Adding a few books to your nature area at home helps to bring a literacy element for preschoolers to explore – you could display the books facing the child or add them into a basket so that they can be taken out and read think about how big the area that you are going to use in your nature area – we have them facing forwards on the nature window sill but use what will work for you best.
It’s good to include a mix of fiction and non-fiction as including the non-fiction books gives you ample opportunities to explore and talk about the characteristics of these books as you look for information and learn more about the elements that you have added to the area.
I try and include a mix of books that you would expect preschoolers to read but also books that are aimed at older children especially in the non-fiction books – if you are purchasing these yourself and not borrowing from the library they will last longer and prove useful for when your child enters school.
Check out our ideas of nature study activities that you can do throughout the year to complement these books and in some cases add to your nature table.
General Non-Fiction Books to include year around
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- garden wildlife
- birds for your area
- trees and flowers
- bugs and minibeasts
Click on the images of the cover to take you to our book recommendations over on Amazon.
General Nature Books for the UK for your Nature Table
General Nature Books for the USA for your Nature Table
Winter Book Suggestions
Great winter books to include
- Winter by Gerda Muller
- Bears Winter Home by John Yeoman
- One Snowy Night by Nick Butterworth
- Here Comes Jack Frost by Kazuno Kohara
- George Flies South by Simon James
- Over and Under the Snow by Kate Messner
We have a list of our favourite Winter and Snow books which are great to extend this list by and read with your toddlers and preschoolers.
Spring Book Suggestions
Some great pre-shool Spring Books to include
- Spring by Gerda Muller
- The Teeny Weeny Tadpole by Sheridan Cain
- The Tiny Seed by Eric Carle
- The Carrot Seed by Ruth Krauss
- The Ugly Duckling
- Over and Under the Pond by Kate Messner
Summer Book Suggestions
Books to add to the nature area for Summer
- Summer by Gerda Muller
- The Very Hungry Caterpillar by Eric Carle
- Sharing a Shell by Julia Donaldson
- Mister Seahorse by Eric Carle
- Summer is here by Heidi Pross Gray
Autumn Book Suggestions
Autumn books to place in the nature area
- Autumn by Gerda Muller
- Leaf Man by Lois Ehlert
- The Very Busy Spider by Eric Carle
- Planting a Rainbow by Lois Ehlert
- The Littlest Owl by Caroline Pitcher and Tina MacNaughton
Check out our more comprehensive list of Autumn and Leaf themed books for toddlers and preschoolers.
Further Book Recommendations
Looking at a specific area of nature study check out our individual list for different topics that are ideal to add to your nature table throughout the year.