Highlands Montessori Favorite Books
Choosing Books Through a Montessori Lens:
Many people believe that children are most interested in fantastical stories. This couldn’t be further from the truth! To a young child, the whole world is so new and exciting that a child is just as interested in reading about a real panda that lives in Asia as they are about reading a fantasy story about dragons or fairies. In fact, children tend to like relatable stories most of all! We choose interesting non-fiction or reality-based fiction books with beautiful illustrations and a rich vocabulary.
Daily Life
A Letter to Amy by Ezra Jack Keats
A River by Marc Martin
A Squash and a Squeeze by Julia Donaldson
Ask Me by Bernard Waber
Dress Up and Let's Have a Party by Remy Charlip
Ella Sarah Gets Dressed by Margaret Chodos Irvine
Emily's Balloon by Komako Sakai
Feel Better Daddy: A Story About Empathy by Nancy Loewen
Float by Daniel Miyares
Fortunately by Remy Charlip
Good People Everywhere by Lynea Gillen
Hands Can by Cheryl Willis Hudson
How To by Julie Morstad
How to Heal a Broken Wing by Bob Graham
Hey, Cat! By Ezra Jack Keats
I Had a Favorite Dress by Boni Ashburn
I Had a Favorite Hat by Boni Ashburn
Ideas Are All Around by Philip C. Stead
Jessica's Box by Peter Carnavas
Last Stop On Market Street by Matt de la Peña
Maple and Willow Apart by Lori Nichols
Maple and Willow Together by Lori Nichols
Nana in the City by Lauren Castillo
Now by Antoinette Portis
On Meadowview Street by Henry Cole
One Morning in Maine by Robert McCloskey
Over the Ocean by Taro Gomi
Sidewalk Flowers by JonArno Lawson
Sing a Song of People by Lois Lenski
Still Stuck by Shinsuke Yoshitake
The Bagel King by Andrew Larsen
The Balcony by Melissa Castrillon
The Swing by Robert Louis Stevenson, illustrated by Julie Morstad
Those Shoes by Maribeth Boelts
Today by Julie Morstad
Up! by Kristine O'Connell George
Wet by Carey Sookocheff
What Do Grown-ups Do All Day? by Virginie Morgand
Whistle for Willie by Ezra Jack Keats
Windows by Julia Denos
Walk This World by Jenny Broom
Yard Sale by Eve Bunting
Babies and Families
A Family is a Family is a Family by Sara O'Leary
Babies Can Sleep Anywhere by Lisa Wheeler
Baby Day by Jane Godwin
Cinnamon Baby by Nicola Winstanley
Everywhere Babies by Susan Meyers
Hooray for Babies! by Susan Meyers
Little Big Girl by Claire Keane
Mama, Do You Love Me? by Barbara Joosse
Maple by Lori Nichols
Old Dog Baby Baby by Julie Fogliano
One Family by George Shannon
One Special Day by Lola Schaefer
Peter's Chair by Ezra Jack Keats
Pots and Pans by Patricia Hubbell
Side by Side: A Celebration of Dads by Chris Raschka
When I Was Born by Isabel Minhós Martins
You are New by Lucy Knisley
Seasons
And Then It's Spring by Julie Fogliano
Apples and Pumpkins by Anne Rockwell
Around the Town All Year Round by Rotraut Susanne Berner
At the Beach by Anne Rockwell
First Snow by Bomi Park
Green Green: A Community Gardening Story by Marie Lamba
In the Middle of Fall by Kevin Henkes
Little Pear Tree by Rachel Williams
Mama, Is It Summer Yet? by Nikki McClure
Over and Under the Snow by Kate Meesner
Planting a Rainbow by Lois Ehlert
Rain by Robert Kalan
Rain! by Linda Ashman
Singing in the Rain by Tim Hopgood
Snow by Uri Shulevitz
Snow Happy! by Patricia Hubbell
The Snowy Day by Ezra Jack Keats
Tree: A Peek-Through Picture Book by Britta Teckentrup
Umbrella by Taro Yashima
Up in the Garden and Down in the Dirt by Kater Messner
Walking in a Winter Wonderland by Peggy Lee
When Green Becomes Tomatoes: Poems for All Seasons by Julie Fogliano
Yellow Time by Lauren Stringer
Holidays and Celebrations
Apple Cake: A Gratitude by Dawn Casey
Dia De Los Muertos by Roseanne Greenfield Thong
Maple and Willow's Christmas Tree by Lori Nichols
Pick a Pine Tree by Patricia Toht
Pick a Pumpkin by Patricia Toht
Queen of the Hanukkah Dosas by Pamela Ehrenberg
Stopping by the Woods on a Snowy Evening by Robert Frost
The Shortest Day by Susan Cooper
The Twelve Days of Christmas by Britta Teckentrup
Walk This World At Christmastime by Debbie Powell
Way Too Many Latkes: A Hanukkah in Chelm by Linda Glaser
When's My Birthday by Julie Fogliano
Animals
A Ball for Daisy by Chris Raschka
A Dog Day by Emily Rand
A Greyhound and a Groundhog by Emily Jenkins
And Tango Makes Three by Justin Richardson and Peter Parnell
Beastly Babies by Ellen Jackson
Blueberries for Sal by Robert McCloskey
Bugs! Bugs! Bugs! by Bob Barner
Butterfly Butterfly: A Book of Colors by Petr Horacek
Daisy Gets Lost by Chris Raschka
Dogs by Emily Gravett
Fabian Escapes by Peter McCarty
Hannah and Sugar by Kate Berube
Harry the Dirty Dog by Gene Zion
Hondo and Fabian by Peter McCarty
If You Want to See a Whale by Julie Fogliano
In the Meadow by Yukiko Kato
In the Tall, Tall Grass by Denise Fleming
Kitten's First Full Moon by Kevin Henkes
Little Honeybee by Katie Haworth
Moonlight by Helen V. Griffith
My Dog Spot by Jack E. Levin
No Roses for Harry by Gene Zion
Owl Moon by Jane Yolen
Play With Me by Marie Hall Ets
Polar Bear Morning by Lauren Thompson
Polar Bear Night by Lauren Thompson
Shh! We Have a Plan by Chris Haughton
Some Bugs by Angela DiTerlizzi
Some Pets by Angela DiTerlizzi
They All Saw a Cat by Brendan Wenzel
Wait! Wait! by Hatsue Nakawaki
Wating for Wings by Lois Ehlert
We're Going on a Bear Hunt by Helen Oxenbury
Hobbies and Special Interests
Ben's Trumpet by Rachel Isadora
Everyone Can Learn to Ride a Bicycle by Chris Raschka
I Am Yoga by Susan Verde
If You Want to See a Whale by Julie Fogliano
Jabari Jumps by Gaia Cornwall
Jake at Gymnastics by Rachel Isadora
Lily Brown's Paintings by Angela Johnson
Max by Rachel Isadora
Maybe Something Beautiful: How Art Transformed A Neighborhood by F. Isabel Campoy
Miss Lina's Ballerinas by Grace Maccarone
Saturday is Swimming Day by Hyewon Yum
The Toolbox by Anne and Harlow Rockwell
Transportation
Airplanes by Byron Barton
Along a Long Road by Frank Viva
Bus Stops by Taro Gomi
Construction by Sally Sutton
Demolition by Sally Sutton
Dig! by Andrea Zimmerman
Freight Train by Donald Crews
Roadwork by Sally Sutton
School Bus by Donald Crews
Transportation by Alain Grée
Trashy Town by Andrea Zimmerman
Trucks Go by Steve Light
Food and Cooking
Bread, Bread, Bread by Ann Morris
Dim Sum for Everyone by Grace Lin
Growing Vegetable Soup by Lois Ehlert
Eating the Alphabet by Lois Ehlert
On the Farm, At the Market by G. Brian Karas
Pancakes for Breakfast by Tomie dePaola
Soup Day by Melissa Iwai
The Apple Pie that Papa Baked by Lauren Thompson
Tony Baroni Loves Macaroni by Marilyn Sadler
Science, Geography and Cultural
A Rock is Lively by Dianna Aston
A Seed is Sleepy by Dianna Aston
All the World by Liz Garton Scanlon
An Island Grows by Lola Schaefer
Dinosaurs, Dinosaurs by Byron Barton
Hats, Hats, Hats by Ann Morris
Houses and Homes by Ann Morris
Maps by Aleksandra Mizielinska
Shoes, Shoes, Shoes by Ann Morris
This is My House by Arthur Dorros
Trees by Lemniscates
Water and Land by Christy Hale
You Are Light by Aaron Becker
Zoo-ology by Emmanuelle Grundmann
Early Learning Concepts
1,2,3 Dream by Kim Krans
Almost Everything by Joelle Jolivet
Before After by Matthias Arégui
Can You Count to a Googol? by Robert E. Wells
Green by Laura Vaccaro Seeger
Green is a Chile Pepper by Roseanne Thong
How Big Is a Foot? by Rolf Myller
I Know Numbers by Taro Gomi
In by Nikki McClure
Red is a Dragon by Roseanne Thong
Round by Joyce Sidman
Round is a Mooncake: A Book of Shapes by Roseanne Thong
Round is a Tortilla: A Book of Shapes by Roseanne Thong
The Odd One Out by Britta Teckentrup
Where Did They Go? by Emily Bornoff
Where's the Baby? by Britta Teckentrup
Where's the Pair? by Britta Teckentrup
Biography
Coco Chanel: Little People, Big Dreams by Maria Isabel Sánchez Vegara
David Bowie: Little People, Big Dreams by Maria Isabel Sánchez Vegara
Harlem’s Little Blackbird: The Story of Florence Mills by Reneé Watson
Maria Montessori: Little People, Big Dreams by Maria Isabel Sánchez Vegara
Mary Wears What She Wants by Keith Negley
Me…Jane by Patrick McDonnell
Muhammad Ali: Little People, Big Dreams by Maria Isabel Sánchez Vegara
Pocket Full of Colors: The Magical World of Mary Blair, Disney Artist Extraordinaire by Amy Guglielmo & Jaqueline Tourville
Pop! The Invention of Bubble Gum by Meghan McCarthy