created by alessandra MCCARTHY | La Casa Montessori

How to Choose Books for Children (ages 0-6+)

Children enjoy and benefit from books at an early age – having books read out loud by a parent, caretaker or teacher; reading books themselves when capable; just looking at the images in books and making up their own stories; etc.

Children as young as newborns can be introduced to books, and even earlier when read to in the womb. Though the content for a 1-month-old will differ from the content for a 4-year-old, here are some general guidelines for choosing books for children between 0 and 6+ years old:

Aesthetics:

To the extent possible, books should be in good condition — clean, have a sturdy cover, firm binding, durable paper, minimal markings — and be beautiful.
Pages should be uncluttered, e.g. not have too much text and/or too many images per page.
Books should have clear print.
The size of a book should be manageable for the child: it can be handled on his/her own.

Illustrations:

Reasonably realistic, simple and clear

Content:

Before reading the book aloud to a child/children, read it thoroughly yourself to ensure no surprises (e.g. the vocabulary and story content are appropriate).
Ensure the child can relate to or be genuinely interested in the topic(s) independently, vs our pushing themes/ideas/politics that are beyond the child’s ability to grasp.
Seek out stories that speak to the child’s needs and his/her past, present or near-future experiences.
Look for simple, factual information about our world and everything in it.

Here are five books that exemplify the above criteria:

No money is made by us from the purchase of any of these books. They are included here purely for their value to young children and to us children at heart. -Alessandra & Jesse McCarthy