Toddlers love to explore (and sometimes chew!) books with vivid pictures and colorful illustrations. Many toddler titles are not strictly educational books, but are all about the interactive experience, such as lift-the-flap and touch-and-feel books. These types of books are great to introduce your little one to the pleasures of reading, and most have educational benefits as well. But if you’re looking for books that place a primacy on teaching your toddler, here are some places to look.
- Counting
As young children learn numbers, they start counting everything in sight: bananas in a bunch, blocks in their play towers, toes on their feet. The books in our list Books as Easy as 1, 2, 3 help toddlers learn numbers through beloved characters, fanciful settings, and familiar situations. Check them out and start the countdown to early math learning!
- ABCs
The first step to reading is, of course, learning the all-important ABCs. Playing with letter blocks and singing the alphabet song are must-dos for ABC learning, but these educational books will captivate your toddler and set them on the path to letter recognition:
- Now I Eat My ABCs: From blueberries to grapes, noodles to watermelon, this letter-learning book is stuffed with fun, kid-friendly foods.
- Max’s ABC: Max’s ABC teaches the alphabet by featuring a different letter on each page, large and colorful so they're easy to spot. The very youngest readers will love practicing their letters with Max and Ruby.
- Click, Clack, ABC: Children are sure to enjoy the alphabet like never before with Cronin and Lewin's hilarious farmyard animals.
- I SPY Little Letters: The letters of the alphabet are introduced to young children in a clever and engaging way, with pictures of beautiful hand-painted letters, and a playful rhyming text.
- Now I Eat My ABCs: From blueberries to grapes, noodles to watermelon, this letter-learning book is stuffed with fun, kid-friendly foods.
- Colors and Shapes
Toddlers are dazzled by bright colors and bold shapes. Educational books can help them turn the dazzle into learning by identifying a circle from a square and a bright red from a royal blue. Try Little Scholastic books such as Colors and Shapes, which feature familiar objects that teach children basic information in an appealing, hands-on format.
