Children's Books - 2 to 4 years old
As a child grows older reading stories together is a wonderful bonding opportunity. No parenting aid compares with a book in its capacity to establish and maintain a relationship with a child. A child’s imagination is an amazing thing and children today are very lucky that there are literally thousands of books to educate and enthral them.
Encourage pre-school children to choose a book for you to read them. Show them the way the words go from left to right on the page by underlining with your fingers – yours first, then theirs. Talk about any new words that come up and try to use them in conversation with your child when story time is over. This expands their vocabulary and helps them gain confidence with language.
As they head towards starting school, you can look at a new story book together but without reading the words. Encourage them to tell you the story by looking at the pictures for clues. Give plenty of praise and encouragement. This is one of the first ways they will learn to read once they get to school. There are so many beautifully illustrated books on the market, that it will be a treat for you both.
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More Pants by Giles Andreae |
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Published by David Fickling Books (3 May 2007) |
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Sleepy Little Yoga by Rebecca Whitford |
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Published by Hutchinson (1 Mar 2007) |
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Dippy's Sleepover (Pocoyo) by Jane Clarke |
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Published by Red Fox (4 Jan 2007) |
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Mole's Bedtime Story by David Wood |
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Published by Doubleday (4 Jan 2007) |
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Princess Poppy: The Birthday by Janey Louise Jones |
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Published by Picture Corgi (1 Mar 2007) |
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Elmer and Snake by David McKee |
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Published by Red Fox; New Ed edition (1 Mar 2007) |
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Farm Babies: A Stencil Book by Steve Lavis |
Find out lots of fascinating facts about your favourite baby farm animals, and best of all, create your own FARM SCENE – just pop out the stencils, take a piece of paper and something to draw with, and off you go! |
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Published by Doubleday Books, 2007 |
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Sadie the Airmail Pilot by Kellie Strom |
Sadie the Air Mail Pilot is the story of one brave and fearless pilot who overcomes all the elements, terrible conditions and even a plane crash to deliver the mail! Like all the dedicated Air Mail pilots, Sadie is kept busy by the arrival of never-ending sacks of mail and the Air Mail HQ chief who barks orders at his staff. |
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Published by David Fickling Books, 2007 |
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Dinosaurs: A Stencil Book by Anne M Didierjean |
Find out which dinosaurs were the biggest, smallest, fiercest, brainiest and other fascinating dinosaur facts in this brilliant stencil book. And best of all, create your own dinosaur world – just pop out the stencils, take a piece of paper and something to draw with, and off you go! |
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Published by Doubleday Books, 2007 |
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Shark in the Park by Nick Sharratt |
This is a funny picture book from the talented illustrator and writer Nick Sharratt, following Timothy Pope on a trip through the park. Is that really a shark he can see? Turn the page and find out... |
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See other books by Nick Sharrat Published by David Fickling Books, 2007 |
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Alfie Weather by Shirley Hughes |
Enter the delightful world of Alfie and his baby sister, Annie Rose. Ordinary aspects of a toddler’s life are reflected back with charm and humour, plus gorgeous illustrations. |
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See other books by Shirley Hughes Published by Red Fox, 2002 |
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Elmer and the Hippos by David McKee |
| The elephants aren’t very happy with the hippos sharing their river. Elmer is as wise as ever as he keeps the peace and finds a solution. |
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See other books by David McKee Published by Andersen Press, 2003 |
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The Gruffalo by Julia Donaldson & Axel Scheffler (ill) |
| Bestselling modern classic about a clever mouse taking on a monster. Children will love the rhymes and the illustrations. |
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See other books by Julia Donaldson & Axel Scheffler (ill) Published by Macmillan, 1999 |
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The Shepherd Boy by Kim Lewis |
I loved this book when I was younger as it seemed like a proper story. James longs to be a shepherd, just like his Dad. Over the year, he watches his father deal with the sheep and he learns from him. Then at Christmas, he gets a very special surprise! Reviewed by Ranald, age 9 |
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Published by Walker Books Ltd, 1991 |
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What Shall We Do, Blue Kangaroo? by Emma Chichester Clark |
| Lily’s family of aunts, uncles and little brother wouldn’t be complete without Blue Kangaroo. He shares her adventures and offers his unique perspective on his beloved Lily. |
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Published by HarperCollins, 2002 |
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Some Dogs Do by Jez Alborough |
| Sid finds one day that he can fly. When his schoolmates tease him he returns home forlorn. But dad has a secret to tell Sid… |
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See other books by Jez Alborough Published by Walker Books, 2003 |
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The Shopping Basket by John Burningham |
| Meet a pig who punches people, a greedy goat and a stupid monkey in this funny tale of Stephen as he outsmarts a host of bullies who are after his shopping. |
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See other books by John Burningham Published by Red Fox, 1992 |
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The Tiger Who Came to Tea by Judith Kerr |
Originally published thirty years ago this enduring classic begins as Sophie opens the front door. What she doesn’t expect to find there is a big, furry, stripey tiger – who wants to come in for tea. |
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Published by Picture Lions, 1998 |
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The Three Little Wolves and the Big Bad Pig by Eugene Trivizas & Helen Oxenbury (ill) |
| A clever and hilarious reversal of the old tale which sees the three little wolves defending their home against the big bad pig, his sledgehammer, pneumatic drill and dynamite. With a refreshing surprise ending! |
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Published by Egmont Books, 1997 |
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My Many Coloured Days by Dr Seuss |
Gorgeous illustrations introduce children to colours, feelings and the variety of life, as seen through the eyes of the inimitable Dr Seuss. |
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Published by Red Fox, 2001 |
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Frog in Love by Max Velthuijs |
Frog is feeling peculiar. Happy and sad at the same time. What could be wrong with him. The surprise diagnosis charts his romance with Duck where green meets white and we find that love knows no boundaries. |
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Published by Andersen Press, 2003 |
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Shaggy Dog and the Terrible Itch by David Bedford & Gwyneth Williamson |
Poor Shaggy Dog is being driven crazy by the itch on his back. Help from various people relieves the itching for a while – but then it comes back! Who can help?And what will happen to the “itch”? |
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Published by Little Tiger Press, 2002 |
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Down by The Cool of The Pool by Tony Mitton & Guy Parker-Rees (ill) |
Frog and his energetic farmyard friends frolic by the pool – an energetic rhyming story that will have everyone up dancing along with frog. ‘Down by the pool in the cool of the day, frog cried wheeeee can you dance like me?’ |
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Published by Orchard Books, 2001 |
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Brown Paper Bear by Neil Reed |
| When jess goes to stay at her Grandad’s she doesn’t expect the magical adventures that await her when she meets Brown Paper Bear. |
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Published by Macmillan, 2005 |
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Big Red Bath by Julia Jarman & Adrian Reynolds (ill) |
| You’ll find repetition, rhyme and rubba dubba fun in this beautifully illustrated book. ‘Ben and Bella in the big red bath – splash you! Splash you! Splish! Splosh! Splash!’ |
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Published by Orchard Books, 2005 |
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The Snowman by Raymond Briggs |
The classic story of the snowman who takes the little boy who made him to visit Father Christmas. |
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Published by Puffin Books, 2004 |
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Olivia by Ian Falconer (Illustrator) |
See other books by Ian Falconer Published by Simon & Schuster Childrens Books, 2000 |
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Each Peach Pear Plum by Janet and Allan Ahlberg |
Published by Viking Children's Books, 2003 |
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Pass the Jam, Jim by Kaye Umansky |
See other books by Kaye Umansky Published by Red Fox, 1993 |
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Bear in a Square by Stella Blackstone |
Published by Barefoot Books, 2000 |
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You Choose! by Pippa Goodhart and Nick Sharratt
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See other books by Nick Sharrat Published by Picture Corgi, 2004 |
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Mixed Up Fairy Tales by Hilary Robinson |
Published by Hodder Children's Books, 2005 |
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My Dad by Anthony Browne
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My Dad is a celebration of all the different characteristics and qualities of my Dad. Each page has a picture of Dad in a different guise and the tag line “My Dad is......”. For example, My Dad is as wise as an owl, My Dad isn’t afraid of anything, My Dad’s a great dancer. And it ends with the author giving Dad a hug. |
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Published by Double Day, 2003 |
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Zagazoo by Quentin Blake
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Published by Red Fox, 2000 |
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Tell Me Something Happy Before I Go to Sleep by Joyce Dunbar and Debi Gliori
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Published by Corgi Childrens, 1999 |
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Pants by Giles Andreae
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Published by Picture Corgi, 2003 |
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Yuk! by Kes Gray
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Published by Bodley Head Children's Books, 2004 |
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The Runaway Train by Benedict Blathwayt
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See other books by Benedict Blathwayt Published by Red Fox, 1997 |
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Pumpkin Soup by Helen Cooper
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See other books by Helen Cooper Published by Corgi Childrens, 1999 |
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Chicken Licken by Jonathan Allen
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Published by Corgi Childrens, 1999 |
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Biscuit Bear by Mini Grey
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Published by Red Fox, 2005 |
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Katie Morag and the Birthdays by Mairi Hedderwick
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See other books by Mairi Hedderwick Published by Red Fox, 2006 |
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Thomas Races to the Rescue! by W Awdry
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Published by Egmont Books Ltd , 2006 |
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Thomas' Wonderful Word Book by W Awdry |
Published by Egmont Books Ltd, 2005 |
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Calling All Engines by W Awdry |
Published by Egmont Books Ltd, 2005 |
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Thomas' Magnetic Play Book by W Awdry |
Published by Random House USA Children's Books, 2001 |
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Railway Rhymes by W Awdry |
Published by Random House Books for Young Readers, 2005 |
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Princess Poppy: Poppy's Secret Christmas (Hardcover) by Janey Jones |
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Published by Corgi Childrens, 2006 |
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Delicious! by Helen Cooper |
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Published by Doubleday, 19 Oct 2006 |
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Little Red Train's Race to the Finish by Benedict Blathwayt |