story by Claire Miller
What does it feel like for a child to meet their new teacher and classmates on the first day of school?
National Book Award winner Jacqueline Woodson wrote a children’s book called “The Day You Begin” that speaks to that first-day experience. “There will be times when you walk into a room and no one there is quite like you ... until the day you begin to share your stories,” she writes.
Woodson’s book offers words of wisdom and encouragement to elementary school students on their first day of school. But it also acknowledges that this annual rite of passage can bring up a range of feelings for children.
College of Education & Human Development Associate Professor Thomas Crisp recommends that parents and guardians consider reading books to their kids that address different emotions that come with the first day of school.
“Because it can be a significant and even overwhelming experience for children, we can find books that feature characters confronting similar emotions, from excitement, eagerness and anticipation to nervousness, sadness and even fear,” he explained.
Crisp studies literacy and children’s literature in the college’s Department of Early Childhood and Elementary Education. He says that parents and guardians can facilitate these important conversations with their children – and reinforce lifelong reading habits – by establishing routines and practices centered around reading.
Taking kids to libraries and bookstores, setting a designated reading time every day, and creating inviting spaces that encourage children to read for pleasure can all have a positive impact on children’s interest in reading.
“One of the most powerful things that parents, caregivers and teachers can do to encourage a lifelong love of reading and the development of good reading habits is to simply read with children,” he said. “We can also demonstrate our excitement about books by discussing what we and children are reading and asking questions that encourage children to converse with us about the plots, settings, characters, themes and perspectives in the books they are reading. We can ask them to make connections between the book and their own lives or current events and other texts they've read/heard/viewed.”
Adults who read to their children from a young age and who read for pleasure themselves are demonstrating the importance of good literacy habits. And it’s important for children to have positive associations with reading as they grow and develop.
“Above all else, I believe that it is important to be patient and understand that each children's literacy journey will be unique,” Crisp said. “The ultimate goal is to foster reading habits and a love of reading that encourages children to think analytically and view reading as an enjoyable, meaningful experience.”
Choosing Back-to-School Books
There are an estimated 265,000 children's books available in print globally and another 3,500 new children's books published in the U.S. each year.
Those numbers can feel overwhelming, but parents, caregivers and educators can narrow down the search for children’s books by reviewing lists of recent award-winning books.
“While not perfect, awards lists include books vetted by experts and deemed to be excellent and among the best of a given type during a specific period of time,” Crisp said. “The Geisel Award, for example, is presented annually by the Association for Library Service to children to the author and illustrator of the most distinguished American book published in English for young readers.”
Adults looking for first-day-of-school books can search for recommended titles that address themes relevant to that first-day experience, and then think about the child they’re buying for when making their purchase, Crisp said.