Back to School books fly off the shelves this time of year, and each August I look forward to reading new ones that have recently been published. Here’s a short round-up of some of this year’s options!
Olu’s Teacher: A Story about Starting Preschool
By Jamal C. Campbell
Illustrated by Lydia Mba
Debut author Campbell is a 20-plus year veteran of early childhood education in the United Kingdom, so it’s no wonder that he accurately captures both the excitement and the nervousness of a child’s first day of preschool. Little Olu has lots of questions about what teachers are like: Where do they live? What do they eat? Do they breathe fire like a dragon? “Ohhhh…MACARONI!” he exclaims! Happily, Olu likes teacher Jay…who looks just like him—and is a Black male. Back matter includes great tips on getting children ready for school from the veteran teacher/author, including playing school, packing bookbags, taking a field trip to the school, and caregivers sharing their own school memories.
First Day, Hooray!
By June Sobel
Illustrated by Nabila Adani
This book takes a social-emotional look at the first day of school, giving names to all the strong and possibly conflicting feelings new students can have: happiness, worry, excitement, embarrassment, anger…ending with a feeling of “hooray!” As the book says, “Out of sight and stashed away, feelings visit us all day.” Back matter from Dr. Craig Bailey, Director of Early Childhood at the Yale Center for Emotional Intelligence, gives tips on using the book to delve into what the listening child is experiencing and giving them language about feelings to express themselves.
We Are a Class
By Rob Sanders
Illustrated by Hannah Abbo
Perfect to be read out loud, this inclusive rhyming book about what it means to be a class is inspirational. Members of a class may differ in how they get to school, their pronouns, what they want to be when they get older, and more, but when you get to the crux of the matter, “We’re more than a class. We’re family. When all of us gather, we’re stronger together. We are a class.”
The First Week of School
Written and illustrated by Drew Beckmeyer
This rather unique take on back to school follows the members of a class throughout the first week of the educational year, including an artist who’s afraid to share her work, a determined young inventor, a group of sporty friends, the teacher…and a “new student” who’s a bit…er…out of this world.
Have you found any new faves?
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