Books identified as (folk tales) have been retold by several authors--pick the version you like best!
Each of these titles was mentioned as an example of encouraging development in one particular area--but any book with a well-written story and well-crafted illustrations will stimulate children's development in many areas.
Jack and the Beanstalk, various authors (folk tale)
Ira Sleeps Over by Bernard Waber
Where the Wild Things Are by Maurice Sendak
The Rainbow Fish by Marcus Pfister
The Very Hungry Caterpillar by Eric Carle
The Napping House by Audrey Wood
There's a Wocket in My Pocket! by Dr. Seuss
Caps for Sale by Esphyr Slobodkina
Bread, Bread, Bread by Ann Morris
Chicka Chicka Boom, Boom by Bill Martin
Rosie's Walk by Pat Hutchins
The Mitten by Jan Brett
First One Foot, Then the Other by Tomie dePaola (p. 369)
The Gingerbread Man (folk tale) (p. 370)
The Itsy-Bitsy Spider (folk tale) (p. 375)
These books relate to the interests and life experiences of children:
The Baby Sister by Tomie dePaola
Truck by Donald Crews
Puss in Boots (folk tale)
These books encourage children's participation in the story:
The House that Jack Built by Rodney Peppe (p. 356)
We're Going on a Bear Hunt by Michael Rosen (p. 369)
This book enriches language development:
The Mitten by Jan Brett
These books help children gain knowledge of the alphabet and phonological awareness:
Chicka Chicka Boom, Boom by Bill Martin Jr. and John Archambault
There's a Wocket in My Pocket! by Dr. Seuss
Cock-a-Doodle-Moo! by Bernard Most
The Story about Ping by Marjorie Flack and Kurt Wiese
These books are particularly good for story retelling:
The Napping House by Audrey Wood
Caps for Sale by Esphyr Slobodkina
Mrs. Wishy-Washy by Joy Cowley
The Very Hungry Caterpillar by Eric Carle
Who Sank the Boat? by Pamela Allen
These books address content in mathematics:
The Three Little Pigs (folk tale)
The Three Billy Goats Gruff (folk tale)
The Three Wishes by Margot Zemach
The Doorbell Rang by Pat Hutchins
How Much Is a Million? by David Schwartz and Stephen Kellogg.
Shapes, Shapes, Shapes and Over, Under, & Through by Tana Hoban
The Tortoise and the Hare (folk tale)
These books address content in science:
Stone Soup (folk tale, retold by Marcia Brown)
The Cat in the Hat by Dr. Seuss
These books address content in social studies:
Me on the Map by Joan Sweeney
As the Crow Flies: A First Book of Maps by Gail Hartman
These books address content in the arts:
The torn-paper pictures of Leo Lionni
Note: Leo Lionni has written and illustrated over 20 children's books in the last 20 years. Those which are now out of print may still be available from libraries.
The watercolors in the "Carl the Dog" series by Alexandra Day
Picture books based on songs such as "This Land Is Your Land" or "Down by the Bay"*
*PLEASE NOTE: The 1998 version of This Land is Your Land, (words and music by Woody Guthrie, illustrations by Kathy Jakobsen) is especially beautiful--but contains an image of the now-destroyed World Trade Center towers that some schools may prefer to avoid. A new edition is scheduled for release in September 2002. We could not determine, before this web page went live, whether the 2002 edition would include a revised picture view of New York City.
These books address content in technology:
The Living Book series of computer-based interactive stories
