10 Back to School Read Alouds for Primary Students. Perfect for the first week of school to engage students and help build your classroom community.
Back to School Read Alouds
Are you feeling excited to go back to school? Are you feeling overwhelmed with where to start? You are not alone. Many teachers feel exactly the way you do. Choosing your first set of Back to School Read Alouds is a great place to start. This list is here to help! This collection of books contains our favorite stories for those first weeks of school. Students love using these stories to connect with their peers, teachers and their school community. Enjoy these favorites from your local library or snag a few on sale by clicking the pictures below.*
*This post contains Amazon Affiliate links in which I may earn a small commission from purchases.
1. First Day Jitters by Julie Danneberg
This book is my favorite because, as a teacher, it totally resonated with how I felt on the first day of school. The humor in this story helps acknowledge the mix of feelings in your classroom, as well as helps to break the ice.
2. Our Class is a Family by Shannon Olsen
This story is so heartfelt because it is written by a real life teacher. I love how it acknowledges the community within a classroom and promotes love, acceptance and safety at school.
3. The King of Kindergarten by Derrick Barnes
This was a new favorite when my oldest went off to Kindergarten last year. As a parent, I loved how excited this young boy was to start this new adventure in school. His confidence is contagious and really resonated with my own son.
4. All are Welcome by Alexandra Penfold
I love the diversity in this book. The messages of love and acceptance are what every child should here when they come to school.
5. The Pigeon Has To Go To School by Mo Willems
Another Mo Willems favorite brings lots of laughs as Pigeon ponders why he has to go to school.
6. What Should Danny Do? by Adir Levy
I “met” Ganit & Adir Levy years ago via Instagram. These authors could not be nicer and have written a fantastic series of interactive stories where the reader must choose what Danny does. A wonderful way to explore the results of our actions and determine how strong our “power to choose” is.
7. The Day You Begin by Jacqueline Woodson
This story is special in that it acknowledges the many different feelings circulating your classroom on the first day of school. Doing something new can be scary. It is important to celebrate the bravery many students muster to take those first steps into a new classroom.
8. The Name Jar by Yangsook Choi
Learn your students’ names. As a teacher, it is important to always honor a child by learning how to pronounce their name. A beautiful story about a little girl and her name.
9. You Matter by Christian Robinson
Everyone matters. My kids love noting what makes everyone different and the same. No matter what, everyone matters.
10. Too Much Glue by Jason Lefebvre
A friendly reminder to embrace the chaos and creativity that comes with working with young children. This relatable story will entertain children of all ages.
There are many more stories to love. You can see the full list of Back to School Books here in my Amazon storefront. I hope these books spark ideas for your own classroom.
