Can you recommend books for over 3years old?

S

sysiawase

New member
Hello!

I wonder which books I should buy for my 2.5years of daughter. She has some books written in non-English as we are not an English native speaker. I would like to buy English books for her which are creative stories or stories from which she can learn about things around her.

Can anyone recommend books which is suitable for above 3 years old and where to get them? It doesn't matter if they are set books (+10) or a single book.

Many thanks for your advice!
 
Look at anything by Dr. Seuss. He's creative and he tell stories but it might not be exactly what you are looking for. You can find them in Dymocks and Page One (as well as Amazon). Depending on what you want to count, he has about 50 books out there.
 
i LOVE Robert Munsch books, as does every single child i read them to. i run a playgroup and i must say that his books are the most requested.

they are difficult to find, but you can order them on amazon.com

dr seuss is also very good. the best thing to do though, is to go to a good bookstore (check out BOOK BUDDY) in ocean terminal next to toys'r'us, and have a look at the books with your daughter.
 
Richard Scarry's books are wonderul - lots to talk about as the pictures are both detailed and amusing
 
Eric Carle has some good books too! There is a children's library at the Central Library in Causeway Bay, have heard many good reviews, perhaps you could bring your daughter there to see which ones she likes and buy those for home.
 
My now 4 1/2 year old loves Angelina Ballerina books, also the ones from Mo Willems (Don't let the Pigeon drive the bus, don't let the pigeon stay up late and we recently bought another version here in HGK at Dymocks, the Pigeon wants a puppy). They're great! We found them through story time at Barnes & Nobles back in the US.

She also likes the books from Curtis Cornell (today I feel silly) and the ones from Olivia (the pig).

Most of them she had for quite a while but she still seems to like them.

And my 2 yo (twin girl) also loves the Dora books ... can't go wrong with those.
 
Above are all good selections. However, you need to take a look at your child's English level first, especially since she is from a non-Egnlish speaking family; and also find out what she is interested in, she may be more advanced in reading subjects she likes and more willing to do so.
 
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that's what's great about the robert munsch books, there is a lot of repetition, and within a few readings the kids join in. they LOVE him!
 
As an educator I highly advise parents to read with their children a variety of story books. All of the above suggestions are terrific as well as Pamela Allen, Anthony Browne, Mem Fox. But I also advise my parents and students to delve into fairytales - not just Disney versions! They introduce children to the concepts of good and bad, kind and unkind, etc, all basic character traits that we would like our children to be able to identify, understand and apply, as well as including basic lessons about life through simple non complex adventures. And surprisingly so many have been translated into great movies - fractured or otherwise. Give the good old dependable fairytale a try.
 
yes, just beware that the "actual" fairytales can be quite gruesome. you will probably want to go for a watered down version...

and there's nothing like... the prince saves the day and they all live happily ever after, right? remember when life was so simple?
 
My 3 year old is currently loving McMagee and the Big Bag of Bread. It is so simple that he is actually trying to read it himself. It's a perfect book for a non-english speaker wanting to introduce english in an easy way.

Personally I think fairytales and other involved or complicated stories (like Dr Seuss) are not a good introduction for someone who not only doesn't speak English but is not even 3. I could just imagine reading Dr Seuss in Japanese to my son. He'd hate it.

Pamela Allen, Eric Carle, Robert Muncsh,Julia Donaldson, Babette Cole are all good recommendations.
 
julia donaldson's the gruffalo and the gruffalo's child, eric carle, robert munch's the paperbag princess has one of the best lessons EVER, what about harry mclarey from donaldson's dairy, goodnight moon (might even be too young), anything dora, charlie and lola....
 
As a primary teacher, one of the best ways to see what books are good for your child is to take him/her to a bookstore and see what he/she gravitates towards. At that age the most important thing is to spark the love of reading by you reading to your child and giving your child time to just look through a wide variety of books. My son is 1 years old and I love it when I see him just take out books from his bin, sit in the middle of room and flip through pages talking to himself. Yes, sometimes he tears pages and reads upside down, but I can tell he loves reading and loves when I read to him whether it's a story, a poem, a magazine or even the newspaper. Keep in mind though that children at that age of course love pictures and books that have patterns and sounds.

In addition to the above mentioned books, our family also loves:
1. all Kevin Henkes books (Chester's Way, Lilly's Purple Purse etc...)
2. Knuffle Bunny by Mo Willems
3. Click Clack Moo by Doreen Cronin
4. Where the Wild Things Are by Maurice Sendak
5. Corduroy Books by Don Freeman
6. All Leo Lionni books (Swimmy, Frederick etc..)
7. Chicka Chicka Boom Boom by Bill Martin
8. Caps for Sale by E. Slobodkina
9. Go Away Big Green Monster by Ed Emberley
10. all Jane Yolen books

Hope this helps!!
 
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Agree with Southside852 - all the ones she mentioned are classics and in and outside the primary classroom.
 
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