Board books have traditionally been designed for infants and toddlers. With their thick sturdy pages, bright colors, and simple storylines, board books allow our youngest readers to explore stories without ripping pages.
As babies grow into toddlers and preschoolers, many parents wonder if board books still have a place on their bookshelves. Can these small, seemingly babyish books still capture the imagination of a 3 year old? Or are board books now too juvenile for a child nearing their 4th birthday?
As a professional board book printing manufacturer, I took a deep dive into the latest research on childhood literacy development and also asked teachers for their perspectives. Here’s a complete guide on whether board books are age-appropriate for your 3 year old.
Board Books Build Early Literacy Skills
Board books might seem basic, but they play a vital role in developing children’s early literacy skills between ages 1 and 3. That’s because the years between infancy and preschool set the foundation for all future reading and writing.
As the American Academy of Pediatrics explains, board books build the following crucial literacy skills:
Print Motivation
Print motivation refers to a child’s interest in and enjoyment of books. When babies grab board books off the shelf and toddlers snuggle up excitedly for storytime, they’re improving this important skill. Researchers have found that high print motivation in preschool directly equates to higher reading achievement in elementary school.
Print Awareness
Print awareness includes concepts like understanding books have a correct orientation, knowing that text carries meaning, and realizing pages turn in a certain order. As young children explore board books’ color illustrations and follow along with the text, they absorb these basic print rules.
Letter Knowledge
Before kids learn phonics, they start by recognizing letters. Many board books highlight alphabet letters, their names, and their sounds. Even simple texts expose children to individual letters and words. This letter knowledge paves the way for “sounding out” words.
Vocabulary
Believe it or not, basic board books expand a young child’s vocabulary. When parents read aloud and name the objects or actions on each page, toddlers connect words with meaning. They also learn categories like colors, shapes, animals, foods and more.
In summary, board books promote print interest, print awareness, letter knowledge and vocabulary. This all fuels literacy development at the optimal time: before age 5.
Board Books Still Appeal at Age 3
Now that we’ve covered the early literacy advantages of board books, what about their appropriateness for 3 year olds specifically?
I surveyed several early childhood educators in my community, all of whom enthusiastically endorsed board books for this age group.
As preschool teacher Amanda explains: “People assume 3 year olds won’t be engaged by ‘baby books’. But my students STILL absolutely love board books, even my pre-readers. Many aren’t developmentally ready for picture books and early readers, so board books help build confidence.”
Kindergarten prep teacher, Susan, agrees: “Board books are the perfect bridge to harder texts. The small size, shorter length, and simple storylines aren’t frustrating like a big picture book might be.”
Both teachers emphasized board stories allow young 3s to feel like “big kids” reading all by themselves. This reading confidence boosts the motivation to keep progressing.
When I asked the educators how long kids enjoy board books, Amanda estimates her students maintain interest until at least age 4. To extend appeal, she suggests getting interactive board books, like lift-the-flap stories. Susan also proposes board book sets around kids’ favorite characters or topics. These capture attention span better than standalone books.
The Best Board Books for 3 Year Olds
If you’re sold on keeping board books in your 3 year old’s book basket, you may be wondering which titles are best. Through my discussions with teachers, here are 5 board book features that appeal most to this age group:
Familiar Stories and Characters
Little ones love revisiting beloved, familiar tales and figures. For 3 year olds, authors like Eric Carle, Dr. Seuss, Sandra Boynton remain tried-and true favorites. Retelling classic stories like The Three Little Pigs or The Little Red Hen also delight young children.
Rhyme and Repetition
The singsong quality of rhymes coupled with the pattern of repeated refrains appeal strongly to preschoolers. The rhythmic language rolls off little tongues, making reading along easy. Look for texts with rhymes, repetition, alliteration or onomatopoeia like “click clack moo” or “hop pop”.
Humor
Silly jokes and slapstick situations make most 3 year olds giggle uncontrollably. Seek out board books with absurd scenarios, funny noises, or play on words. Just beware of sarcastic or advanced humor that your child might not grasp.
Interactivity
Look for board books with elements your child can manipulate like flaps, touch-and-feel patches, peek-a-boo holes or sliding mechanisms. These interactive features offer an extra play dimension that’s catnip to antsy preschoolers.
Real World Concepts
Board books dealing with real world topics your child encounters daily will interest them most. These reality-based stories should connect to a young 3 year old’s personal experiences like visiting the doctor, welcoming a new sibling, learning the alphabet or counting.
Here are 10 top-rated board books that teachers report 3 year olds find utterly captivating:
- If Animals Kissed Good Night by Ann Whitford Paul
- Peek-a Who? by Nina Laden
- The Going to Bed Book by Sandra Boynton
- Ten Little Ladybugs by Melanie Gerth
- Don’t Let the Pigeon Drive the Bus! by Mo Willems
- Chicka Chicka Boom Boom by Bill Martin Jr. and John Archambault
- The Very Hungry Caterpillar by Eric Carle
- Tap the Magic Tree by Christie Matheson
- Dear Zoo by Rod Campbell
- Press Here by Herve’ Tullet
With interactive, rhyming texts on relatable topics, these board books will appeal to your young preschooler.
The Takeaway: Keep Board Books Handy!
In conclusion, early childhood experts enthusiastically endorse keeping board books in 3 year olds’ book baskets. Not only do board books continue building vital early literacy skills at this age, but they also capture preschoolers’ imagination in ways picture books can’t.
Durable board books with rhyme, repetition, humor and interactivity especially appeal to 3 year olds. And continued positive experiences with these “baby books” gives emerging readers confidence to progress to more advanced picture books and early readers.
So even if your 3 year old seems mature for his/her age, don’t be too quick to ditch the board book collection! These early reading staples still offer valuable developmental benefits to keep your child’s literacy foundation growing strong.