Activities for Kids Archives

5 Minute Meditations For Kids: A New Podcast to Help Kids Find Their Calm

September 9, 2024

Welcome to our exciting new podcast, “Five Minute Meditations for Kids,” where we believe that a calm mind and a confident heart are just five minutes away! 🌟 Whether you’re a parent, teacher, or coach, this podcast is designed to help kids find their calm, enhance their focus, and build their self-esteem through simple and...

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20 Easy Bird Crafts & Activities for Kids

May 6, 2024

Birds are a great subject, especially for kids. They’re very familiar yet still magical. What little child doesn’t dream about flying? And with all their different colors and varieties, birds offer an endless source of learning. Use these 20 bird crafts and activities for kids to start them on the learning journey of a lifetime....

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20 Weather Crafts for Preschool

May 3, 2024

Discover a World of Weather-themed Crafts for Preschoolers Weather is an exciting topic for preschoolers to explore, and what better way to dive into it than through fun and engaging crafts? Let’s embark on a creative journey with these 20 weather-themed craft ideas designed specifically for preschool-aged kids. From rainy day umbrellas to sunny sun...

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The 50 best read-aloud chapter books for young kids

December 14, 2023

I love to read chapter books aloud to my two boys. Even though my six year old is getting to the point where he can read on his own I still love snuggling up with a good book with my boys on either side of me. It is great bonding time and fun to have...

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Wendy
True Blue Scouts of Sugar Man Swamp. A Little Princess.ReplyCancel
Carol gibson
The Secret in Miranda’s Closet by Sheila GrenwaldReplyCancel
Katie
How old are your kids? Little Pear is great, The Courage of Sarah Noble, Mr. Poppers Penguins, Tumtum and Nutmeg, Fancy Nancy chapter books and American Girl books. I have almost 4 year old girl and 20 month boy. May be a challenge to find read alouds they both enjoy down the road!ReplyCancel
Gabriela
Where The Red Fern Grows
I enjoyed reading this book to my son. Especially in the end. It was a very sad ending, but it was good to see that my son could be affected by the written word.ReplyCancel
Traci
Anne of Green Gables series was a favorite of my kids!ReplyCancel
Tisha
Can’t leave out “My Father’s Dragon” by Ruth Stiles Gannett! Kids love that three-book series! Also any of the Junior Classics for Young Readers – if you really want a fun one to do the voices, try Treasure Island!ReplyCancel
Shannon
My 4 year old daughter and I are reading round 2 of Ella Enchanted… but don’t make the mistake of trying to watch the movie. A great girl power spin on an old fairy tale.ReplyCancel
Meg
Another great one is The Prince of the Pond by Joanna Napoli. I remember this one from 4th grade and bought it for myself with my first paycheck after I turned 18. Still one of my favorite stories. 😀ReplyCancel
Heidi
Thank you for this excellent list! This includes many of my favorites. I have 5 children ages 12, 10, 8, 8, and 4. The youngest doesn’t always get as much out of reading together as the rest, but to this day their favorite 2 books we’ve read aloud are “Chitty Chitty Bang Bang Flies Again” by Frank Cottrell Boyce and “The Magician’s Elephant” by Katie DiCamillo. Thought I’d mention them, since I didn’t see them on there. Anything by Roald Dahl or J.K. Rowling is pretty high up on their list of favorites as well.ReplyCancel
Mindy
Junie B Jones, the Fudge Series by Judy Blume, James & the Giant Peach, Boxcar Children, Homer Price have been our favorites so far (son just turned 6). Thanks for the new ones to add to our list!!ReplyCancel
Denny Shaffner
Where the Red Fern Grows
and The Education of Little Tree.ReplyCancel
Charlotte
There’s a number on there we have read (my boys are six and four) and many we haven’t that I will be getting hold of. Some other ideas, that we have been reading: the Faraway Tree series, Secret Seven and Famous Five, all by Enid Blyton; The Children of Green Knowe by Lucy Boston; The String Family by Patricia Cleveland, My Naughty Little Sister and the Tales of Joe and Timothy by Dorothy Edwards, the Melendy books by Elizabeth Enright.ReplyCancel
Patrick
One Thousand and One Nights (AKA Arabian Nights)ReplyCancel
Leah Harvath
Great list! I still read read to my boys and they are 10 and 14. It’s such a great opportunity to bond with your kids over a good book and then discuss it afterwards. Love it!
–Leah @ http://www.fabulousfarmgirl.comReplyCancel
Petra Lucas
Love this list! I’m pleased that I have some of them already but it never occurred to me to read them to my little guy already. Thanks for sharing this. You have inspired me to write about reading with my little boy. 🙂ReplyCancel
Alyssae
The Neverending Story by Michael Ende! My parents read it to me when I was 4 and it is still one of my favorite books ever!ReplyCancel
Emma Jenkins
The Secret Garden andThe Last of the Great Wangdoodles wasn’t mentioned. I loved reading some of these books you listed as a child.ReplyCancel
Melissa Hadfield
You guys are awesome! Thanks for sharing some of your favorite books with me! You are reminding me of so many books that I loved as a child and forgot about. Keep the suggestions coming!ReplyCancel
Emma
I’m 16 and love to read…..I remember I read American Girl books and the Dear America series in 3rd grade and would go to the library all the time. The Littles, The Best Christmas Pageant Ever, Caddie Woodlawn, Number the Stars, Because of Winn Dixie, Tuck Everlasting, Runaway Emily, A Wrinkle in Time…..the list goes on and on and onReplyCancel
Emily
Wish for suggested ages for these!! We read thru several when our kiddo was 5, but ‘The Tale of Desperaux’ was TOO MUCH – the mom drowning in her soup scarred my son deeply. It took months to undo the damage!! (Great story – just not for that age – I wish someone had told me!)ReplyCancel
- Melissa Hadfield
  So good to know about the Tale of Despereaux! I have had it recommended to me, so that is why it made the list. I made this list with 4-8 year olds in mind.ReplyCancel
- Jamie
  I read The Tale of Desperaux to my 5 and 7 year olds and was worried at certain parts that it would be too much for them (they are both pretty sensitive!), but they absolutely LOVED it and said it was the best book we’d ever read! But, they couldn’t make it through Charlie and the Chocolate Factory – that terrified them! Go figure. 🙂 So hard to know how stories will affect individual children!ReplyCancel
Jerica
I teach second grade and most of the books you listed are on my bookshelf in my classroom. My favorite childhood series were Little House on the Prairie, The Babysitters Club, & Anne of Green Gables. A new series I’ve discovered as an adult is the Clementine series – I read it out loud to my class for the first time and found myself laughing out loud more often than they did. I also enjoyed Lulu and the Brontosaurus – it provides lots of dramatic demonstrations opportunities! Thanks for sharing your list – I’m inspired to start a new read with my class next week!ReplyCancel
Abbie L.
The Wind in the Willows, Inkheart, The Secret Garden; and if you can find it The Stray by Dick King Smith is an amazing book! Also, for older kids, Fig Pudding by Ralph J. Fletcher is really good. It does have the death of a family member in it, but it is a beautiful story and deals with grief very well; rare in a children’s story.ReplyCancel
Emily
Love some of these! I’m a 1st grade teacher, currently reading Sideways Stories From Wayside School and my kids are laughing hysterically! I would really recommend the Magic Tree House series. Another funny series that I’ve used before is the Mrs. Piggle-Wiggle series. As a kid, I know that my mom read The Lion, The Witch, and the Wardrobe to me. For slightly older kid, some of the Bruce Coville books like Jennifer Murgley’s Toad or Jeremy Thatcher Dragon Hatcher are great!ReplyCancel
Nicolette
A top that I’ve read for people with children spread out in age is to read art the oldest child’s level. They are the most likely to get bored.ReplyCancel
Darcy
One I read to my classes is Walk Two Moons by Sharon CreechReplyCancel
Samurai Mom
The Tale of Despereaux by Kate diCamillo, SO SO much better than the movie!ReplyCancel
Deb
I think they’re mostly out of print but the All of a Kind Family series was one of my favorites.ReplyCancel
- Dee Tee
  I ADORE the All of A a kind Family books!! Read them over and over and over…ReplyCancel
- Kayla
  We had two All of Kind Family books growing up, and I loved them! I need to ask my mom if she still has them…!ReplyCancel
Lauren
My 4 year old and I loved Betsy-Tacy 🙂 The second one, Betsy-Tacy and Tib, was good, too. But I heard the next one was when the kids are in High School, so that’ll probably need to wait few years. We are enjoying a Katie Kazoo Switcheroo book right now. We’ll be checking out a new one from the library soon!ReplyCancel
Nicole
Great list. Another book my boys loved is The Penderwicks: A Summer Tale of Four Sisters, Two Rabbits, and a Very Interesting Boy by Jeanne Birdsall. We’re currently all enjoying Flora and Ulysses by Katie DiCamillo. This book begs to be read aloud!ReplyCancel
Jennifer
Wolf Story, Jenny and the Cat ClubReplyCancel
Tiffany
The Miraculous Journey of Edward Tulane by Kate DiCamillo. 8 year old and up
Love, love, love it!!ReplyCancel
Emily
The Penderwicks, Trixie Belden series, The Little House series, Depend on Katie John by Mary Calhoun, and the Santa Paws series by Nicholas Edwards are all wonderful books for younger kids. I also enjoyed the Bobbsey twins when I could find that series.ReplyCancel
tori
I love Mrs. Piggle Wiggle. A childhood favorite that I have read to my kids and my students every year. A must read. There are 3 in the series but the first is my favorite!ReplyCancel
Lisa
Anything by Kate DiCamillio is a wonderful read aloud. I teach 3rd grade and my students all love the stories. But they are not Disney style endings- or middles- or beginnings. They have real emotions which I think most 3rd graders appreciate. That said, you NEED to read your books ahead of time. Don’t ever let it be in front of the kids as your first read. This will save you awkward cover ups for fowl language, or images or themes that they aren’t ready for. I also love Carl Hiaasen young adult books, and M.T. Anderson- for silliness.ReplyCancel
Linda
One of the very best read aloud books I read to my kids was The Invention of Hugo Cabret by Brian Selznick–my kids could hardly stand to wait to read the next chapter. We would study the drawings to really capture the happenings in the story. Years later the movie came out and we all enjoyed watching our favorite book adapted to that medium.ReplyCancel
Karen
The White Giraffe series is amazing. White Giraffe, Dolphin Song, The Last Leopard, & The Elephants Tale.ReplyCancel
Samantha
Peter Pan is not written by Bobby Driscol. The story was created by J. M. Barrie. Driscol was the voice actor for the Disney cartoon. And you linked it to the movie, not to a read aloud book. Otherwise great list, I would add Winnie the Pooh 😀ReplyCancel
Tonya
What an amazing list!! I remember reading some of these as a kid and my kids already have and have read a bunch of these as well. So glad I kept some of my book collections as a kid to pass on to mine. Oh, a great book to add to your list (my absolute favorite) Where The Red Fern Grows. LOVE it!ReplyCancel
Emma
The Magic series by Edward Eager were my FAVORITE when I was a kid. Also, I’m glad to see so much Roald Dahl on this list 🙂ReplyCancel
Alex esarey
The Last of the Really Great wangdoodles! My students love it!ReplyCancel
Ashley Jenkins
Phyllis Reynolds naylor has a series about Alice McKinley! They are awesome!!!!ReplyCancel
Addeee000
This is a fantastic list. Thank you for the post! For the past few weeks my partner and I have been reading our 6 year old the first book of the Harry Potter series – which we were disappointed to have not seen on your list! While we weren’t sure he would be able to grasp the complexities of the novel, to our astonishment and utter delight he has! Not only does he follow me around the house daily asking if we can read more, he has infinitely impressed us with his comprehensive understanding of the story and it’s characters. I avidly agree that it is imperative to not underestimate our kids and recommend the HP series for your little ones!ReplyCancel
Cathy
One that is often missed, but shouldn’t be, is The Last of the Really Great Wangdoodles by Julie Andrews Edwards. It is a wonderful read aloud with colorful imagery and great characters.ReplyCancel
Morgan
My absolute favorite is The Little Prince by Antoine de Saint-Exupéry. It’s a beautiful story and adults learn from it as well!
Another that I read as a kid and still remember to this day is The Bridge to Terebithia. Heartbreaking, but really good.ReplyCancel
Patty
Wonder by: R.J Palacio, I read it with my nine year old son, It is an amazing book. A must read.ReplyCancel
Chanel Atkinson
My mom read so many of these as I eas growing up, some of my favorite memories. I can’t wait to read them to my own one day.ReplyCancel
Sonja
Great for 7 – 9 year olds as read alouds–The Castle in the Attic by Elizabeth Winthrop and Gone-Away Lake by Elizabeth Enright. These are both adventure type books that both boys and girls enjoy. They both have sequals when your kids ask for more! I always read to our kids on car rides and all three of my children love reading and were identified as “gifted” in school. This sounds terrible but I don’t think they were as gifted as they were “prepared” with a rich vocabulary and experiences. They are now adults and still prolific readers. Talk with your kids!!ReplyCancel
Jessica
A lot of wonderful books have been mentioned. These aren’t for really young kids, but I also loved reading Maniac Magee, Savvy, Remarkable, and the Giver to my kids. Love A Wrinkle in Time too, but I’m not sure my kids were ready for it.ReplyCancel
- Camille Walker
  Awww, I love Wrinkle in time too! You can check out our “read aloud” chapter books post that you might enjoy as well! 🙂 Thanks for the input we’ll add them to the list!ReplyCancel
Branden
Great list! My 4 year old son and I have read several of these this summer and we can’t wait to go the the library to check out more of your suggestions. Others we have read, that aren’t on your list, include My Father’s Dragon and Doctor Doolittle. He loved both of these. Thanks for the great suggestions!ReplyCancel
Rachel
Mary Poppins is just so wonderful! I read it to my precocious three and a half year old, and he was riveted. Still talks about it now that he is six. Vivid imagery and appreciation for the plasticity of imagination/real world play when very young.ReplyCancel
Ashleigh
Gone Away Lake and Return to Gone Away by Elizabeth Enright are excellent reads as well. The main characters are a boy and a girl (cousins). They find a ghost town and basically make it their go to place. It’s such a fun story.ReplyCancel
Roni
I agree with Tiffany-The Miraculous Journey of Edward Tulane is phenomenal!!! My daughter & second graders LOVED this book!!!ReplyCancel
Page
So many great books already listed! Adding the following that my children loved when 4-10. The Freddy Books by Walter R. Brooks; The Enchanted Forest Chronicles by Patricia C. Wrede’s; Childhood of Famous America Series; Misty of Chincoteague and anything else written by Marguerite Henry; The Phantom Tollbooth by Norton Juster; A Year Down Yonder by Richard Peck; The Pony Pals series by Jeanne Betancourt; Pippi Longstockings; and the Cherry Ames series by Helen WellsReplyCancel
Seth
Page- I have read The Phantom Tollbooth to my kids too and I have loved as they did since I was young. It’s fun and challenging for the person reading it too. Great list. Thank you all for sharing!ReplyCancel
Stephanie
What about for an 18 month old? We read lots of books and at bedtime she loves to snuggle up and listen to longer stories. We read Dr. Seuss’ Sleep Book almost every night. I’d love to broaden our horizons a bit!ReplyCancel
- Melissa Hadfield
  Stephanie,
  That’s a great question! 18 months old is still too little for chapter books, but really any picture book is great. My kids have all loved Sandra Boynton books. They are silly and cute and they might even have you giggling a little. We have also really like “If you give a…” books. Like “If you Give a Mouse a Cookie” and “If You Give a Pig a Pancake.”ReplyCancel
Lisha
I don’t see any books on that list that are culturally diverse.ReplyCancel
Abigail
Thank you for making this list! I have read some of these to my 7,6, and 4 year old but i found interesting titles I’m sure my kids will want to explore! The one book we are currently on is Stuart Little. am i reading this book wrong? I had never read Stuart Little but have seen the movies and knew of the books. My son picked it out since it was his turn and i was more than excited. EB White has been one of our favorites and have read Charlotte’s Webb Five times, however This book seemed to have run on sentences and the chapters were more of a random collections of things Stuart has done in his life. ON the last chapter my son asked me to move on that he didn’t want to read it and even though i was secretly glad i was also very disappointed. My daughters also said they didn’t enjoy the book.ReplyCancel
Smitha504
I’m really impressed with your writing skills as well as with the layout on your blog. Is this a paid theme or did you customize it yourself? Anyway keep up the excellent quality writing, its rare to see a great blog like this one these days.. deabbddadgcdecdbReplyCancel
Sacha
We are reading through the Heartwood Hotel series right now and it is adorable. Very feel good and appropriate for any age, I am reading to my 8, 6, and 2 yr old. ReplyCancel
How to Have the Best Summer Balance as a Mom | Lori Oberbroeckling - Camille Walker
[…] Access Camille’s book recommendations:mymommystyle.com/the-50-best-read-aloud-chapter-books-for-young-kidsmymommystyle.com/50-favorite-chapter-books-to-read-aloud-to-young-children […]ReplyCancel

50 easy DIY projects made from items in your recycling bin

November 27, 2023

We have been talking all about recycling this week for our Summer Learning Series. We have shared art projects for kids using recycled materials, but now it’s time for the grown ups. Here is a round up of my favorite useful DIY projects using recycled materials. In a world that’s increasingly conscious of its environmental...

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Creating Spooky Fun: DIY Paper Halloween House Craft

October 21, 2023

Craft Your Spooky Haunted House and Enjoy Fun Treats! 🏡🎃 Exciting Halloween Craft Alert! 🎃🏡 Get Ready for Crafting Fun When Halloween is just around the corner, there’s no better way to embrace the spooky spirit than by creating your own DIY Paper Halloween House. It’s a perfect activity for kids, families, and craft enthusiasts...

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The 3 Best DIY Play Dough Recipes

June 29, 2023

Play dough is a timeless favorite among kids and adults alike. Its squishy texture and endless possibilities for imaginative play make it a must-have in any creative arsenal. Instead of buying store-bought play dough, why not try making it yourself? In this DIY blog post, we’ll share three simple and fun play dough recipes that...

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Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom – An Adventure Worth Shedding Tears For

May 26, 2023

Welcome, fellow adventurers and Zelda enthusiasts, to the realm of Hyrule once again! Today, we embark on a journey filled with excitement, puzzles, and the ever-present sense of awe. Nintendo has graced us with yet another masterpiece in the form of “Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom.” Prepare yourself for a captivating experience that will test...

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Screen Time for Kids: Why Parental Controls are Essential in the Digital Age

May 17, 2023

In today’s digital age, it’s common for children to spend hours upon hours on their tablets and phones. While these devices offer entertainment and educational value, it’s important for parents to ensure that their kids are using them safely and appropriately. That’s where finding the best parental control app comes in. Parental controls are a...

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Spring Break Staycation Activities for Kids

February 27, 2023

In the past few years, the staycation has really picked up in popularity. Besides being cheaper than a standard vacation, it’s so much less hassle. Except for one thing; kids will need to be entertained. Movies can only go so far, so here are a whole list of great crafts and activities to do with...

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Category Archives: Activities for Kids