For 13 years, World Read Aloud Day has called attention to the importance of sharing stories by challenging participants to grab a book, find an audience, and read-aloud! The global effort, created by the non-profit LitWorld and sponsored by Scholastic, is celebrated annually in over 173 countries and is all about bringing people together through the shared connection of reading aloud in all of our communities.
For the first time ever, Scholastic is hosting a worldwide WRAD-a-thon on the free Storyvoice app. Log in on February 1st for a series of live interactive read-aloud shows with top World Read Aloud Day authors, such as Rebecca Elliott, Mac Barnett and Kat Fajardo. Authors and reading advocates from as far away as Australia, India, and Africa will read, draw, and interact with classrooms and families around the globe, including the award-winning Brian Selznick, who will be sharing a sneak peek at his upcoming release Big Tree. Can’t make a live show? You’ll still be able to access special content available on demand when you log on to Storyvoice through February 6th, including an exclusive surprise from the author of Cat Kid Comic Club — Dav Pilkey.
Click HERE to access all the fun activities today!
Last year I shared 20 Books Perfect for Reading Aloud on World Read Aloud Day with you. Great books for reading aloud really depend on what is a great book for your particular child. Maybe your child is obsessed with the show, Bluey so the only books they want to read have Bluey in them. Maybe your child will only listen to books at naptime or bedtime, so all the books you want to read are books that will calm and relax them. Maybe your child is obsessed with the color pink so all the books you read have to be that color. The point is to make sure you are finding time to read aloud to your child. Make it part of every day. Reading jokes at breakfast, reading a picture book at lunch to keep them eating, or a bedtime story in the evening, it doesn’t matter, just read to your child.
I’m sharing 16 books below, but know there are HUNDREDS of other great books out there for you and your child to read together. This is just a small sampling. The links below may contain affiliate links and if you choose to make a purchase I may receive a small commission. If you want to see more of my review, click the title of the book.
Interactive Books
Books that engage your child while you are reading are a great way to get kids to learn to sit still for a book. Toddlers love to interact with the pages while you are reading to them. Books that have lift-the-flaps, make noise, or other moveable features are great first books to read with your child. Here are a few that I’ve loved. But, be sure to click HERE for all kinds of Interactive Books I’ve Shared.
WELCOME TO THE SYMPHONY and WELCOME TO JAZZ
By: Carolyn Sloan
These books introduce instruments and styles of music to your child through words, illustrations, and sounds that they can press on the sides. Music can play such an important role in your child’s development. These are excellent books!
MY BIG BOOK OF NATURE SOUNDS
By: Lucie Brunelliére
I haven’t shared about this book yet, but this book teaches kids about animals, insects, and activities in nature in a picture dictionary format while also having buttons for your child to hear the sounds of nature. Fun learning plus adding to their vocabulary!
LITTLE WILD ANIMAL HUGS
By: Hans Wilhelm
I haven’t shared this book yet, but I shared the previous title in the series, LITTLE ANIMAL HUGS. When a child can create something silly or have fun changing up the story, they are more likely to sit with a book for a longer period of time. This book matches up various animals that wouldn’t normally want to be together like a porcupine and a rhinoceros. Its small size makes it perfect for toddlers’ hands as well.
By: Kevin and Haily Meyers
Lift-the-flaps and silliness combine in this book with phrases that will make your kids giggle every time you leave for work or drop them at school or daycare. “See you soon.” says one page while your toddler lifts the flap to reveal a picture of a baboon and the words, “Big baboon”. The book is full of fun goodbye sayings that are great for kids that struggle with leaving.
By: Stephanie Babin
This board book offers slideable windows to reveal a momma animal and her baby. Little kids love animal books and the adorable illustrations of animals will draw them in. Soon they will be adding new vocabulary to the reading time like hedgehog and hoglet or fox and kit. The animals’ sounds and habitats are also shared in this book.
Books Without Words
Books without words are a great way to introduce your child to the concept of imagination and creating their own stories. I’ve shared a few Worldless Picture Books here on the blog, but one of our favorites from our children’s reading was the Good Dog Carl series. This Bustletown series is great for your little one to look at for hours and make up their own stories about the people that live in Bustletown.
By: Rotraut Susanne Berner
When I was little I LOVED Richard Scarry’s Busy Town books. This series reminds me of those books except these do not have words. Each book focuses on a season or time of day and the people in the community of Bustletown. You’ll see kids going off to school, families going to a party or festival, parents heading to work, or people out walking their dogs. These also make great seek-and-find books by asking your child to find something specific on the page like a balloon or an airplane or a woman sweeping the floor. These are the kind of books your child will open up and lie and the floor to read and find something different each time.
Picture Books
Picture books are essential read-aloud books. Think of all the storytimes you went to as a child. Every storytime had a picture book read aloud by a librarian or teacher. The illustrations are usually bright, and colorful and offer lots of detail. The story has great characters and lyrical prose to the writing. There might even be dialog so the reader can change voices if necessary. Kids love a good picture book and here are a few that might be fun to add to your library.
By: Sophia Gholz
A silly story of a bug fighting over a rug with a pug is ripe with silliness. I’ve read this one aloud in the classroom and the kids love it. The rhymes are also great for building your child’s vocabulary. The illustrations will keep your kids entertained with the over-the-top expressions on the pug’s and the bug’s faces.
By: Karen Jameson
A great time to get your child used to being read to is at bedtime. Teaching them how to slow down and prepare their bodies for sleep by reading a story about bedtime is the perfect routine for ending your day. In Farm Lullaby, Jameson uses repetitive phrases and animal sounds to go around the farm putting all the animals to sleep. Soon your child will be able to read along with you.
By: Smriti Prasadam-Halls
After a bad day, your child will delight in hearing a story about how special they are and how much they are loved. Fox and Porcupine find that just being together makes their day better. Your child with love the reminder of how special they are to you.
By: Arthur Geisert
You know I love a good farm book and this one is a favorite. Teaching the ABCs along with farm terms makes this a perfect read-aloud for your farm-loving toddler. D is for Disking and the pages show a tractor disking across a field. J is for July 4 and the illustrations show a small-town parade celebrating Independence Day. This is a classic that will never grow out of style.
P IS FOR PTERODACTYL: The Worst Alphabet Book Ever
By: Raj Haldar and Chris Carpenter
Kids love strange words and this book is guaranteed to make them laugh, look at you shocked, and most certainly add to their vocabulary. This is a very different alphabet book because even though the word starts with a certain letter, it doesn’t sound like it. Plus there is a fun sentence to go along with the description of the world. “E is for Ewe. Eileen the ewe was so euphoric the wolves were eaten, she even gave the eulogy.” “G is for Gnocchi. The gnome yells, ‘Waiter! There’s a bright white gnat nibbling on my gnocchi.'” Isn’t the English language amazing? LOL! This read-aloud is probably appropriate for your elementary-aged children because of the vocabulary used, but they will find it hilarious.
A child who reads is an adult who thinks.
As I said before, there are so many great books out there, the important message is that you set aside time every day to read aloud to your child. Soon, they will make time to read to themselves! A child who reads is an adult who thinks.