Our favorite spring books for children are here! The weather is getting warmer, which means you’ve got the perfect weather to grab some of these children’s books to read in the glorious weather. Enjoy!
Break out your spring books for children to enjoy in this warm weather!
Spring has officially arrived!
I’ll always love the way it comes in with the gentlest nudge, a breath of fresh air after the long, dreary days of Winter. With each calm breeze that kisses our skin, our bodies are rejuvenated, filled with warmth, and energy after so much time indoors. While I know it may not feel like Spring in certain parts of the country, there’s no doubt it will soon!
There’s nothing quite like seeing the world erupt into color after months and months of gray.
Spring books for children celebrate this vibrance!
Bright flowers and dazzling butterflies compete for attention, fruit trees spill their offerings to the ground below, and the crunch of fresh vegetables is mouthwatering. I love when the grass becomes soft under our toes and tiny blooms begin to dot the landscape with color. So long jackets and scarves, hello bathing suits and sandals!
As the days get warmer and gloriously longer, our children have more time to explore the wondrous outdoors. They love nothing more than digging their hands into sun-warmed soil to plant a new garden, watching inch worms creep along bright green leaves, and giggling at lady bugs dancing delicately on their fingers.
These long day ahead, with their sunshine and sun showers, sprinklers and sports games, lend themselves perfectly to the magic of storytelling — and Spring books for children perfectly capture this beautiful season. So make sure that you pitch a tent in your backyard and gaze at the stars before you head into your sleeping bag, or simply take a break from diving into swimming pools to enjoy some wonderful stories with a glass of ice cold lemonade.
Here are some of our favorite books celebrating the magic of the outdoors and those first beautiful blooms of Spring. Enjoy!
The Essential List of Spring Books for Children!
The Gardener, by Sarah Stewart and illustrated by David Small: When Lydia goes to stay with her uncle in the big gray city, she brings a suitcase full of seeds with her. She slowly brings joy to the people around her with the flowers she grows, but its the rooftop garden she creates that truly infuses her world with color.
Abracadabra its Spring!, by Anne Sibley O’Brien and Susan Gal: When winter’s chill gives way to the warmth of Spring, the world comes ablaze with color. Bare branches and snow give rise to green shoots, baby birds and fragrant flowers. This is a colorful beauty, with twelve gatefold pages that will mesmerize young children.
This is the Nest That Robin Built, by Denise Fleming: Robin needs help building his nest! With a little help from his friends, this sweet story shows how we can accomplish so much when we work together to achieve a common goal. The squirrel helps trim the twigs to anchor the robin’s nest. The dog brings the string to wrap around the twigs that anchor the robin’s nest. The horse shares straw, the pig mixes mud, the mouse gathers weeds and the rabbit picks the grass to anchor the robin’s nest. It goes on and on, until the nest is built and the young fledglings that hatch within are ready to fly. For our full review of This is the Nest that Robin Built, click here!
Color Wonder Hooray for Spring, by Chiêu Anh Urban: Kiddos will love learning about Spring with this unique book, complete with two interactive spinners that allow them to create colors right in the middle of the flower on the page. This book is a gem for teaching toddlers colors and color mixing, because its two different wheels make it easy to show what happens when, for example, red and yellow are mixed to create orange!
The Curious Garden, by Peter Brown: This is a quietly beautiful story about a boy in a dreary town who discovers a straggling garden while out on a walk one day. He decides to care for it, nurturing the garden with love, patience and perseverance, even after it is harmed by the elements. Under his care, the garden grows and grows, bringing life to the city and blue to the skies. This book is stunning both in story and illustration, with themes of determination, environmental activism, and community improvement.
And Then It’s Spring, by Julie Fogliano and illustrated by Erin Stead: Winter has ended, and a young boy decides it is time to brighten up the world outside. He and his dog thus work hard to cultivate a garden. They dig and plant and water, and then they wait and wait. And then, at last, after much patience, perseverance and dedication, the garden slowly… slowly … starts to bloom.
Miss Rumphius, by Barbara Cooney: This will always be a favorite of mine! If you have children who long to make the world a more beautiful place, this timeless story is a must. Miss Rumphius, has a desire to do three things: live by the sea, travel, and beautify her surroundings. With some great big wanderlust and some small but mighty lupine seeds, the “lupine lady” left her legacy blooming all along the coast of Maine.
Florette, by Anna Walker: When a young girl is uprooted and moves to a new home in a concrete jungle, she longs for her old garden and decides she must find a way to create a new one. Though her plans are met with obstacles at every turn, she eventually finds a lush green forest in the middle of her city, and with it, some fresh hope.
Plant the Tiny Seed, by Christie Matheson: If you are looking for a lively and fun interactive book to get your kids excited about the coming of Spring, this sweet story is a must! Plant the Tiny Seed is a fabulous book to get little ones engaged in the idea of planting gardens – they can wiggle their fingers to water the seeds, clap to make the sun shine, and even shoo away pesky snails. Your kids will delight in watching tiny seedlings grow into beautiful flowers, resulting in a vibrant garden filled with bees, butterflies and hummingbirds too.
When Spring Comes, by Kevin Henkes: We love this beautiful book that show what the world outside is like before Spring comes, and how it changes with the arrival of warm weather and sunshine. Henkes uses alliteration and figurative language to showcase what happens when the seasons change, perfectly capturing the wonders of our natural world and the awakening of plants and animals.
When Green Becomes Tomatoes: Poems for all Seasons, by Julie Fogliano and illustrated by Julie Morstad: Everyone knows I adore this author/illustrator team, and this book simply sings. Beautiful poems spotlighting random days throughout the year convey the beauty of each season. Starting and ending on March 20th, it is a perfect read to celebrate the start of spring!
Planting a Rainbow, by Lois Ehlert: How do you plant a rainbow? Buy bulbs and seeds, plant them in the dirt, and care for them until they grow! A beautiful board book that will give your littlest kids a wonderful primary on both colors and flowers.
Tree: A Peek Through Picture Book, by Britta Teckentrup: This stunning picture book celebrates a single tree as it journeys though the seasons. Vibrant and buzzing with animal life in the spring and summer, quiet and lonely in the winter, children will learn first hand about the seasons, a tree’s life cycle, and so many of the animals that make their homes between leafy branches.
Because of an Acorn, by Lola M. Schaefer and Adam Schaefer and illustrated by Frann Preston-Gannon: I love the way this book so beautifully illustrates the circle of life! Because of an acorn, a tree will grow, a bird will make a nest, and a seed will become a flower. This book is a wonderful tool to highlight how the ecosystem is symbiotic, with all parts connected and working together. The die cut pages and very simple text make this a fabulous book for your youngest readers!
Up in the Garden and Down in the Dirt, by Kate Messner: A fabulous companion to Over and Under the Snow, this book shows what happens above and below the soil. Above the soil, the gardens are abuzz with green leaves, fragrant flowers and ripe colorful fruit. But below the soil, there are worms burrowing, snakes slithering and other animals making their homes in the garden. Love!
The Butterfly House, by Katy Flint and illustrated by Alice Pattullo: You guys! This one is a total stunner. For those of you that love butterflies – or teach about them in your classrooms or homeschools – you will fall in love with this book that gives a peek into 100 different butterfly and moth species. From monarchs to green swallowtails, this gorgeous book, complete with tons of facts and exquisite illustrations, is a winner all around.
A Seed is Sleepy, by Dianna Hutts Aston and illustrated by Sylvia Long: This is another beauty, one that intrigues young kids who have obsessions with seeds! Whether your children love collecting them, planting them, or imagining what may sprout from them, this book answers so many of the big questions kids have about seeds. A perfect introductory read. Gorgeous illustrations combine with fascinating facts to make this one a total gem!
Drawn from Nature, by Helena Ahpornsiri: Though this book discusses all of the seasons, it is a perfect read for Spring as each exquisite illustration is made entirely from pressed plants and flowers. This is a fabulous text to teach your kids and students all about the natural world, and it beautifully captures the wonder of each season.
Caterpillar and Bean: A First Science Storybook, by Martin Jenkins and illustrated by Hannah Tolson: If you have a budding environmentalist or scientist in your home, she will love this first science storybook that gives a lovely introductory view of the interaction between plants and insects. From caterpillars to plants, the two grow side by side and together throughout the year, until they come full circle.
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