Kids’ Books to Remember: Wordless Picture Books
I love wordless picture books, but that hasn’t always been true. When I first picked up a wordless picture book, I immediately dismissed it. At the time, I was searching for read alouds for kindergarten and first grade classes, so of course that genre wouldn’t be appropriate, because how in the world would I share a book with no words? Granted, wordless picture books almost always have amazing illustrations, but… That all changed when my son gave me A Ball for Daisy by Chris Raschka for Mother’s Day in 2011. It had recently received the Caldecott Award for 2010. and I had read amazing things about the illustrations, the story and the author, so I was excited to add it to my collection, even though I was disappointed not to be able to share it with my classes. But then I began to think… I couldn’t just leave a gift from my son on display on the coffee table. I wanted to share it and that’s exactly what I did. I shared it with my first grade classes and we had the best time!! We first looked at the cover and made predictions about the story. Who are the main characters? What is the setting? What is the problem? Then we proceeded to “read” the story. I asked for volunteers to tell the story of each page and oh, did the hands go up! They noticed almost every detail in every illustration and if the “reader” missed something, his neighbor was quick to help! You might think we flew through that book and we were left with nothing to read at the end of our thirty minute session, but that was not the case. In fact, the teacher ended up waiting for us to finish! It was so much fun for all of us, and extra fun for me to see the kids who might not always answer questions or join in, raise their hands and beg for a turn. Everyone was sure they could see the details and tell the story, because they didn’t feel like there were any “wrong answers”, which often inhibits the quiet, less confident kids from raising their hand. From that week forward, the kids begged for wordless picture books. Through the years I shared many wordless picture books, but I’ll never forget my first experience when I learned about their true magic.
Here are some favorites. Some titles I’ve shared in the past, and some are new. I hope you’ll find many new wordless picture books you’ll want to share with your little ones.
A Boy and a House
By Maja Kastelic
This wordless picture book follows a curious little boy as he wanders down a city street filled with tall, old houses. He follows a friendly cat through a door and into the lobby of an apartment building where he finds a drawing on the floor. As he trails after his new friend, he spots another drawing and another and another as he climbs the dark stairs. Along the way he passes through intriguing rooms filled with curious objects and walls covered with mysterious pictures, but he doesn’t pause to look. His curiosity gets the best of him so he just keeps climbing. What he finds at the top is a delightful surprise.
The soft, muted colors of the story made me think it was dusk as the boy set off on his adventure. They lent a mysterious tone to the story, but it wasn’t at all scary. All of the characters faces were full of gentle, friendly expressions and led me to believe the little boy was surrounded by kind and caring neighbors, although he was by himself.
This book will lead to lots of discussions with your little ones as you take turns telling the story. I love the opportunity for children to both use their imaginations and to express themselves as they tell their version of a wordless picture book. This is available now.
Friendship, imagination
Journey
by Aaron Beckman
This tells the story of a lonely girl and the magical world she creates with a red marker. It is a wordless picture book that was the Caldecott winner in 2014. It’s the first of a trilogy, Journey, Quest and Return. You’ll want to read all three!
Mystery, imagination, courage, kindness, wordless picture books
How to Heal a Broken Wing by Bob Graham. This book is great for a read aloud and gives the kids the opportunity to create a conversation for each page. The story describes a little boy’s kindness and his parents support as he helps a bird with a broken wing. Read aloud, wordless picture book, kindness.
Hank Finds an Egg by Rebecca Dudley. This is a wordless picture book which will help an adult to initiate a conversation with a child about kindness. Wordless picture book, kindness.
Little Bird by Germano Zullo. This is another wordless picture book that is a very unusual story about generosity and kindness. It gives lots of opportunities for discussion due to the minimal amount of text and wonderful, expressive illustrations. Wordless picture book, kindness.
THAT NEIGHBOR KID
By Daniel Miyares
This is a heartwarming wordless picture book about a friendship that develops between a boy and a girl when she moves in next door. They are both a little lonely until they collaborate on building a tree house together. The drawings are black and white in the beginning, but as their friendship blossoms and each of them contributes to building their playhouse, colorful leaves begin to appear. The illustrations show us the sweet expressions on the friends’ faces as they dream and relax together in their new hideaway. It’s definitely one you’ll want to add to your family library.
Kindness, empathy, friendship, school
I WALK WITH VANESSA: A STORY ABOUT A SIMPLE ACT OF KINDNESS
By Kerascoet
This charming wordless picture book won my heart when I saw the cover and after “reading” the story I knew I needed a copy of my own. It tells the story of a young girl who has just moved into the neighborhood and is new at school, a boy who isn’t very kind, and a teacher and classmates who show little empathy to the girl’s plight. No one asks her to join the class basketball game or sit with them. After school she’s left to walk home alone, ignored by all except one little boy who says some unkind things. Since it’s a wordless book, we don’t know what was said, but the colorful and expressive illustrations – especially the interaction of the two children which is contained within a bright red cloud of color, leave us no doubt as to what unkind words might have been said. We quickly realize no one has noticed the altercation, except for one little girl. She is obviously bothered by what she saw and shares her concern with her friends. Overnight she isn’t able to forget, and the sadness lingers during her happy family breakfast. But then she suddenly has an idea about how to help the little girl.
Your little ones will be able to find so many details in this book as you all retell the story over and over again. The vivid illustrations of the characters’ expressions will leave no doubt in children’s minds about what they are thinking and feeling.They will recognize the familiar situation of a moving truck arriving and a new family moving in, whether they have moved themselves or they have a new neighbor. They will be able to imagine how a new girl feels, and they can theorize why someone might choose to bully a newcomer. The story will provide you with the perfect introduction to talk about what they can do to welcome newcomers to their neighborhood and school, about teasing, about name-calling and about being an ally, and especially about how one small act of kindness can mean so much.
The book offers a useful guide with suggestions about helping someone who is being bullied, as well as some helpful words to use during your discussions. And finally, don’t forget to notice the difference in the end papers from the beginning of the story to the end. Those alone are a wonderful thing to discuss with your children! I recommend this book be added to your home library, as well as to every public and school library for ages 4 – 7.
Kindness, empathy, friendship, school
Professional Crocodile
By Giovanna Zoboli and Mariachiara De Giorgio
This delightful wordless picture book is one you’ll thoroughly enjoy with your little ones. There are several panels on each page, which will lead to lots of conversation. You’ll both love finding the many, many details every time you experience the book. It’s so much fun to share wordless picture books and to let the kids create their own dialogue. The story is different every time! And you’ll love the surprise ending, too! This is definitely one to add to your collection.
Comfort, humor, wordless picture book
Sidewalk Flowers
By Jon Arno Lawson and Sydney Smith
In this wordless picture book, a little girl walks through a gray city with her distracted father and picks flowers along the way. The flowers become gifts to those she encounters, and in the process transforms the city and it’s inhabitants. May your children find beauty in their world and share it with others.
Kindness, beauty, wordless picture books
Do you have some favorite wordless picture books? How do you share them with your children? Be sure and let us know in the comments!
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