The number one question that I receive regarding literacy based therapy is… but what kind of picture books can I use with my older students? Won't they think these books are babyish? “Older students” sometimes means 3rd through 5th graders and other times it's middle and high schoolers. And my answer is usually the same.
All aged kids love picture books and there's many reasons why they work:
- Most of our students struggle with reading skills due to their speech or language impairment. Using read alouds with picture books takes the decoding part out of equation for them and let's them use auditory and visual skills for comprehension. Seeing the illustrations and hearing your inflection builds their understanding of the text. You modeling comprehension strategies with simpler text gives them a little bit of a break with the grade level text they are exposed to over and over, allowing them to be more successful.
- There is rich vocabulary in picture books that gives you the awesome opportunity to strengthen tier 2 word knowledge in a way that isn't intimidating or boring.
- Build background knowledge on academic subjects related to the curriculum. There are tons of historical fiction and nonfiction picture books that can help students gain understanding of certain events or people.
- Social skills! There are so many books that touch on subjects like making friends or kindness that can launch discussions and practice about these topics.
- Wordless picture books can open the door to so many great speech and language skills. These choices usually have amazing illustrations that allow students to build literacy skills without actually reading anything except the pictures.
Obviously, there are titles that I would never read with 5th graders that I would a preschooler… I'm looking at you, Sandra Boynton board books. But there are TONS of picture books that are appropriate for older students based on the pictures and texts. If YOU are showing excitement about a book, the students are going to love it.
Here are some that I have used with my own caseload of 3rd through 5th graders:
- A Bad Case of Stripes
- What do You do with a Problem?
- Owl Moon
- The Name Jar
- Henry's Freedom Box
- Balloons Over Broadway
- Thank You, Mr. Falker
- Say Something
- The Word Collector
- Ada Twist, Scientist
- Rosie Revere, Engineer
- Journey
- Chalk
- Those Shoes
What books do you love for “older” students?
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I just started using the 13-Story Treehouse series with some of my 5th graders. These could even work for older middle schoolers because they are funny and kinda cool. On some pages the pictures tell the story so they have that “wordless” element too.
Awesome! Thanks for the recommendation!
Thank you for the book recommendations!
I love books and will try some of these with my 3-5th graders!
You’re welcome!
I love to use picture books with all ages too! There are picture books I use based on the kids ages as well. A picnice in October is one about Ellis Island. I made a list of ones I use routinely.
Thidwick the Moose, The 500 Hats of Batholomew Gubbins, And to things that I saw it on Mulberry Street, Bartholomew and the OOBleck, Mirette on the High Wire, The Very cranky Bear, Home Place, Anything by Tomie DePaula/ Eric Carle/ Jan Brett, Aesop Fables, Sylvester and the Magic Pebble, The boy who cried Wolf, Alexander and the Terrible, Horrible, No Good, very bad Day, John Henry, Mike Fink, Amelia Bedelia series, Fancy Nancy series, Magic Schoolbus Series, The Bear Ate your Sandwich, Fiesta Fiasco, Lyle, Lyle, Crocodile series, Dragons Love Tacos 1 and 2., SkippyJon Jones series, Mother Bruce series, Interrupting Chicken series, The Hungry Thing series, Circus ship, Library Mouse series, A book with no pictures, Wilfred, Tall Tales, The Gruffalo series, Ms. SMith and the Haunted Library, Jamie O’Rourke and the Pooka, Sissy Duckling, We don’t eat our Classmates, and The Bunyans. Oh so many great picture books for the upper level!! š
Thank you so much for this list!