Ten Books for National Poetry Month (plus a weekly poetry challenge)

  April is a mere five days away, and that means it’s almost National Poetry Month! To help you get a kick start to celebrating poetry throughout April, we’ve put together an assortment of book recommendations. You’ll find a little bit of everything in this list of ten books: poetry collections, picture book stories told in poems, biographies of poets, even a novel in verse! We hope this list is just the beginning of a month of reading, discussing and doing (that is, writing ) poetry! We have a month long celebration planned in which we challenge our readers and the children in their lives to read, discuss, and write four different types of poems—one challenge per week. You can join the weekly poetry fun by subscribing to our newsletter , visiting the website regularly for updates, following us on Instagram (@readdiscussdo), or all of the above! To read : Choose a book from this list or any poetry book. To discuss : Do you usually like poetry? Why or why not? Can you think of a poem y

10 Interactive Books for Wiggly Readers


Do you have a wiggly little reader? Are you looking for a book to share for an active story time? Sure, you could engage them with one of these simple story time activities. Or you can choose a book which has an activity built right in to the story! Kids don't necessarily have to sit still or keep their hands to themselves in order to get the most out of those few minutes spent reading together, especially with interactive books! This list of picture books and board books are meant to get young readers interacting with not just the stories, but the books themselves. Sometimes by touching the pages, or dancing, or yelling, or making funny faces! So, get reading, get moving, and have a wiggly, giggly story time!


1. Hey Bruce! by Ryan T. Higgins is truly special. Kids will love tapping Bruce to wake him up, rocking the book to get him back to sleep, playing a melody on the piano keys…and many more creative interactions along the way. And of course the wonderful funny illustrations and Bruce reactions that we have all come to adore in this series fill each page.

2. Find Fergus by Mike Boldt is a book you and your children will enjoy reading over and over. Fergus is a delightful bear that you play hide and seek with on each page spread. There is one fold-out page towards the end of the book that is more complicated. Fergus gives you a list to look for on the end cap. I loved this book!

3. The Button Book by Sally Nicholls and Bethan Woollvin has different colored buttons that the child presses that invokes noises, actions, songs, and surprises. Lots of interactive fun! (My favorite is the hug button!)

4. Stomp, Wiggle, Clap, and Tap: My First Book of Dance by Rachel Burk and illustrated by Alyssa De Asis. This button has sweet poetic verses that invite you to enjoy imaginative active fun with your child.


5. Don’t Push the Button!  by Bill Cotter. On every page it tells you “Don’t Push the Button” with a big red button pictured. Of course when you do, on the next page shows something like the monster changing colors, getting polka dots, etc. Sure to make your child giggle spontaneously!


6. This Book Just Ate My Dog by Richard Byrne. This funny book invites the reader to actively participate in saving the day, er, I mean dog.

7. Touch the Brightest Star by Christie Matheson is a dreamy book, perfect for bedtime, that engages young readers by involving them in moving the story forward with a variety of actions.


8. I Thought I Saw an Elephant by Lydia Nichols, a cute and colorful slider book in which the reader participates in a game of “slide and seek” to find the elephant. Look for the other books in the I Thought I Saw board book series.


9. Open Very Carefully - A Book with Bite by Nicola O’Byrne and Nick Bromley. A humorous book in which the reader helps get rid of the crocodile that has invaded the book.


10. Can You Make a Scary Face? by Jan Thomas. This book is great for wiggly little ones because it gets them moving during story time, and will probably make them laugh too!

Comments

Julia said…
I will have to keep these in mind for when my wiggly little man is a little older! Right now I can just hold him and make him listen to story time haha
Rebecca Gomez said…
Reading to your child when he or she is otherwised engaged (in the tub, playing quietly with blocks) is another good strategy!