My 10 Favorite Back to School Read Alouds for First Grade

Read alouds are magical (especially back to school read alouds). There’s nothing I love more than having my first graders on the carpet, eyes glued to the book as they’re completely immersed in a good story. I love all the sights and sounds, too: the awws, the laughter, the “I knew it!,” and students sitting on the edge of their seats waiting to see what happens next. If you want to reach your students’ hearts, a good book is the way in.

That’s why I love to start the year packed with lots of read alouds. Those first few weeks of school are all about connection. When we dive into stories together, we’re not just reading—we’re building community, helping students work through different emotions, and learning together. There’s something magical about gathering around a book and seeing first graders completely mesmerized.

10 Back to School Read Alouds I Love for First Grade:

1. The Pigeon Has to Go to School by Mo Willems

The Pigeon series is a popular one in first grade, so it’s a no-brainer to start the year with The Pigeon Has to Go to School. The Pigeon is always a favorite with kids because he’s so emotional and silly (plus they absolutely lose it when I do the screaming page where the Pigeon completely freaks out).

When we read this book together, students are hooked from the first page. They love countering all his silly reasons for not going to school, but they also see that the Pigeon has worries—just like them. By the end, they realize that everyone—even a nervous pigeon—can do hard things. They also see that reading can be super fun and silly!

2. We Don’t Eat Our Classmates by Ryan T. Higgins

I added this book to our lineup of back to school read alouds a few years ago, and it has quickly become a favorite. Penelope T. Rex is excited about her first day of school, but she’s surprised to discover that her class is full of humans. She has to navigate classroom behavior and quickly learns that eating “delicious” humans is not the fastest way to make friends.

This book brings out the giggles as Penelope tries her best to fit in and make new friends. The students especially love when Penelope encounters Walter, the class goldfish. It’s the perfect read aloud for introducing classroom expectations in a fun way—and another book sure to make students love reading.

3. Stand Tall Molly Lou Melon by Patty Lovell

This is a book I use every year as one of my back to school read alouds. Molly Lou Melon is very unique, and her classmates don’t all embrace what makes her special. But Molly pays no attention to them and continues to remember all the encouraging words her grandmother once told her. I love how unbothered Molly Lou is throughout the whole book and how she doesn’t let others’ opinions get to her. She knows her worth, and it’s such a good thing for students to see.

We use this book every year for our “wrinkled heart” lesson. You might have heard of this concept before or used it with a different book. At the beginning, I give each student a cut-out heart. As Molly Lou encounters someone (like Ronald Durkin) who says or does something unkind, we wrinkle the heart a bit by crumpling it. At the end, when Ronald Durkin finally leaves her alone and realizes she’s unique, we try to smooth out the heart—but all the wrinkles are still there.

We talk about how even though Molly Lou has thick skin, not everyone does. You can’t take back what you say because that person will always remember. This is especially important for first graders, who love to say “I was just kidding” or “I didn’t mean it.” We really emphasize: if you don’t have something nice to say, don’t say it at all. “Before you speak, think and be smart. It’s hard to fix a wrinkled heart.”

We always let students take their wrinkled hearts home to share with their parents. I keep a wrinkled heart hanging at the front of our classroom as a reminder of the lesson—and so we can reference it throughout the year when needed.

4. Mr. Wiggle’s Book by Paula Craig

This book is short and sweet, but it’s a great one that I’ve used every year as one of my back to school read alouds to introduce expectations for taking care of books. Mr. Wiggles, a bookworm in the library, is sad as he talks about all the books that got messed up and how it happened. Throughout the book, we talk about why each was a bad choice and what should have been done instead.

After reading, we do a class sort with different scenarios (like leaving books on the ground when you need to use the bathroom, sticking a pencil in a book as a bookmark, or washing your hands after a snack before reading). Students have to decide if each action would make them a book friend or if it wouldn’t be a good choice.

I’ve never been able to find this physical book at a reasonable price, so we watch the YouTube video each year instead. You can either have students listen to the video reading, or pause and read the pages aloud yourself, then click through to the next pages using the bottom navigation.

5. Ada Twist, Scientist by Andrea Beaty

One of our very first science lessons each year is going over what a scientist is. We talk about how scientists study the world around them and go through a presentation of many different kinds of scientists. We end with the fact that this year, all of them will be scientists and that good scientists observe and ask lots of questions. Which leads perfectly into this read aloud because…

Ada Twist asks lots of questions. How? Why? What? When? She wants to know why everything works the way it does and what causes certain outcomes. I love using this book to celebrate curiosity and asking questions. It shows students that it’s good to ask questions and wonder, and that they can be scientists, just like Ada Twist.

After reading the book, we have students draw themselves as a scientist on the first page of their science journal, adding in a few tools and labeling them (like great scientists do).

6. Giraffes Can’t Dance by Giles Andreae

Gerald the Giraffe is sad because he can’t dance like all the other animals in the jungle. With a little encouragement and guidance, Gerald eventually learns to dance to his own music in his own way.

As a class, we talk about how everyone has their own talents and things they struggle with. We can’t all be good at everything, and we’re definitely not good at everything on the first try.

I love pairing this back to school read aloud with growth mindset. We talk about how Gerald couldn’t dance… yet. Just like I couldn’t ride a bike the first time I tried, read a book when I first opened it, and so on. We brainstorm goals students have for the year—things they can’t do yet but want to work towards. This ties perfectly into our hot air balloon craft for our goals in first grade.

7. The Good Egg by Jory John

This book from the Food Group series is about a “good” egg that always does the right thing and worries about others doing the same. The stress of being perfect all the time gets to him, and he decides to leave all the other eggs behind. As he spends time alone, he starts to let go of some of the pressure and focus on himself. He finds inner peace and eventually returns to the other eggs, but this time he realizes it’s okay if everything isn’t always perfect.

It’s a great book to add to your back to school read alouds because it can help students realize they don’t have to be perfect and that it’s important to take care of themselves. We often talk about different self-care strategies as we read—things we can do when we’re feeling overwhelmed.

After reading, we do a paper where students give 3 examples of ways they’ve been a good egg (aka a good citizen or person). I let them write or draw—just getting their ideas down is what I’m looking for in the first week of school.

8. First Day Jitters by Julie Danneberg

This is a classic First Day of School read-aloud. Sarah Jane Hartwell doesn’t want to get out of bed on her first day at a new school. She doesn’t know anybody, and she’s worried. After lots of back and forth with her dad about why she should or shouldn’t go, she reluctantly gets dressed and they head to school.

When they arrive, the principal greets Sarah and walks her to her classroom. She then introduces Sarah to the class… as their teacher! My students are always amazed by the twist. We talk about how even teachers get nervous or have worries about the first day of school, and that it’s perfectly normal to feel that way. It’s a reassuring message for students who might be feeling anxious—they’re not alone.

9. Miss Brooks Loves Books (And I Don’t) by Barbara Bottner

I love the message behind this book, and it’s quickly become one of my favorite back to school read alouds. Miss Brooks is the librarian who loves to read and brings books to life for her students by dressing up as the characters. She reads a plethora of books to the class, but one girl says she doesn’t like any books.

When book week comes around and every student has to pick a book they like and dress up as the character, the little girl is at a loss. Miss Brooks keeps sending home books for her to try, but none of them interest her. When her mom makes a comment that she is “stubborn as a wart,” the girl’s eyes light up. She may have finally found something she’d be interested in reading. After reading about Shrek the ogre, the girl falls in love with the book and realizes there may be books out there for her after all.

After reading, we talk about our interests and how there are books out there for everyone—scary books, books about slimy things, books that teach you how to draw. There’s truly something for everyone, and the best way to find books you’ll enjoy is to think about some of your favorite things.

We do an activity where I say, “Stand up if you like adventure books,” and students stand up. Then I’ll say, “Stand up if you like scary books. Stand up if you like learning facts about animals,” and so on. Different students stand up each time, and we talk about how we won’t all like the same books—and that’s okay because we’re all unique!

I have a bulletin board display in my classroom with a quote from J.K. Rowling: “If you don’t like to read, you haven’t found the right book.” I think the quote goes perfectly with the message in the book, and after reading this book and doing the stand up activity, I try to help students see that they have SO many options of books/topics to read in my classroom.

I grab one book for each student that covers a variety of topics, genres, and first grade favorites. I pass out one book to each student and really build up enthusiasm by hyping each one as I hand it out. Students practice putting them in the correct bins (matching the sticker label on the spine) before picking out books of their own to keep in their book boxes for reading. When I say they are hyped about reading at this point, I’m not exaggerating!

10. Wemberly Worried by Kevin Henkes

Wemberly is a tiny mouse who worries about EVERYTHING. Her newest worry? Starting school. But when she arrives, she meets a friend who also worries. As they slowly warm up to each other and realize they have things in common, Wemberly starts to worry less. By the end of the day, she’s actually enjoying school and her worries have faded.

This book shows students, especially anxious ones, that worrying is normal. It might even reassure them that others worry too! Wemberly realizes that school wasn’t as scary as she’d imagined and her worries didn’t come true—just like our students eventually discover.

Each year on the first day of school, I gift my students a book that I usually order from Scholastic Book Clubs. This year I got Wemberly Worried for all of my students, and we will read it together as a class during the first week of school. I was so excited to find a good deal on it because Kevin Henkes is a favorite author of mine.

If you haven’t read any other Kevin Henkes books, you’re really missing out. One of my favorite characters in his books is a mouse named Lilly (she is featured in several books). She dances to the beat of her own drum, and we spend a whole week on character traits reading a few books she’s in.

The Importance of Incorporating Lots of Back to School Read Alouds

I think reading lots of books any time of year is valuable, but especially during the first few weeks of school. The simple truth is that books help students feel understood. They build community and give us natural conversation starters and teachable moments without it feeling like “teaching.” Reading is where the magic happens and is so crucial to a child’s success later on in school and life.

That’s why I love to use so many back to school read alouds the first few weeks– I want students from the beginning of the year to see how magical books can really be and show students that reading is valued in our classroom. I tell my parents at back-to-school night each year—if your child walks away with one thing from my classroom, I hope it’s a love of reading.

I hope you’ve found some back to school read alouds that you can use in your own classroom! If you’re looking for some back to school activities to do with your students, be sure to check out this blog post!

Happy reading, friend!

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