by maipham

August 24, 2020

This post may contain affiliate links so I earn a commission. Please read my disclosure for more info.

It is an ordinary day. You pick up your kids from school and head home.

Once you get home, your kids rush into the house, drop their bags, and immediately turn on the TV. They are waiting for their favorite TV cartoon show.

Whenever you try to tell them to do their homework, they start whining and complaining, telling you how tired they are after school, and they will do their homework after dinner.

After dinner, when you are supposed to rest after a long day, you have to struggle with your kids’ homework. You have to learn and then teach them. Everything is in the book, you don’t understand why they don’t read their books first.

You are on the edge of exhaustion. You ask them to read the books themselves but they start begging and telling you how they cannot understand the books.

“But you haven’t even read it!” – You exclaimed. 

Making kids love books is much more difficult than it was a few years ago. With so many distractions, TV, smart devices, YouTube, games, toys, kids love those colorful things and they do not often jump to open a book.

Well, not my son.

My son loves reading books. Every time I get home from work, he would come and greet me, then hold my hand or my clothes to drag me near his toy box. 

He grabs one book from his toy box and turns over, sits down on my lap, and makes me read the book for him. 

My most powerful tip: start early.

Ethan got his first book when he was only 1.5 months old. I never skip reading for him. Now he is 20 months old and he owns more than 30 books, plus all the books that I already bought to wait for him.

My son is surrounded mostly by books, not toys. But not all the books will do the work, Ethan has his favorite books and there are some books he barely touches.

If you also want to get your kids to read books at an early age, I’ve gathered a list of more than 20 best books for kids under 1 year old. Ready to see them?

The very hungry caterpillar

THE all-time classic picture book, from generation to generation, sold somewhere in the world every 30 seconds.

Guess how much I love you

The cutest yet the most powerful message on the love of family.

Black Bird Yellow Sun 

A delightful journey through a day filled with bright exciting colors.

The Going to Bed Book 

This classic bedtime story is just right for winding down the day as a joyful, silly group of animals scrub scrub scrub in the tub, brush and brush and brush their teeth, and finally rock and rock and rock to sleep.

Summer Evening 

A piece of art and peace, perfect for bedtime stories.

Goodnight Moon by Margaret Wise Brown

The most loved and consider one of the best books for kids under 1 year old.

Hop on Pop

Full of short, simple words and silly rhymes, this book is perfect for reading alone or reading aloud

First 100 Words  

One of the best books for kids under 1 year old to get to know words and the world.

Ten Little Fingers and Ten Little Toes

Simple, gentle and cute.

Llama Llama Home with Mama

Llama Llama, morning light.
Feeling yucky, just not right.
Down to breakfast.
Tiny sneeze.
Sniffle, snuffle.
Tissues, please!

Dear Zoo

Rod Campbell's classic lift-the-flap book Dear Zoo has been a firm favorite with toddlers and parents alike ever since it was first published in 1982.

Where is Baby’s Belly Button

Bright, cute and interactive.

Who: Peek-a-Flap Board Book

Enrich your baby's knowledge with the adventure to the forest.

Moo Baa La La La

This raucous story about the sounds animals make—including three pigs who say "la la la!"—is just right for reading aloud.

Counting Kisses

Family love, mommy love and everything else. 

Roar, Roar, Baby!

Interactive and fun.

Look, Look!

This book is one of the best books for kids under 1 year old, even good for kids who are only a few months old. 

It is full of high-contrast black-and-white cut-paper art perfect for staring at, is just the thing for the eyes of the youngest babies.


On My Leaf

Turn the colorful die-cut pages of these irresistible board books to discover just what makes little horse's barn and little ladybug's leaf so cozy.

My Very First Book of Numbers

Beautifully illustrated, clean and bright.

Don't forget to give your baby some cloth books, so that he can get hands-on and start learning to flip pages without getting paper cut.

These books below are some great sets.

Cloth Books for Babies

Safe, durable, bright.

Perfect for clumsy little hands.

Lamaze Peek-A-Boo Forest

Beautifully illustrated, clean and bright.

Tips to choose the best books for toddlers under 1-year-old

Remember your baby is not fully developed yet. And babies cannot maintain their focus for a long time.

So don’t rush. He might not look at the book when you read it for him, but you don’t have to do everything to draw his attention. Just keep reading and finish it with positive vibes.

Remember, to raise healthy and happy kids, you have to be healthy and happy too. Don’t stress yourself over small things. If you are not tired, try to read at least one book for your baby. But if you are exhausted, skip for a day until you feel better.

Tips for selecting books for toddlers under 1-year-old

Sturdy 

The pages are thick or made of cloth.

Simple and large illustrations: toddlers are not like adults who can admire the most sophisticated artwork. Get your little ones a book with simple and large illustrations, easy to focus on.

Colors 

As young toddlers cannot tell the difference between different colors when they are little, you can get some black and white books with high contrast so that your kids can tell the shapes. 

However, as your toddlers grow a little bigger, get a book with bright and beautiful colors

Characters 

Ideally, you should get some books with simple content. No drama is needed.

Interactive 

Once your little one grows up a little, he will want to participate in the reading. Consider books having some interactive activities, such as flip-and-flap, sound buttons, etc.

Tips to make reading fun for both parents and toddlers

Your toddlers will rely on you to do the work 100%. And your attitude plays an important role in deciding if your toddlers will like reading books or not.

Some tips to make reading fun for both parents and kids

Read often but only a few minutes

Not only this will help your babies to focus better, but it also reduces the stress on your shoulders. You don't have to get a super thick fairy tale book to read, just a few pages and few sentences will do great work.

Make reading time is bonding time

Hug and kiss your baby spontaneously while reading will help to make the bond between parents and baby.

Choose a good book

Get the book that you like and enjoy reading too. When you are excited, your kid will feel it too.

Ask question, point to the character and tell the stories

By doing this, you will help your baby to start using his brain for a certain problem.

Make face expressions, change the tone of voice, make funny sounds while reading

This makes your baby think that reading is really fun.

Top Best Books For Kids Under 1 Year Old

My son loves books and he is very smart

I'm not sure if these two are interrelated, but my son can flip through the pages well. He remembers stories in the books. He knows the stories just by looking at the covers so that he can select the books he wants to read.

I truly believe that reading books at such an early age will have a significant impact on him.


About the author 

Mai Pham

Mai Pham discovered her passion for writing a few years ago and she never stop thinking about it ever since. She finally took the leap and created Live a Worthy Life to brag about her smart ass (mainly just for fun). Enjoyed the fun writing brings, now with her new interest in everything-baby-related, she created Mommy Instinct, to tell mamas that it's ok that they mess up, that they don't know what the hell they are doing, and that it's okay to sit back and relax for a while.

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked

{"email":"Email address invalid","url":"Website address invalid","required":"Required field missing"}

RELATED ARTICLES