Back-to-School Days: Books for Kids

Thinking about the new school year and back-to-school dayz - oops! I mean days - can stir up feelings of excitement and nervousness. Thankfully, CPL has a number of wonderful books for kiddos who are still familiarizing themselves with this annual school routine, like those in kindergarten through 2nd grade.

I especially love a couple of newer books which shows teachers as real people who have full lives outside of the classroom and highlights how much they care about their students and the experiences they have learning with them each day. I recommend: 

Kindergarten Gets Ready: Mr. Bee bikes to school to prepare his classroom for the first day with his pet gerbil (or hamster - can you tell me which it is!?). He dusts, sweeps, open windows, unpacks books, puts some books on top with their “covers out” to creating a sweet display and he stops to rest and drink water. He also lays out dress-up clothes, labels cubbies and prepares the story time rug to create a warm and welcoming space. I personally couldn't wait to hear what books he'd real aloud!

Teachers In The Wild: I think this is a wonderful glimpse at building a relationship with a teacher, who you may inevitably run into at the farmer’s market or a soccer game. (Wait a minute - is that your teacher with a painted face!?) Prepare yourselves for funny as well as practical tips on how to act (“play it cool”) when you see teachers outside of school (“in the wild”) and then need to greet them the next morning in your classroom.  

Alternatively, to provide a little perspective from a kid’s point-of-view, I recommend: 

Scarecited on the First Day of School: Six-year-old Afua is “scarecited!” Ever felt that way? It’s a combination of scared and excited. To cope with her feelings, she plays a word game in which she blends words to make a new one. For instance, “fly” and “cute” has her looking “pretty flute, flute, flute.” Readers will enjoy guessing which words she’s combining by checking out her expressions and body posture. They’ll also pick up great vocabulary as they pull apart “shurious,” “sadbarrassed” and “spappy.”  

Embarrassed Ferret: If you’re a fan of rhyming text and adore silky-furred ferrets, then you'll love this story about Ferret's first day in Ms. Bunny’s class. She tripped on someone’s duffle and “caused herself a slight kerfuffle.” She also spills her pencils, slams the door, makes a mess during art and more totally embarrassing things – or so she thought. Because after recess, Ms. Bunny farts, everyone laughs, relaxes and discovers they belong – no matter how many mistakes they make.