The Best Books to Get Kindergartners Reading

Easy-to-follow rhyming text, expressive illustrations, and familiar classroom scenes will help you get your students ready and excited for kindergarten!

Emily Elizabeth is nervous about starting kindergarten, so her teacher says she can bring in something from home—but she didn't expect a giant dog! This story is just right for easing those first day anxieties.

The perfect first day book—and for any other day students need a little extra love and support—this heartwarming story reassures children that even when they're apart, the love between a parent and a child is everywhere. 

Peppa and George want to play outside, but it is raining. Daddy Pig has a fun game for them to play inside! Who will win?

Being kind can be a little difficult, even for dinosaurs. But with a little practice and some heartfelt humor, our prehistoric pals can develop empathy and compassion for others. Join in the hilarity as the bestselling duo Jane Yolen and Mark Teague teach young readers and dinosaurs that being kind is important and cool!

Students will relate to Wemberly, a little mouse who worries about everything—but especially about the first day of school. A relatable tale perfect for reassuring young readers' uncertainties. 

Playful text guides young readers on a hunt for sunflowers as Miguel visits his vibrant community garden in this exploration of growing food and healthy eating.

A heartwarming and inspirational story about chasing your dreams and never giving up by gold-medal-winning Olympic gymnast Laurie Hernandez.

A simple counting book that celebrates the many configurations of families and all the ways they love each other. A wonderful way to introduce students to diversity and the different ways to form a family.

Invite students to join a young girl and her mother on a cold, snowy day as they work together to make soup. 

Princess Truly knows how to help! In these three rhyming stories, Princess Truly lends a hand during her friend's moving day, she cleans up a stinky park with her magical curls, and she helps a farmer get his tractor key from a crow's nest! These funny and empowering short stories promote believing in yourself, building confidence, and having a positive self-image, and foster imagination and curiosity, and are perfect for fans of Ada Twist, Scientist.

It's never too early to introduce students to the importance of kindness. This story about a girl who finds the courage to be kind to a new student in class is the perfect back-to-school read-aloud that will set the stage for kindness throughout the year.

With light-footed rhymes and high-stepping illustrations, this tale is gentle inspiration for every child with dreams of greatness.

These prehistoric pupils are in a class of their own! As in their previous books, Yolen and Teague capture children's rambunctious natures with playful read-aloud verse and wonderfully amusing pictures.

This hilarious installment in Ross Burach"s Very Impatient Caterpillar series playfully encourages readers to love who they are, while also illuminating the importance of pollinators to our ecosystem.

Pete uses his magical paintbrush to help his unicorn friend find the missing colors in her rainbow tail. Designed to encouraging a reading journey with simple language, repetition, and whimsy.