It's back-to-school season again and chances are you're looking for some back-to-school read-alouds for Kindergarten. The two main books that may be popping up everywhere are The Kissing Hand and First Day Jitters. While they are great books, I wanted to find some different options for that first week of school. Each book has a different purpose, so if you read one per day, you are covering themes like growth mindset, kindness, manners, behavior expectations, and more! Here are some back-to-school books you can add to your rotation this upcoming school year!
This post contains Amazon affiliate links. I earn a small commission each time someone makes a purchase through one of my affiliate links. This helps support my blog, Sweet for Kindergarten. I only recommend products that I love. All ideas shared are my own.
The Night Before Kindergarten by Natasha Wing
This story is the perfect pick for parents to read aloud before their child goes to bed the night before Kindergarten. As a teacher, you can record yourself reading this book aloud and send it to your students the night before or even read it during Meet the Teacher if you're able to. It helps get kids excited for the upcoming start in Kindergarten!
David Goes to School by David Shannon
This is one of my favorite books to read during the first week of school because some of your students have never been in a school setting before! It is a great way to discuss your behavior expectations in the classroom. We always read this book, then No, David by the same author, and paired it with this Good-vs-Bad Choices Behavior activity. It is a simple book plus lesson during that back-to-school time!
The Name Jar by Yangsook Choi
This story talks about the diversity of names in your classroom and that all names are special and unique! After reading this book, you can have a discussion about all of your student's names on one of the first days of school. Then, use the song/chant “Hickety-Pickety Bumble Bee” to help learn each other's names. Find the song and how to teach it here.
Our Class is a Family by Shannon Olsen
Building a classroom community and making your students feel at home and welcome is one of the most important things you will do all year! This book is a great story about how your classroom is a family, full of love, respect, and compassion for each other. Read this story and then create a class mission together to use throughout the year!
The King of Kindergarten by Derrick Barnes
This may be my new favorite first-day read-aloud for Kindergarten! It follows a confident boy who is ready to take on his first day. I just love the positivity and excitement that shines throughout this story! After reading this story, your students can create their own crowns to wear on the first day! There's also another book called The Queen of Kindergarten in this series!
The Day You Begin by Jacqueline Woodson
While the previous story showed a confident boy as the main character, not all of our students are excited to begin Kindergarten. In The Day You Begin, the main character feels different than the rest of her classmates, yet she shows bravery and puts her best foot forward. This is a great story to talk about how we all can be brave when things feel new and scary or we don't feel like we belong.
The Magical Yet by Angela DiTerlizzi
The growth that students go through in Kindergarten is mind-boggling. However, many students feel frustrated when they have trouble doing something new for the first time. There will be many first times in Kindergarten, and this book does a wonderful job of portraying that growth mindset.
Do Unto Otters by Laurie Keller
Saying “please” and “thank you” were always two musts in my classroom. Read this story about a rabbit and his new neighbors, the otters, and learn about manners in a fun way! After reading this story, you can talk about how to be a great friend and use manners in school.
Llama Llama Back to School by Anna Dewdney
Many of your students are probably familiar with the Llama Llama series and familiarity always helps students feel more comfortable. This story talks about feeling anxious about the school year and all the different kinds of emotions. You can use this book to talk about your first-day feelings. I love the Llama Llama series and how they use rhyming and rhythm to make a fun read-aloud!
Miss Bindergarten Gets Ready for Kindergarten by Joseph Slate
This is the one book that I always read during the back-to-school time no matter what! I love that it has different letters of the alphabet for each character and lots of rhyming included too. While reading, I had my students whose names started with the letter of the character stand up when we got to their letter! It made it a fun and interactive read-aloud that everyone got to participate in. This book is also included in my Alphabet books found here.
If You Take a Mouse to School by Laura Numeroff
Here is another familiar favorite! This book covers many different areas in the classroom and at school, so after reading this story, it would be fun to take your students around the school on a tour!
I hope you were able to find some new back-to-school read-alouds for Kindergarten to add to your list! Which one is your favorite?