1st Grade (Age 6)

With the familiar faces of Dick and Jane, this little book is a perfectly cheeky take on manners for the modern day. It’s a step-bystep guide to politeness in everyday life, including everything from table manners to tidying up after oneself. For example, the book reminds readers that your mother (who likely works fifty hours a week) is not your maid, so you should always rinse your dishes and put them away in the dishwasher. This witty little book is great for growing children or teenagers–or even adults–and will help remind us all to mind our manners.

Get your dictionaries ready for a wordplay romp! Sage has misheard one of her teacher’s vocabulary words, leading to a classroom catastrophe: a momentous tragedy, an embarrassment, humiliation, shame. Students will laugh at her mistake, identify with her humiliation, and marvel at her ability to turn things around. Frasier’s humorous use of definitions adds to the fun.

Here’s a perfect read-aloud for the first day of school. Alternating pages show Miss Binder-garten and her students getting ready for their first day of school. While Miss Bindergarten arrives early to unpack her boxes and decorate the classroom, her students brush their teeth, get dressed, and start on their way to school. Rhyming text introduces the animal children alphabetically, and amusing illustrations detail the diversity of students and things to do in a kindergarten classroom. Also available: Miss Bindergarten Stays Home from Kindergarten and Miss Bindergarten Celebrates the 100th Day of Kindergarten.

Before she was called the old Lupine Lady, she was known as Miss Rumphius. But long before that, she was simply Alice, a small girl who lived in a city by the sea. After listening to Grandfather’s stories of places near and far, Alice dreams of traveling to those places — and beyond. Grandfather tells Alice to make the world a more beautiful place as well. After many years of adventure-filled travel, she settles in a house by the sea. Students will enjoy globetrotting with Miss Rumphius and finding out just how she decorates the world.

A shy boy with asthma starts first grade — and comes into his own — in this appealing story for early chapter book readers. Six-year-old Monty doesn’t have a brother, a sister, or a pet. What he does have is asthma, which sometimes makes it hard to breathe and often makes him feel like he’d rather be somebody else. And now that he’s starting first grade, he’s very nervous about being with all those kids he won’t know. Luckily, he loves to read — even really hard books — and has a talent for finding things, from a cocooning caterpillar …

The numbers are on the loose–hiding and dancing, skipping and laughing through the rhymes of Mother Goose! It’s a good thing Caldecott Medal-winning artists Leo and Diane Dillon have helped gather up all these mischievous numbers in a stunning celebration of counting, rhymes, and imagination. The rhymes, both familiar and lesser known, are ordered from simple (1, 2, 3) to more complex numbers, making this a collection to grow with. The illustrations are filled with surprising wit and whimsy. And this vibrant, playful volume is irresistible as an introduction to Mother Goose or as a new delight for her longtime …

Hears an introduction for babies to the wonderful mishmash world of sounds. Listen to the cow’s MOO, the frying eggs’ SIZZLE, and the thunder’s BOOM BOOM BOOM. There are plenty of noises for everyone!

Mr. Putter has a cold. Though his cat, Tabby, tries to comfort him, he finds that it’s no fun to be old with a cold. Fortunately, his neighbor, Mrs. Teaberry, tries to nurse him back to health by sending her dog, Zeke, over with thermoses of chicken soup and tea — and even an adventure book strapped to his back. Mr. Putter knows he’s on his way back to health as he curls up with Tabby and Zeke for a good read. This gentle story and others in the Mr. Putter series offer a dose of coziness in an easy-to-read …