Bed time has got so exciting in our house!
In the last 6 months or so we have made our first foray into chapter books and boy are we loving them.
It's not that we don't still enjoy picture books but the wonderful worlds into which we can now escape and the simple suspense of what will happen in the next chapter and whether and how everything will work out just takes story telling to a whole new an amazing level for young children.
Now this doesn't make for the quietest bed time.
There is a lot of whooping, bouncing on the bed and running around the room ...
... of which you may not approve! ...
... when Fantastic Mr Fox makes it into Boggis' chicken house number one or Charlie wins his golden ticket or the seagulls get James and his peach into the air.
But a few late bed times are worth it for the pure pleasure on my daughter's face - this pleasure is hopefully a gift I have given her for life.
The only issue I have is that it is quite tricky to find genuine chapter books that work for 3 to 5 year olds. There are some great short story collections that we really enjoy ... e.g. Milly Molly Mandy, Mrs Pepperpot, Paddington ... but I do think it's incredibly valuable for children, who are ready, to start to hear long stories.
Following the twists & turns of a longer narrative and speculating what could happen creates a new set of challenges for children's brains.
This is a list of some of our current favourite first chapter books but I would love to hear yours ... we want more! ... do add them to the list. The only thing I ask is that they are chapter books rather short story books as I will do a separate list for them ...
And if you're looking for more great book ideas do check out the links from the Mommy Archive at the bottom of the page ...
First Chapter Books for Younger Children
- Fantastic Mr Fox - Roald Dahl
- Gobbolino - Ursula Moray Williams
- The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe - C.S. Lewis
- James & The Giant Peach - Roald Dahl
- Charlie & the Chocolate Factory - Roald Dahl
- Charlotte's Web - E.B. White
- Catwings - Ursula le Guin
- The Wheel On the School - Meindert DeJong
- The Borrowers - Mary Norton
- The Worst Witch - Jill Murphy
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