One of my favorite ways to teach the alphabet is by reading lots and lots of trade books. Each student in your classroom is going to come in with different levels of exposure to text and words. Some kids may have gone to the zoo with their families and know what a zebra is, but some may not! A great way to help students build their vocabulary is through alphabet books.
Another great thing about alphabet books in particular is that they often help students learn letter sequences by presenting the book in A to Z order.
Have you checked out any of these great books lately?
Alphabet Books to Add to Your Library
Chicka Chicka Boom Boom
If you’ve ever used an alphabet book, this might be the one! Chicka Chicka Boom Boom is a very popular read for preschool and kindergarten classrooms.
This book is full of rhyme as the letters of the alphabet race up the coconut tree.
Is there enough room for this book on your shelf?
Under the Sea ABCs
Over the years there have been a few variations of Under the See ABCs or ABC Under the Sea.
This version was published in 2021 and the pictures are fantastic!
A book like this is great for your students that love to learn factual things. This is a great introduction to the sea.
The Construction Alphabet Book
The Construction Alphabet Book is another high-interest option for your students.
The illustrations are gorgeous oil paintings and the text is all about construction equipment.
Eating the Alphabet
This classic Lois Ehlert book from 1996 goes through the alphabet from A to Z with illustrations of fruits and vegetables.
Your students are likely to recognize many of these foods, which might help them make more connections to the letters.
This is also a great book for students to reference as a picture dictionary for their writing!
A My Name Is Alice
A my name is Alice and my husband’s name is Alex. We come from Alaska and we sell ants.
Does that sound familiar? Each page of this delightful book follows this same cadence.
This is a fun game you can play with your students as well. [letter] my name is [name that starts with letter] my friend’s name is [name that starts with letter]. We come from [place that starts with letter] and we sell [item that starts with letter].
ABeCedarios
This unique book goes through the ABCs in English and Spanish using Mexican folk art for illustrations. It is a great option to bring some diversity to your bookshelf!
Museum ABC
This unique book uses actual art pieces from the Metropolitan Museum of Art to illustrate the book.
For instance, for A, the book reads A is for apple. and then it shows four paintings of apples.
The book uses short vowel words, such as ‘umbrella’ which is great for beginning learners as well.
Alphabet Rescue
This is the third book in the alphabet books series from Audrey and Bruce Wood.
This book has the lowercase letters on an adventure to fix a broken down fire engine and rescue letters.
If you like this story, be sure to check out Alphabet Mystery and Alphabet Adventure too!
P is For Pterodactyl
If you’re looking for a little fun when reading alphabet books, you’ve found it! This book uses words that begin with silent letters. For instance, the word knight is used, so while you are in fact looking at a word that starts with the letter K, all you hear at the beginning of the word is /n/.
This is a great way to talk about the fact that sometimes words don’t play by the rules.
What About X?
One of the trickiest letters for kids to learn is X because it just doesn’t behave right! Most words that start with X don’t make the proper sound.
In What About X? all the letters are getting ready for a camping trip, but X can’t think of what to bring.
The illustrations are super fun in this one too!
Shiver Me Letters
The crew of animal pirates is going to make all the letters of the alphabet walk to the plank… if they can capture them!
This is another one of the alphabet books that are fun, funny, and exciting!
The illustrations are so fun in this book, your kids will surely love this one!
Q is for Duck
Q is for Duck is not your typical alphabet book. It presents a puzzling suggestion for each letter like A is for the zoo. Then it gives kids a chance to think about why before they turn the page. In this case, it’s because Animals live in the zoo.
Do you think your students can figure out all these fun riddles?
LMNO Peas
This book takes the fun tongue twister of L-M-N-O-P that students often struggle with and turns them into the alphabet peas!
Throughout the illustrations, you will see the peas making their way through the alphabet as astronauts, bikes, campers, and more!
If your students struggle with separating the letters L-M-N-O-P in the alphabet this might be a fun, helpful reminder that they are all different letters.
Do you plan on adding any of these fun alphabet books to your shelves? Or do you have any other suggestions for great alphabet books to add to this list?
Creation Castle
Heather is the author of Creation Castle. She has experience with general education, special education, and ESL students in kindergarten through fifth grade. She specializes in early elementary math and literacy, as well as organization.
