, Splat! by Rob Scotton (Pre-K—3)
8. We Don’t Eat Our Classmates by by Ryan T. Higgins (Pre-K—2)
9. Chu's First Day of School by Neil Gaiman (Pre-K—2)
10. Miss Bindergarten Gets Ready for Kindergarten by Joseph Slate (Pre-K—K)
11. and, we love Panda Opposites by Suzi Eszterhas (Baby—K)

To find more suggested books visit School Library Journal, We Are Teachers, and Goodreads, three of the sites we reviewed while compiling our list.

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