Teach Your Little One With the Best Preschool Books

Buying Guide: Preschool Books

Factors to Consider When Purchasing Preschool Books

Enduring and timeless themes

The books you purchase for your children will most likely be kept for several years. When shopping for a preschool book, look for ones that feature a timeless topic and engaging content. After all, you want your kids to study things that will still be relevant in 10 years so that they may build on their knowledge and go to higher levels of learning. 

Some books are only prepared with content that tackles a contemporary issue that may no longer be relevant in a few years, which means your kids may need to switch books while reading about the same subject.

Colorful and good-quality illustrations

Children are more likely to remember information when they connect it with drawings and illustrations. As such, you should select books with well-illustrated scenarios so that they can relate to the story and understand its meaning quickly. 

For youngsters between the ages of 4 and 8, the visuals in the book should be especially vibrant and distinct. You might also want to explore wordless books, which provide a remarkable boost to your child’s creativity by allowing them to interpret the visuals as the storyline proceeds.

Age-appropriate content

When searching for a preschool book, age-appropriate material should be the very minimum criterion. The language and images used must correlate with the child’s cognitive ability to understand the shared information. Some information is too complex for young children to process and might harm their self-confidence. 

Also, ensure that the author and illustrator are also reputable, since many opportunistic publishers market books with inappropriate themes for young children. You should filter and judge the things your children read, so do not purchase preschool books simply because they are popular; instead, ensure that the content is appropriate for your children.

Educational content

In addition to developing the child’s imagination and interpretive abilities, a good preschool book should also be informative and add to the knowledge of your kid. This might involve assisting with essay writing and composition so that the children can produce cohesive and error-free essays just like adults. It might also help them in learning fundamental scientific ideas or interpersonal information about cleanliness and hygiene. 

The process of purchasing books for preschoolers includes ensuring that the book’s content is appropriate for kids. You should verify that the content is of high quality and displayed in a way that your children can readily understand. Similarly, it’s important to ensure that the book is also geared to educate and inspire your child’s imagination and creativity.

What’s the Attention Span of a Preschooler?

When selecting a book for your child, you should consider their attention span. The average attention span of 2 to 3-year-olds is four to eight minutes, so purchase preschool books that increase their attention span. 

As your child’s attention span grows, the amount of text on each page should increase accordingly. Start with brief picture books that include a few words on each page. As your kid gets more comfortable with them, you can select lengthier picture books that may require many reading sessions. Then, consider small novels, sometimes known as chapter books due to their brief chapters. When your children are mature enough, you can finally select novels with more than 100 pages.

When you believe they are ready for the adventure, you should introduce your kid to longer books to increase their attention span. If your 4-year-old enjoys looking at lengthy picture books, try introducing them to a chapter book and see how they do. If they enjoy it, have them read both chapter novels and picture books. That being said, the chapters of the book should be brief enough to allow several opportunities to pause when focus wanes. 

Tips for Choosing the Right Preschool Books

Know your kid’s interest

Books with lots of rhyme and repetition are very appealing to young children. It’s a win-win situation for them since they appreciate predictable content and they rejoice at the chance to participate in the act of reading. 

As they get older, you’ll find that preschoolers like books with one to two paragraphs of reading each page and slightly more complicated narratives. Generally, children between the ages of 6 and 12 like to read books at their own reading level.

Choose books from renowned authors

If your kid likes Eric Carle’s “Brown, Brown Bear, What Do You See?”, they will likely also appreciate “Polar Bear, Polar Bear, What Do You Hear?” Essentially, if your child has a list of favorite books, purchase other books by the same author. Your kid will appreciate the same writing style and familiar visuals.

Choose a book that relates to your kid’s life

Talking about the events that are taking place in their lives and reading books that they can connect to are two activities that children like doing. If a new sibling is on the way, for example, look into a few books on how to welcome a newborn into the family. To ease your child’s anxiety before starting formal education, look for books that illustrate these events. If you want to inspire your child’s desire to become a police officer, look for a book that details a typical day in the life of one. Books that have a personal connection to your child’s life will usually pique their interest.

Also, taking your kids to the library or bookstore on a regular basis is essential to boost their interest in reading. Provide your child with a diverse collection of books that are constantly within reach. You can set a time each day to read for pleasure — whether it’s reading alone or with others. 

Make a collection of books

Kids frequently return to the same book repeatedly, which is admirable; but, it is also important that they read a wide variety of works. Check out a book about dragons or pirates from time to time, even if your kid is a fan of fairy tales. The next time you take your kid to the library, help them select a few nonfiction books on a topic of interest.

Nowadays, libraries are providing educational books geared toward preschoolers, and if a child’s interest in the subject is high enough, they will sit through difficult-to-understand concepts.

Involve your kid in the purchasing process

Show your child a book and ask them to flip through or read the first few pages to see if they’re interested in the material or not. You can also try reading the first few pages out loud. Many libraries now include a comfortable seating space adjacent to the children’s section where parents may sit and read with their children. Your kid will happily tell you whether or not they want to take a certain book home.

Hardcover vs. Paperback Preschool Books

Hardcover preschool books

Considering that preschool books are often read several times and those small children may be rough with them, hardcover books are obviously more suitable because of the strength and durability they offer.  

Another advantage of hardcover books is their size, as a paperback version of a book is often smaller in size. If the book is larger, you and your child can fully appreciate the illustrations inside — similarly, the font size of the text may also be larger, making it easier for sleep-deprived parents to read.

The downside, however, is that the heavier and thicker the book, the more difficult it is to manage. If you are holding it rather than setting it on a table or other surface, a hardcover preschool book may get a little tiring to read after a while.

Paperback preschool books

One advantage of paperback preschool books is their light weight and smaller size, which leads to a potentially lower price. Unfortunately, many children’s literary books, particularly new titles, aren’t available in paperback format. Another downside of paperback preschool books is that they tear apart easily and aren’t ideal for younger kids or aggressive readers.