Read-alouds are one of the greatest treasures of childhood. It transports listeners through space and time, gets children interested in reading and good storytelling, and bonds families in a fun and memorable way that cannot be matched with the TV. First, I want to share one of my favorite poems. This is the kind of mother I’ve tried to be.
“The Reading Mother” by Strickland Gillilan
I had a mother who read to me
Sagas of pirates who scoured the sea
Cutlasses clenched in their yellow teeth
‘Blackbirds’ stowed in the hold beneath
I had a mother who read me lays
Of ancient and gallant and golden days;
Stories of Marion and Ivanhoe,
Which every boy has a right to know.
I had a mother who read me tales
Of Gelert the hound of the hills of Wales
True to his trust till his tragic death,
Faithfulness blent with his final breath.
I had a mother who read me the things
That wholesome life to the boy heart brings-
Stories that stir with an upward touch,
Oh, that each mother of boys were such!
You may have tangible wealth untold;
Caskets of jewels and coffers of gold.
Richer than I you can never be-
I had a mother who read to me.
In this series I will share my own read-aloud book lists. I purposely chose books to represent different parts of the world and different time periods. There are many other great books, just not enough time for them all! Here’s my recommendations for 6-to-8-year-olds.
The Random House Book of Bedtime Stories
Dr. Seuss books
Love You Forever by Robert Munsch
Because I Love You by Max Lucado
All the Places to Love by Patricia MacLachlan
A Child’s Garden of Verses by Robert Louis Stevenson
The Pied Piper of Hamelin by Robert Browning
The Emperor’s New Clothes by Hans Christian Andersen
The Tale of Three Trees by Angela Elwell Hunt
Rikki-Tikki-Tavi by Rudyard Kipling
Alexander and the Terrible, Horrible, No-Good, Very Bad Day
by Judith Viorst
The Polar Express by Chris Van Allsburg
Mike Mulligan and His Steam Shovel by Virginia Lee Barton
Stone Soup by Marcia Brown
Amelia Bedelia by Peggy Parish
Beethoven Lives Upstairs by Barbara Nichol
Tchaikovsky Discovers America by Esther Kalman
Sir Cumference and the First Round Table: A Math Adventure
by Cindy Newschwander
Benjamin Franklin and the Magic Squares by Frank Murphy
How Much is a Million by David M. Schwartz
Mammoth Magic by Shelley Gill
Snowflake Bentley by Jacqueline Briggs Martin
The Sea of Tranquillity by Mark Haddon
The Story of Ferdinand by Munro Leaf
Just a Few Words, Mr. Lincoln by Jean Fritz
Selections from When We Were Very Young and Now We Are
Six by A.A. Milne
Going to School series
Winnie the Pooh by A.A. Milne
The House at Pooh Corner by A.A. Milne
Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland by Lewis Carroll
Through the Looking Glass by Lewis Carroll
The Velveteen Rabbit by Margey Williams
A Bear Called Paddington by Michael Bond
Mr. Popper’s Penguins by Richard and Florence Atwater
Ramona the Pest by Beverly Cleary
The Best Christmas Pageant Ever by Barbara Robinson
Aesop’s Fables
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