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Back to School Books for Preschoolers to Read on the First Day

ByBeth Gorden

The start of the school year can be a difficult time for kids, especially for kids starting a new school. This list of back to school books for preschoolers is full of fun stories that address familiar scenarios and help kids to get excited for the school year! So grab a few first day of school books to read with your preschool, pre-k, kindergarten, first grade, and up!

The start of the school year can be a difficult time for kids, especially for kids starting a new school. This list of back to school books for preschoolers is full of fun stories that address familiar scenarios and help kids to get excited for the school year! So grab a few first day of school books to read with your preschool, pre-k, kindergarten, first grade, and up!

Back to School Books for Preschoolers

Are you looking for great back to school books for your preschooler? Look no further! We’ve gathered a list of must-reads that your little one will love. From stories about making friends to picture books that celebrate the first day of school, these books are perfect for getting your preschooler excited about going back to school. Check out the full list on our website and let us know which one is your favorite!

First day of School Books


If You Take a Mouse to School was written by Laura Numeroff and illustrated by Felicia Bond. This addition to the “If You Give” series follows the little mouse as he heads to the first day of school. The cyclical story and colorful illustrations highlight familiar items and situations from school.


The Pigeon HAS To Go To School was written and illustrated by Mo Willems. In this hilarious story, the Pigeon decides that he doesn’t want to go to school. As the funny character shares his fears and fights against the reader, kids may find some of their first day jitters explored too.


Daniel Goes to School was written by Becky Friedman and illustrated by Jason Fruchter. Daniel Tiger is excited to go to school, but he is upset to learn that his dad can’t stay with him. This is a sweet story for teaching little ones that grown ups come back and the school day ends eventually.


Llama Llama Back to School was written by Anna Dewdney and Reed Duncan and illustrated by JT Morrow. This sweet rhyming book follows Little Llama as he struggles to end the summertime fun and face the first day of school. Kids will recognize the difficult feelings that come with the end of the summer, and facing the new year.


The Pout-Pout Fish Goes to School was written by Deborah Diesen and illustrated by Dan Hanna. Join the beloved fish in this rhyming tale as he worries about all the things that he doesn’t know how to do. But he soon learns that school is the best place to learn!


Time for School, Little Blue Truck was written by Alice Schertle and illustrated by Jill McElmurry. When Little Blue Truck meets a school bus, he wants a chance to do the same job. Lucky for him, he may have a chance after someone misses the bus. The text is full of fun noises that kids will love reading aloud.


Time for School, Mouse was written by Laura Numeroff and illustrated by Felicia Bond. This cute board book follows the popular Mouse character as he gathers his school supplies and searches for his homework.

Back to school books for preschool


Maisy Goes to Preschool was written and illustrated by Lucy Cousins. In this adorable book, Maisy the mouse is heading to preschool. The simple text and colorful illustrations highlight some of the daily activities in a preschool classroom, making it a great introduction to school for young kids.


Preschool, Here I Come! was written by D.J. Steinberg and illustrated by John Joven. This collection of sweet and funny poems highlights the big moments in preschool. They are paired with adorable cartoon illustrations showing a diverse cast of happy preschool kids.


Curious George’s First Day of School was written by H.A. Rey. When Curious George is invited to Mr. Apple’s classroom as a helper, he starts getting into his usual mischief. Kids will love watching the funny monkey causing trouble at school.


Our Class is a Family was written by Shannon Olsen and illustrated by Sandie Sonke. This sweet rhyming book celebrates the classroom community by reminding kids that their class is a family and it is a safe place to be themselves.


Biscuit Goes to School was written by Alyssa Satin Capucilli and Pat Schories. Dogs aren’t allowed at school, but Biscuit the dog wants a chance to see everything that goes on there. What will the teacher do when Biscuit sneaks into the classroom?


The Color Monster Goes to School was written by Anna Llenas. Join the popular Color Monster as he prepares for the first day of school. Kids will love watching the little monster as he figures out what school is, with some funny assumptions along the way.


Pete the Kitty’s First Day of Preschool was written by James Dean and illustrated by Kimberly Dean. Fans of Pete the Cat will love watching the young kitten as he prepares for his first day of preschool. The sweet story and adorable illustrations are sure to engage young ones preparing for their first day of preschool too.


The Crayons Go Back to School was written by Drew Daywalt and illustrated by Oliver Jeffers. This addition to the Crayons series follows Duncan’s crayons as they prepare for the first day of school. Kids will love revisiting the funny crayons and watching them prepare for a new school year too.

Back to School Book for Kids


The Night Before Preschool was written by Natasha Wing and illustrated by Amy Wummer. This spin on the classic Christmas poem follows a little boy named Billy as he prepares for his first day of school. The rhyming text and sweet cartoon illustrations make this a great bedtime story for the night before school starts.


Lola Goes to School was written by Anna McQuinn and illustrated by Rosalind Beardshaw. In this addition to the Lola Reads series, little Lola is getting ready for school with the help of her family. From deciding on first day of school clothes, to preparing school supplies, she goes through all the same steps as other kids getting ready for the first day.


The Berenstain Bears Go to School was written and illustrated by Stan & Jan Berestain. When the new school year is about to start in Bear Country, Sister Bear is worried about starting kindergarten. The classic story addresses first day jitters, which all young kids can relate to.


We Don’t Eat Our Classmates was written by Ryan T. Higgins. It’s the first day of school and Penelope Rex can’t wait to meet her new classmates. But as a dinosaur, she finds it hard to not eat her new human friends. This is a hilarious back to school book that addresses empathy and controlling impulses, which kids will need in school!


How Do Dinosaurs Go To School? was written by Jane Yolen and illustrated by Mark Teague. Join a pack of adorable dinosaurs as they head off to school, just like kids. The simple rhyming text asks how dinosaurs would go to school, and the illustrations show large dinosaurs in hilarious situations.

Books about school


CoComelon: Ready for School! was adapted by Natalie Shaw. Follow along with JJ as he gets ready for school and goes about his day in the classroom. Little ones will love watching their favorite character doing the same things they will be doing at school.


My Preschool was written and illustrated by Anne Rockwell. This sweet and simple story follows a young boy as he walks the reader through the day at his preschool. The simple text introduces little ones to the daily activities in preschool while the cute illustrations highlight some of the familiar sights and the happy students.


School is Cool! was written by Sabrina Moyle and illustrated by Eunice Moyle. This brightly colored book uses a peppy rhyming text and adorable cartoon animal illustrations to address first day of school jitters. Kids will love all the details in the illustrations, and the positive message of the book.


Good Night Preschool was written by Adam Gamble and illustrated by Mark Jasper. This addition to the Good Night Our World series uses a simple text and cute illustrations to show a typical day in a preschool classroom.


Rosie Goes to Preschool was written and illustrated by Karen Katz. This sweet little book follows Rosie as she heads off to preschool. The simple text and illustrations tell the story, but there are “Rosie Tips” sprinkled throughout the book to help parents and kids facing first day jitters.

Are you looking for a fun back to school theme math activity for preschoolers, toddlers, or kindergartener? This super cute, pencil themed, number matching activity is the perfect resource for you. Grab the number matching free printable pdf below to help your child will practice a variety of skills as they engage with fun pencil shaped numbers.
Kids love I Spy Games! These activities are so much fun, they don't even realize they are working on visual discrimination, color recognition and counting - an early math skill! I spy colors are super cute crayon preschool worksheets that make leaning fun for toddlers, preschoolers, pre k, and kindergarteners.
Free Printable Back to School BINGO Game
FREE Back to School Counting Puzzles are a fun way for preschool, prek, and kindergarten age kids to practice counting to 10 with a fun first day of school theme
FREE Back to School Number Worksheets - kids will have fun counting and tracing numbers 1-10 with these preschool and kindergarten worksheets perfect for the first day of school #tracingnumbers #backtoschool
FREE Back to School ABC Games
FREE First Day of School Count & Clip Cards - this free printable Kids will have fun practicing counting to 10 with these free Count & Clip Cards perfect for Back to School Preschool Math. activity is a great way to kick off the school year #backtoschool #preschool #counting
FREE Back to School I Spy Game for working on counting and visual discrimination with preschool, prek, and preschoolers
FREE Back to School Tracing Worksheets - super cute first day of school activity to help kids improve motor skills while tracing school supplies #preschool #prek #backtoschool
FREE Back to School Worksheets for Preschoolers - super cute first day of school printables for preschool prek, and kindergarten age kids covering a variety of math, literacy, alphabet, numbers, tracing, cut and paste, community helpers, an more! #backtoschool #firstdayofschool #preschool
FREE First Day of Preschool Hats - 6 different styles to choose from perfect for back to school with preschoolers, prek, and pre k students! #backtoschool #firstdayofschool #preschool #prek
Back to School Color by Number
FREE First Day of Preschool Signs - super cute first day of school signs for preschoolers to remember their favorites and who they want to be when they go out! #preschool #prek #firstdayofschool
FREE School Bus Letter Matching - kids will have fun practicing uppercase and lowercase letters with this back to school themed alphabet puzzles for preschool, prek, and kindergarten age kids #preschool #backtoschool #alphabet
Start the school year off by celebrating your special students with an all about me preschool activity. Grab our all about me printables to let children discover how unique and special they are. This all about me worksheet preschool pack is perfect for pre-k, kindergarten, and first graders too. Simply pick the free all about me printable preschool pages you want to use!
This back to school activity is a fun way for preschool, pre-k, and kindergarten age kids to learn about measuring! These preschool measurement activities us a measurement worksheets along with manipluatives for a FUN, hands-on math activity for preschoolers.  By using manipulative we are able to engage our kids in math and creative thinking skills. Simply print back to school worksheet and you are ready to play and learn!
Get ready for the first day of school with these super cute, free printable, Back to School Coloring Pages perfect for toddler, preschool, pre k, kindergarten, first grade, and 2nd grade students. Each of the free coloring pages features school themed pictures to color such as school bus, school building, reading nook, teacher at a blackboard, school backpack, and more.
Look for simple, but outrageously FUN welcome back to school activities? Try this school bus back to school science activities to impress kids and dive right into learning about the chemical reaction between baking soda and vinegar! This first day of school activity allows preschool, pre-k, kindergarten, and first graders to melt the school bus with an easy chemistry experiment for kids. This cute project is perfect for the first week of school activities.
Are your kids as crazy about slime as mine are? My kids love playing with slime and trying different types of slime. In our experimenting, we came up with this cool baking soda slime. This slime uses baking soda as the activator for a wonderful sheen and flow without being sticky at all! And with the first day of school just around the corner, we decided to make a yellow pencil slime as a back to school activities! We also like to make it a lego brick slime for a silly lego activities for kids too! Come see how to make slime with baking soda and get playing with your preschool, pre-k, kindergarten, first grade, 2nd grade, and 3rd graders.
Help toddlers and preschoolers work on pre-writing skills with these super cute tracing lines worksheets for 3 year olds. These tracing lines for preschoolers are a fun, low prep, educational activity for August, September, or any time of the year! Use the strips to help kids improve fine motor pencil skills as they trace liens from school bus to school, pencil to paper, paint brush to paint, child to books, and more. Simply print tracing lines worksheets for 3 year olds pdf download and you are ready to practice!

Back to School Printables

If you are looking for some fun-to-read zoo books for kids, you will love these selections! Each of these zoo books for preschoolers, toddlers, kindergarnters, grade 1, grade 2, grade 3, and grade 4 students are filled with lively stories, beautiful illustrations, and catchy words. So whether you are planning a trip to the zoo, or your child just enjoys animals - these zoo animal books for preschool are perfect to share together!
Whether you are studying the ocean or your child is just fascinated with sharks, you will love these shark books for kids. The beautiful illustrations and simple, catchy text makes these shark books for preschoolers, kindergartners, grade 1, grade 2, and up!
Whether you are a new parent looking to fill your library with classic children's books or a teacher prepping a lesson - these classic books for preschoolers are a great way to help kids acquire a love of reading. Each of these classic books for kids has endearing characters, great life lessons, and are stories that have endoured through the decades! So pick out your favorite children's classic books to read with your toddler, preschool, pre-k, kindergarten, and first grade student.
Nothing says summer like a fun camping trip to explore nature and sleep under the stars. These books about camping for preschoolers are fun-to-read and perfect to introduce your child to the adventurous world of camping for kids. These cute camping books for toddlers, preschool, pre-k, kindergarten, first graders, and elementary age students are great for a camping theme or a summer theme for pre-k too!
Help kids learn about the ocean and all the amazing animals that live under the sea with these fun-to-read ocean books for preschoolers. We have found so many fun ocean books for kids from toddler, preschool, pre-k, kindergarten, first graders, and more!
As you are picking out some fun books for your child to read, you are probably looking for som fun abc children's book. Not only do alphabet books for preschoolers help kids learn their letters and the sounds they make, but their reinforce new vocabulary, are educational working towards future literacy, but they are fun-to-read too! Use these children's alphabet book choices with toddler, preschool, pre-k, kindergarten, and first graders too!
Kids of all ages are fascinated by big trucks and construction vehicles! These construction books for preschoolers are a great way to learn about a variety of diggers, plows, concrete mixers, lifts, and more while expanding vocabulary and literacy skills too. So pick up some of these fun children's books about construction vehicles and you are ready to cuddle up and read!
Celebrate that you've completed 100 days of school with theses fun-to-read 100th day of school books for kids! Use these fun 100 days of school books with preschool, pre-k, kindergarten, first grade, and 2nd graders too.
Winter is here, so it is the perfect time to enjoy books about snowmen, snow days, and all the winter fun to be had. This list contains 25 of the best snowman books for preschoolers including with wordless picture books, fun stories, and magical characters. These children's books about snowmen are perfect for toddler, preschool, pre-k, kindergarten, first grade, 2nd grade, and 3rd graders to cuddle up and read this January.
Winter means the weather is starting to get colder. So it is the perfect time to read about chilly habitats and the creatures who live in them. So this list of the best penguin books for kids is full of fiction and nonfiction tales of penguins. Which of these penguin books for preschoolers will be your new favorite. 
Prehistoric dinos are fascinating to kids of all ages! So we picked some of our favorite Dinosaur Books for Preschoolers so you'd have a quick, go-to list of dinosaur children's book suggestions for toddler, preschool, pre-k, kindergarten, first grade, 2nd grade, and 3rd graders. So whether you use these dinosaur books for kids along with a dinosaur theme or as bedtime stories, these lovely illustrations and delightful tales are sure to be a hit!
Help introduce children to the many shapes in our world by picking up one of these delightful shape books for preschoolers! Reading shape books is such a fun gentle way to help toddler, preschool, pre-k, kindergarten, and first graders learn common shapes for kids. We've picked out some of our favorite children's books about shapes to delight you and your children as you read!
Children's books about colors are a fun way to introduce young readers to the concepts of colors and color mixing. This list of color books for preschoolers includes all kinds of stories featuring fun characters, creative stories, and brightly colored illustrations. These color picture books are perfect for toddler, preschool, pre-k, kindergarten, first grade, 2nd grade, and 3rd graders too.
cute Bug Books for Preschoolers and educational insect books for kids. No matter which books about insects for preschoolers, kindergartners, toddlers, grade 1, and grade 2 students you pick - kids are going to love these selections!
Whether you are planning an animal theme or just looking to pick out some amazing books for kids .... you will love these Animal Books for Preschoolers.
20 Family Books for Preschoolers - Help kids celebrate the important role families play in our lives with these fabily books for preschoolers, toddlers, and kindergarteners.
spring books for preschoolers
20 Flower Books for Preschoolers - so many great book recommendations for toddler, preschool, prek, and kindergarten age kids perfect for spring and summer #booklist #bookrecommendations #preschoolbooks

Books for Preschoolers

If you are looking for more fun-to-read preschool book lists with picture books picked out for your preschoolers, don’t miss these great picks:

These super cute, free printable rhyming words worksheets are a great way to improve literacy and reading skills! SImply print the no-prep rhyming words worksheets for kindergartners, preschoolers, and grade 1 students. With these Kindergarten rhyming worksheets, young children will learn about 12 different sets of rhyming words through fun printable worksheets.
Are you working on rhymes? This rhyming words activity will give pre-k, kindergartners, and first graders more practice with rhyming words for kindergarten!  Grab these rhyming words with pictures and let children match the two pictures / words who have the same ending sounds. Low-prep rhyming activities like this one are perfect activity for some additional practice or as a literacy center!
lion rhyming words activity
FREE Smores Rhyming Words - Have fun improving reading readiness with this fun smores themed rhyming words activity! This is a fun summer themed or camping themed activity for preschool, pre k, kindergarten, and first grade students.
Whether you are celebrating Dr Seuss' birthday on March 2nd or just looking for fun-to-read Dr Seuss books, we've got a fabulous  Dr Seuss Books list for you to choose from. I love that the  best dr seuss books bring to life zany characters kids love while forming simple-to-read, repetitive text for young readers to read themselves or learn langauge easily. These Dr seuss stories are perfect for preschool, pre-k, kindergarten, and first graders too!
FREE Baseball Themed Rhyming Words Puzzles - Kids will have fun improving reading skills as they practice matching these baseball themed CVC Rhyming Words. Perfect for Pre k, Kindergarten, and Grade 1.

Rhyming Activities

Looking for more practice rhyming? Practice does make perfect as the saying goes. We have lots free rhyming printables to help your children get lots of practice – from puzzles, matching activities, worksheets, games, activities and more. Plus don’t miss these rhyming books for kindergarten.

Beth Gorden is the creative multi-tasking creator of Preschool Play and Learn. As a busy homeschooling mother of six, she strives to create hands-on learning activities and worksheets that kids will love to make learning FUN! Beth is also the creator of 123Homeschool4Me.com and kindergartenworksheetsandgames.com where she shares more than 100,000 pages of FREE worksheets,& educational ideas for PreK-8th grade.

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