Outer Space Children's Book Roundup
For the next two weeks I will be
posting activities to learn and explore outer space. (No spaceship
required!) Space is one of our favorite science themes around here,
so we will be spending a little extra time delving into all of those
fascinating ideas.
In the meantime, you can check out
these books that we have been reading to learn more about the sun,
planets, moons, stars, galaxies, and other astronomical thingies
(technical term). Here they are (in no particular order):
ABC Universe by Sterling Children's
Books: This cute informative alphabet books goes through the universe
as well as the alphabet A-Z. This was one of Little M.'s first books
about space. When she was tiny, as had a much shorter attention span
I would read her the letters and words in a very general way (such
as, “Moon begins with the letter M. Let's look at the moon!”).
As she got older and more interested, we used this book to
investigate the universe in more depth. As such, this book is very
adaptable.
Moonshot by Brian Floca: This book is
one of my favorites on this list. Beautifully written verse tells
the story of the epic first journey to the moon. Alongside the saga
of Apollo 11 are incredibly dramatic illustrations. If you want to
impart a sense of wonder about the concept of space travel to your
little one-read this book.
Planets by Elizabeth Carney: This slim
reader by National Geographic covers not only the planets, but also
the sun and moons that make up the solar system. It is filled with
facts as well as discussion about the rocky inner planets, gas
giants, and dwarf planets.
Good Night Galaxy by Adam Gamble and
Mark Jasper: This board book doubles as a great bedtime book, in
which the narrator says goodnight to many of the interesting objects
in the universe. Additionally, the reader will learn many
interesting facts about these things. The illustrations have a high
quality comic book feel to them. This book is great for children of
all ages.
Stars! Stars! Stars! By Bob Barner:
This book really asks to be sung or almost chanted, not read. The
text is written in a rhythmic rhyming way that has a very sing-song
sound. Starting in the center of our solar system, it goes on a
journey through space filled with really sharp exciting
illustrations. This is one that Little M. requests frequently
(although she loves all of the books on this list).
Little Kids First Big Book of Space by
Catherine D. Hughes, illustrated by David A. Aguilar: This is a great
resource from National Geographic Kids. Organized into chapters and
filled with gorgeous illustrations, it is great for children who are
ready to read (or be read to) something a bit more challenging or
engaging. It covers many interesting topics such as the day/night
cycle of the planet which are not covered by many of the other books
in this list.
UFO Diary by Satoshi Kitamura: This
fascinating fiction story is told from the perspective of an alien
(who is never depicted in the illustrations) visiting earth and one
of the little boys who lives here. The boy shows the alien around
and in turn the alien gives the little boy a ride in his spaceship.
The ending is sweet, but sad. Little M. requests this book
occasionally even though it sometimes makes her cry (especially if
she is tired). Sensitive children may struggle with the concept of
(permanent) separation at the end, but it is till a very sweet story.
Mars by Elizabeth Carney: If you are
needing an in depth look at the red planet, this reader by National
Geographic has you covered. Learn about where the planet's name
comes from, why it has it's distinctive red color, how we have
explored the planet so far, and how we might colonize it in the
future (and tons more cool facts).
Our Solar System by Peter and Connie
Roop: This neat board book about the solar system has cool feature:
the pages get progressively longer allowing you to get a peek of all
of the planets from the beginning. As you progress, learn more about
each planet. This is a great choice for babies and toddlers.
Meteors by Melissa Stewart: Little M.
loves this informative leveled reader by National Geographic. There
are many books to choose from about the stars and planets, but this
book takes a look at the smaller objects in our solar system. You
will discover why meteors light up the night sky, what they are made
of, where they come from, and many interesting facts. This is a
great addition to your space book collection.
Mooncake by Frank Asch: This cute
fictional story chronicles a bear and his friend, a bird, trying to
investigate the moon. Together they try a few ways to discern more
information about the moon to find out what it's made of. Finally,
they settle on building a rocket to visit it themselves. The bear
has to finish himself when the bird flies south for the winter. The
bear finally succumbs to the instinct to hibernate, and when he wakes
up midwinter in a cold foreign (at least to him) world, he thinks he
has landed on the moon. This story is very cute and funny.
Baby Loves Aerospace Engineering! By
Ruth Spiro, illustrated by Irene Chan: This is a very cute simple
story which outlines some of the basic principles of flight. First,
it compares a man-made plane to the flight of a bird, then it
explains the physics of rockets (and the bird from the earlier
example gets to take a flight into space). This very simple overview
is appropriate for kids of all ages.
Little Mouse and the Rocket Ship by
Michael Teitelbaum, illustrated by Phil Bliss: In this cute fiction
book a young mouse finds a toy rocket ship and brings it back to his
friend the professor who not only repairs it, but turns it into a
real working rocket. Written in the late eighties, this cute book
that I picked up on a whim at the libraries 50 cent table reminds me
a bit of the adolescent/professor relationship in the movie Back to
the Future.
Space Ultimate Sticker Book by DK: The
stickers in this book as well as the illustrations are absolutely
stunning. Many of the pages invite you to fill in missing pieces
such as the planets of the solar system or pieces of an astronauts
space suit. The way we “read” these pages, were reading each
section and then placing the corresponding sticker. One section is
simply of an empty space scene in which the child may freely decorate
with stickers to make their own picture. The stickers are supposedly
reusable, however I was only ever able to get the stickers to move
once (any more than that and they seemed to lose their adhesive
quality and curl rather than stick); additionally if the stickers
were left on the pages for a while (days or weeks) they would rip
when we tried to move them. However, the text is as good as a
non-sticker book, so I would simply read the book like any other once
the stickers are all placed (and perhaps encourage your child to
place the many extra stickers onto a sheet of paper).
The Solar System, by Flying Frog
Publishing: This book is jam packed with fun information about the
solar system. Beginning with the sun and moving outward, each major
body in the solar system has a two page spread including
illustrations, facts at a glance, and details about it and it's moons
or other features. Excellent for older elementary children
especially.
Need more book suggestions? Check out all of our other book roundups to see all of our favorite books by theme.
Thanks so much for checking out our roundup of children's books about outer space. If you enjoyed this list, feel free to share it with your friends on social media and/or leave a comment below. We'd love to hear from you! What's your favorite children's book about space? What did we miss? What other topics would you like us to do lists for?
Need more book suggestions? Check out all of our other book roundups to see all of our favorite books by theme.
Thanks so much for checking out our roundup of children's books about outer space. If you enjoyed this list, feel free to share it with your friends on social media and/or leave a comment below. We'd love to hear from you! What's your favorite children's book about space? What did we miss? What other topics would you like us to do lists for?
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