Best bedtime stories for your kids
For optimal health and proper development, it is crucial that your child gets enough sleep. But as a parent, you know that getting your child to lie down for the night isn’t always an easy task. It helps to develop a bedtime routine with your kids: bathing putting on pajamas, and brushing teeth are all a part of this. To help your child unwind, you should add a bedtime story to your nightly schedule. Experts agree that reading to your children is beneficial, which makes it all the more important to do. However, you cannot read just anything to them at night; instead, look for books that have happy, soothing stories that engage young imaginations. For the best bedtime stories, look no further than this list.
Where The Wild Things Are, by Maurice Sendak. This classic, beautifully illustrated picture book tells the tale of Max, a boy who behaves poorly. He sails away to a magical land of whimsical monsters, who he befriends. Besides telling the story of a wonderful adventure, this book invigorates the imagination while reinforcing the adage “there’s no place like home.”
Goodnight Moon, by Margaret Wise Brown and Clement Hurd. This simple story, of a small rabbit saying goodnight to his favorite belongings, is a great story for calming young minds. The rabbit’s ritual is simple and comforting, and can help put your children in the right frame of mind for sleep. Many people cite this book as one of their childhood favorites.
The Very Hungry Caterpillar, by Eric Carle. This book mixes humor with science to teach children about the life cycle. A caterpillar eats and eats through the days of the week (and the pages of the book), growing bigger all the time. The story follows him as he turns into a butterfly, which is beautifully depicted with Carle’s award-winning collage style of book design.
One Fish, Two Fish, Red Fish, Blue Fish, by Dr. Seuss. Another classic, this book uses zany rhyming schemes and wildly adventurous drawings to spark kids’ imaginations about an aquatic world. The story is about the adventures of Jay and Kay, a boy and girl duo who have many interesting friends and pets, which come in all different shapes and sizes. It’s great for children who are just learning how to read, it is a wonderful book for your children to read to you, and vice-versa.
Catwings, by Ursula K. Le Guin and S.D. Schindler. This truly unique story about a family of cats who are born with wings is especially great if your children are a bit older. These cats decide to leave the city they were born in to embrace life in the country. But, as they find out, things aren’t always easier there! Accompanied by phenomenal artwork, this is a book that can be read again and again without getting old.
Sweet Dream Reads: The 11 Best Bedtime Books [Parents.com]
Best Bedtime Stories for Babies and Toddlers [Scholastic]
25 Most Popular Bedtime Stories of All Time [Alternet]