Spring is the perfect season for our little ones to explore, wonder, and grow. While playing outdoors is a great way to do this, books can fuel our kids’ minds as well as their outdoor play. And most kids can’t resist a new stack of picture books from the library. We know that reading with our kids strengthens their early literacy skills. But reading together about spring and nature can also spark their curiosity about the world outside. So, whether the story is about flowers blooming, bugs crawling, or rainy days turning into sunshine, it’s likely to capture the magic of spring in a way your kids will just love. Need some suggestions? Here are some cheerful books to help you explore spring and nature with your preschooler this month!
Whether it’s a rainy day or you just need some indoor time, books are a great way to stay in the springtime spirit. And picture books are great, because they don’t depend on you having to read them aloud. You can let your kids page through them on their own when it isn’t a read aloud time.
And don’t forget, we have an entire section on nature in our Signing Time Dictionary. So you can help your kids learn some nature signs to go along with whatever book you’re reading.
Here are some suggestions for books to help you explore spring and nature.
10 Books to Help you Explore Spring and Nature
Planting a Rainbow by Lois Ehlert celebrates the way that gardens grow. It has simple, rhythmic text and bright, colorful illustrations. Along with that, there’s an easy storyline that introduces basic gardening and the life-cycle of plants.
And for follow-up activities, your preschooler could draw a garden of their own or you could plan a little garden together.
The Very Hungry Caterpillar by Eric Carle is a classic, and it very well may already be on your bookshelf. This is such a fun way to learn about the life cycle of caterpillars and butterflies while going through the silly eating journey of the caterpillar.
If you want to keep going, you can get a little bug container and watch a caterpillar change to a butterfly. Or you could watch a video about it. There are lots of butterfly crafts you could do too, or find a coloring page of a butterfly for your child to color.
And Then It’s Spring by Julie Fogliano describes the quiet changing of the seasons as winter turns to spring. It’s a sweet story about a boy and his dog watching and waiting for seeds to grow and for the winter world to start waking up. There are soft pictures and a fun theme of anticipation.
After reading this one, you and your preschooler could head outside to find your own signs of spring!
Up in the Garden and Down in the Dirt by Kate Messner helps our kids to think about what’s happening both above and under the soil in the spring. There are worms, bugs, and roots all working under the ground to help what’s growing above the ground.
Of course, this opens the door to looking in the dirt for what might be crawling around or growing there!
Rain! by Linda Ashman looks at two different ways to experience a rainy day. A grumpy man and a happy child see a rainy day with different attitudes, and it makes a big difference. It has charming illustrations, and it shows how our attitudes can change what seems like a gloomy day into something wonderful.
While it might not be raining when you read this book, you could check on your rain gear and make sure you’re ready for an adventure in the rain when it comes.
If You Find a Rock by Peggy Christian shows kids how to see rocks as treasures. We can use rocks for all kinds of fun and adventure. This book encourages our little ones to use their imaginations and see how much we can do with this one part of nature.
For a follow up activity, go for a walk with your preschooler to find a good wishing rock. Or you could see how many different kinds of rocks you can find.
Bee: A Peek-Through Picture Book by Britta Teckentrup is interactive and has beautiful illustrations. It follows a busy bee as she moves through a garden, pollinating flowers and helping everything grow. There are fun peek-through holes which make it super fun for our preschoolers.
After this book, watch for bees busy in your own yard!
Goodbye Winter, Hello Spring by Kenard Pak shows a child talking with different parts of nature as the seasons change. It’s kind of magical as these conversations unfold, and it helps kids understand how the seasons change.
This is another story that can inspire your kids to look for their own signs of spring.
Little Blue Truck’s Springtime by Alice Schertle is a lift-the-flap book, so that already makes it really fun. But there’s also a cute story about Little Blue Truck and his good friend Toad. They drive through the countryside, greet baby animals, and enjoy the signs of spring.
For a follow-up activity, work on identifying baby animals and their sounds. Or maybe visit a farm to see some baby animals!
Abracadabra, It’s Spring! by Anne Sibley O’Brien is so fun with clever paper flips to show the changes from winter to spring. It has rhymes, bright artwork, and lots of abracadabra moments of change.
After this book, see if your child can make their own abracadabra spring changes on either side of one piece of paper. Then they can flip the paper over to show their change from winter to spring.
More resources at My Signing Time
So, see if you can use a few of these fun picture books to explore spring and nature with your kids! And if you’re looking for more ideas to explore spring and nature, check out this playlist from My Signing Time. Our shows are always ad-free, fun, and educational!
How will you explore spring and nature with your kids?