As a primary teacher, there is nothing more exciting as the first week of school. The students, for the most part, are excited to be at school. Like myself as a student, some students are shy or scared to be at school for the first few days. As a teacher, selecting the right read aloud is very important. The right read aloud books can create a positive classroom community and help model good behavior at the beginning of the school year. Here are my top 5 Back to School read aloud books for primary students.
* Each book title links to Amazon just to make it easy – you can read reviews, a summary, and order should you choose! (This post contains affiliate links.)
1. The Kissing Hand by Audrey Penn
The Kissing Hand is always the first book I read on day one because most of the class is feeling exactly how Chester Raccoon is in the story, and this book can ease their anxiety about coming to school. This author also has A Pocket Full of Kisses, A Kiss Goodbye, Chester the Brave, Chester Raccoon and the Acorn Filled With Memories, and Chester Raccoon and the Big Bad Bully.
The book is about Chester Raccoon and how he doesn’t want to go to school, and how he wants to stay home with his mother instead. To ease his worry, she explains the secret of The Kissing Hand and kisses his palm. His mother is now with him and whenever he feels sad or scared at school, he can press his hand to his cheek and know his mother loves him.
2. First Day Jitters by Julie Danneberg
This book is my favorite book to read on the first day of school for my first graders. The book starts off with Sarah not wanting to go to school. She gives excuse after excuse for all the reasons that she doesn’t need to go to school. Mr. Hartwell explains all the reasons why she’s going to love school. What the students don’t know is that Sarah is really the teacher, not the student! My students love the secret twist at the end.
3. The Pigeon HAS to Go to School! By Mo Willems
My students are a HUGE fan of any of the Pigeon books. They beg for me to read them on a daily basis. When I saw that Mo Willems published a back to school pigeon book, I had to buy it and it didn’t let me down. The book starts off with the Pigeon listing the reasons why he shouldn’t have to go to school and the reasons why he’s scared. He soon realizes that school may be the place to help him with the things he’s scared of, and school becomes a no brainer when he finds out that he can ride the bus. This book will have the student laughing and facing their fears about school along with the pigeon. This is a must have book for back to school time!
4. Chicka Chicka Boom Boom by Bill Martin Jr. and John Archambault
One of my favorite books to read for the first week of school for my kindergarten class is Chicka Chicka Boom Boom. It’s the perfect book for introducing or reviewing the letters of the alphabet. All the letters are fighting to climb up the coconut tree, but is there enough room? What will happen if the coconut tree doesn’t have enough room? What’s great about this book is that there is a sequel focusing on all the numbers, It’s called, Chicka Chicka 1, 2, 3.
5. The Night Before Kindergarten and The Night Before First Grade by Natasha Wing
I always send a welcome back to school postcard to all the parents and students. In the postcard, and depending what grade I’m teaching, I always mention one of these two books for parents to check out from their local library. These are great books for parents to read the night before the first day of school. The two books talk about the emotions that they may be feeling and what to expect on the first day of school. It’s a great way for parents and kids to bond over the beginning of the school year!
Back to School Activities for Your Classroom
If your students can’t get enough of Back to School children’s books, be sure to check out these Back to School coloring pages! You’ll find all kinds of options that focus on helping your students learn! There are color-by-numbers, color-by-letters, and even color-by-sight words! These coloring pages are great for keeping your students entertained while helping them learn! These packages contain 28-46 pages, depending on which one you select. But the best part of all? Your students can use what they’ve been learning from the books to help them color these pages!
Are you still looking for more ideas? Check out the FREE Reading Graphic Organizer today! This tool can help students identify the main idea, story elements, and the beginning, middle, and end of stories. It can be used with any story you want to introduce in your classroom, and best of all, it’s FREE!
Save these Back to School Book Titles for Later
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