The best books for 3-year-olds make children giggle and teach them about the world, too. From concept books to funny books to stories that enhance social-emotional learning, you will love sharing these books with your little readers. Check out our favorites below!
These books for 3-year-old readers will hook your kids on reading!
There can be no debating it: so many of us want to raise readers. We hope our preschoolers fall in love with the magic of reading when they are young.
Yet, to do this, we must read great books with our littles, and we must read often! But – I know – the best books for 3-year-olds aren’t always easy to find!
Don’t worry. We’ve got you covered.
Before we get to our awesome list, though, let’s quickly refresh ourselves on why it’s so important to read with our three-year-olds.
There are huge benefits to reading with 3-year-olds!
The best books for 3-year-olds benefit kids tremendously! Aside from the fact that you’ll instill an important love of literature in them from a young age, you’ll also unlock your children’s imagination, inspire curiosity, and encourage them to think, think, think.
Additionally, reading helps boost comprehension and listening skills, introduces new vocabulary, and enhances cognitive development. It also helps kids understand words and sounds. This knowledge lays an important foundation that benefits children when they are ready to learn to read themselves.
Finally, the best books for 3-year-olds help children begin to understand the world around them. Kids not only learn the importance of language when you draw connections between words and the objects found in books, but they also learn about people, emotions, and important life lessons.
What are the best books for 3-year-olds about?
The best books for 3-year-olds give preschoolers skills to engage with the world. They often teach objects, ideas, and emotions.
Consider these tips:
Concept books rock!
Books for little ones – think 2-year-olds and 3-year-olds – frequently teach important concepts. Stories that delve into colors, counting, letters, shapes, rhyming, opposites, feelings, and more are beneficial at this age.
Repetition and rhyme rock too!
Books that allow preschoolers to fill in words have significant value, as do repetitive stanzas. This offers little ones great ownership over the stories they read.
Length matters, so keep it short!
Preschoolers have short attention spans. Keep them engaged with stories containing small amounts of text on each page.
Interactive books make storytime fun!
Books for 3-year-olds should offer varied textures, deep grooves, flaps to lift, tabs to pull, die-cut pages and other surprises to make learning new concepts and ideas super fun! Some 3-year-olds still like board books, so if your little one is rough or likes to bite those bedtime books, make sure to grab stories that are durable!
Seek out recognizable experiences.
Kids love relating to stories. Look for books that contain experiences they know. Books featuring children at the park, at school, eating meals with family, and heading to the dentist and doctor prove their worth over and over again!
Use books to introduce new vocabulary.
Stories that connect words with pictures of common objects inside the house and classroom and outside or at the park are awesome for little learners.
Frequently Asked Questions
Absolutely! Many 3-year-olds still love to put objects in their mouths and rip up anything they can get their hands on. Board books, with both their thick covers and pages, are much more durable than paperback or hardback stories, holding up to lots of chomping and tearing!
While some 3-year-olds may in fact learn to read, this is far from the norm! Most children don’t begin learning how to read until kindergarten, and many are even older. If your child is not receptive to reading at this age, do not force it. They will be ready in time.
I absolutely adore Anne Wynter’s Everybody in the Red Brick Building, as featured below. I love giving voice to the onomatopoeia on every page as it just begs to be read aloud, and it is a perfect story to wind down a busy day and settle little ones for bed.
RELATED: We’ve got a fabulous list of kindergarten read-alouds for you to make storytime magical and meaningful, so be sure to check them out!
The best books for 3-year-olds your preschooler will love!
This is such a fabulous read-aloud, one that will have your little ones begging for rereads just so you can give voice to the incredible onomatopoeia on every page. When Baby Izzie wakes at night with a startling “waaah!” she sets off a chain reaction, waking up both people and animals in the red brick building. Though the clattering sounds on each page wake folks on every floor, all of the neighbors eventually settle down again as soft noises lull them back to sleep. It’s a fantastic book for 3-year-olds to wind down a busy day, and Mora’s exquisite illustrations are a perfect match for Wynter’s rhythmic text. A bedtime masterpiece.
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If you are looking for a book to make your little ones squeal with laughter, this is it. From the “chomp chomp” sounds to the fear of a watermelon seed growing within the tummy, to a great big final burp, this book makes our trio laugh loudly every single time. Bright, colorful illustrations and a zany story make this a winner. For more terrific children’s books about food, click the link!
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This book is so tender and lovely! I simply adore the way it describes what makes a house a home, and how all homes are perfect for the creatures living in them. Whether homes are hard or soft, wet or sky, loud or proud, home is anywhere you love. With lyrical, rhythmic text and vibrant, accessible illustrations, young kids will pore over these pages, marveling at the different places both people and animals call home. Perfect for an early childhood study about houses and homes, and equally perfect for a bedtime read, this one is a true gem for preschoolers!
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It has become quite apparent to me that Carter Higgins can do no wrong. And when teamed with exquisite illustrator Miyares, the result is a small piece of perfection. This book speaks to children who view the world through their own, unique lenses. Kids learn about size and categorization at young ages. Through these stunning pages, young readers won’t think simply about categorizing objects by physical size, but they will categorize special moments, feelings, and experiences, too. Poetic, reflective, and emotionally resonant, this book inspires meaningful conversation with kids young and old, with new meanings contemplated and considered each and every time the book is shared. Hands down, one of the best books for 3 year olds!
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This classic book is a delight for preschoolers. Each page contains a unique poem and gives readers a hint of what to search for in the illustrations. Part riddle, part fill in the blank, part seek and find, this is an interactive book that begs to be read again and again!
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This is a book of shapes! Until it isn’t, that is. Because suddenly this book about shapes is interrupted by an emu — and the emu is pushing a pancake wagon down a hill! What begins as a concept book is continually interrupted by silly animals engaging in even sillier activities, and I have no doubt it will totally delight your littlest readers. This is such a fun concept book for 3-year-olds that will elicit giggles not just from the kiddos, but from their grown-ups too. Such a delight!
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This fun rhyming read-aloud follows a young boy’s cat during the course of the day. No matter whether the cat is lounging, stretching, or sharpening his nails on a chair, this infectious read-aloud will have kids bopping to the rhythmic text as they delight in the story and the vibrant illustrations that purr with fabulous energy. A perfect book for 3-year-olds! For more darling children’s books about cats, click the link!
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There’s no debating it – my students are totally obsessed with this book, and it makes readers young and old crack up due to its hilarious text and even funnier illustrations. After all, while we all may know that “it’s good to eat a carrot/ it’s good to eat a steak/ it’s bad to bite your sister/ she’s not a piece of cake,” the reminder is always helpful! We simply love this fun series! Make sure to check out People Share With People, too, because there’s nothing more important than teaching preschoolers to be kind!
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This is such a fun book to read aloud as it puts a delightful twist on animal sounds! Kids will love how animals and vehicles combine for fun and a unique guessing game, as the sounds aren’t what they quite appear! With die cuts and mystery, this inventive book will inspire giggles and wonder as kids will be surprised with every page turn.
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This is such a fun read-aloud for preschoolers that serves as a concept book to teach colors, too! With pitch-perfect rhyme, the adorable story offers many opportunities for kids to interact as they journey along with the little brown mouse from house to house, through the garden, and on the bus among adorable rabbits. This one is pure joy and is destined to become a classic!
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In this twist on the Mother Goose poem, Mary is a style maven who helps other nursery rhyme characters get their glam on. But will they be too dressed up for recess? A total hoot, especially for your budding fashionistas! For more fabulous nursery rhyme books, click the link!
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If you love a good book that you can read and then sing, you will love this delightful story from Barefoot Books! Complete with a compact disc, this story pairs a guessing game with fun actions, leaving kids to wonder what animal is shaking in the tree and which one is slithering on the ground. If you need to get the kids up and shake out some of their energy, this book is for you!
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What young child doesn’t love to make things? Whether a little one is 2 or 5, opening cabinets, gathering materials, and creating can be an exhilarating – and even magical – experience for kids. Yet all grownups know that a hefty dose of patience is an important ingredient for any young maker, and it’s important that children recognize this vital requirement! I love how this book conveys that when we make anything, big or small, we must first gather our materials, then make, and then wait. Still, when we recognize and honor patience as a critical component of the process, wonderful things are bound to happen. This is such a wonderful book to leave out for kids in play areas and maker spaces!
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If you want to have an important discussion with your kids about impulse control (and if you love books about dogs), this book rocks! George is a dog with great intentions — really, really great intentions — until the day George’s owner leaves him alone. When George isn’t being watched by anyone, he notices that the cake on the table looks awfully delicious… and there are also flowers to pick and cats to chase. When George’s resolve begins to waver, will he be able to resist temptation? This is a family favorite!
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What child doesn’t love superheroes? With emotional intelligence being a tough concept for kids, this book offers preschoolers a fun way to navigate that all-consuming bad day. This is one of my favorite books for 3-year-olds as it shows different ways kids can calm themselves down and cope with emotions that threaten to overwhelm them. Always a hit, kids love to see that even all-powerful superheroes – those with super strength and the greatest abilities in the universe – fall prey to challenging days and crummy moods.
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This is a fabulous concept book that takes place in a bustling Nigerian market as a mother and her toddler shop for food. Baby is so cute that all the vendors can’t help but give him treats! As Mama’s basket grows heavier and heavier, Mama can’t help but worry that Baby is getting hungry. Little does she know that Baby’s having the time of his life, eating the special foods he’s been given, and putting some into Mama’s basket as well!
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Ring! Ring! Can you hear his call? Paletas for one! Paletas for all! Everyone knows Paletero Jose has the perfect treats for a blistering hot day, and this adorable book follows one boy as he goes on a search for the paletero man through his bustling neighborhood. But what happens when the narrator finds the paletero man but discovers the dinero in his pockets is gone? He’ll need the help of his multicultural community. We love this ode to neighbors, kindness, and paletas, of course!
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This book is a must for preschoolers! In this wonderful book about feelings, girls and boys feel many different emotions: happy, sad, silly, mad, and more. The detailed illustrations on each spread depict kids in various situations, and their facial expressions help little ones understand why they are experiencing particular feelings under the given circumstances. Simple, yet effective, I just adore this book to use as both a foundation for building emotional literacy and a springboard for having those vital early conversations with little ones about feelings.
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What a fabulous book this is! This clever story follows one young girl as she travels from her home to school and back home again, all through her busy neighborhood. This is a phenomenal story to teach kids directional concepts such as in, out, down, along, and onto. It is simple, effective, and a journey through prepositions that can be read repeatedly until preschoolers master these important terms. Love this one!
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This was one of the first books my oldest wanted to read over and over again. It is the funny tale of a peddler, his caps, and a whole slew of naughty monkeys! We love it for its repetition, incorporation of color recognition, and because it is just so much fun to act out. Those darn monkeys make this classic an absolute must!
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This book is not just helpful, but so important, too! Accidents happen to the best of us, but you know what makes us feel better after they happen? Fessing up, apologizing, cleaning up, and moving on… NOT running away from the problem. This great book for 3-year-olds teaches responsibility in a quirky, fresh, and crazy fun way, with animals running far away from their catastrophes where they then encounter even more problems. Only when a wise little birdie whispers the word “accident” do the animals realize how they can make things better. This is a wonderful romp for preschoolers!
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This is a quiet beauty about a young Muslim girl who plays dress-up in her mother’s colorful headscarf. It is a gorgeous and oh-so-important mirror book for Muslim children and a wonderful window book for others, especially as it so elegantly challenges Islamaphobic chatter. Mommy’s Khimar exudes warmth, love, and tenderness, and it is one of the most important multicultural picture books to read to kids and a beautiful book for 3-year-olds! For more fabulous children’s books about clothing, click here!
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This ode to children features beautifully diverse illustrations and details all of how each of us is remarkable. In pitch-perfect verse, it conveys to kids that each of us walks to the beat of our own drum. We are all wondrous, talented, and perfectly unique! Our special attributes are ones to celebrate, and no matter who we are or what we do, each of us can make a difference in our world! For our full review of Remarkably You, click here!
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This innovative book allows your child to be the grand master of the “story.” Preschoolers are invited to press, shake, tap, blow and clap, watching with awe as multi-colored dots “respond” to their physical input by multiplying, changing sizes/colors, and traveling around the pages. Your child will eat this book up, and you’ll be in heaven watching your kiddo squeal with delight as he interacts with each and every page. This great book for preschoolers helps kids learn to follow a simple sequence of instructions, and it also teaches kids about cause and effect in a fun and unique manner. For our full review of Press Here, click here!
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This is the sweetest friendship story for preschoolers! The book begins with an elephant waking up in a grumpy mood. Yet, he finds a present outside his door containing a fun new hat, and this brightens the elephant’s mood considerably! We then meet many more grumpy animals, each, in turn, made happier when the elephant and others share their hats. This book beautifully illustrates the concept of paying it forward, teaching 3-year-olds that even the simplest actions can brighten the world around them. For our full review of Hooray for Hat! click here!
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Your kids will learn all about the four seasons with this captivating interactive book that requires you to shake, wiggle, and tap its pages — and even blow it kisses! Little ones marvel at the way their efforts help one little tree change and ready itself for each season. Talk about magic! If you love this one, you will also love the other two books in this great series, Plant the Tiny Seed and Touch the Brightest Star.
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This is such a fabulous book that teaches kids how they can utilize their own breath to steer away from bad thoughts and bring in happy ones. It is an empowering story, one we love for the way it speaks authentically to children and helps them recognize they have so much control over their emotional being. We love mindfulness books for kids, and this one is so special!
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What are your favorite books for 3-year-olds? Let us know in the comments below!
Looking forward to more great stories!