1,000 Books Before Kindergarten
Encouraging early literacy!
Did you know that reading to your child is one of the most powerful ways to boost his or her brain power? Research shows that the simple and enjoyable act of sharing books helps your child learn pre-reading skills such as understanding the sounds letters make, developing a bigger vocabulary, and building background knowledge - all important skills that help prepare your child for learning to read and entering Kindergarten.
Hampton Falls Free Library's 1,000 Books Before Kindergarten program is a fun and free way to start your child on the path to success! Any child ages birth to five years can participate. Read whatever you and your child enjoy and set your own pace. The program ends when your child enters Kindergarten. Just follow these steps:
Register: Sign up with Miss Leah at the Children's Desk. Pick up program materials at the Library. Registration is ongoing!
Track Your Reading: Color, sticker, or stamp a shape on your reading record for each book you read with your child. There is space to write your favorites on the back of each 100-book log.
Every Book Counts: Even if your child wants to hear the same book again and again, you can count it each time. You can also count the books your child hears in story time, in daycare or preschool, or with a friend or family member, as long as your child listens to the entire book.
100-Book Milestones: Each time you read 100 books, bring your reading record to the library to receive a sticker, and post your child's progress on our 1,000 Books Wall. Take home a new reading record for your next 100 books.
1,000 Books: You did it! Come celebrate at the library! With your permission, we will congratulate your child on our outdoor sign. Choose a new book to dedicate to the Library, and bring home a special prize!
Keep on Reading: Don't stop at 1,000! Keep on reading together; there's more learning ahead!
Singing songs, saying rhymes, telling stories, and playing with your child are all great ways to build their literacy skills. Visit the library often for storytime and other free programs that are fun and educational for your little one and to find great books to share with your child.
One thousand books may seem like a lot, but if you read just one book a night, you'll meet your goal in less than 3 years. If you read three books a night, you could reach your goal in just one year! Ask our friendly staff for recommendations, or refer to the suggested reading list included in your folder!
Thank you to the Friends of the Hampton Falls Free Library for sponsoring this program!
Favorite Books
As recommended by each of our 1,000 Book finishers!
Here We Are: Notes for Living on Planet Earth by Oliver Jeffers (Viola, February 2020)
A Book for Escargot by Dashka Slater (Aurora, March 2020)
Ladybug Girl at the Beach by David Soman and Jacky Davis (Mckenzie, May 2020)
Through Your Eyes by Ainsley Earhardt (Brielle, May 2020)
Pete the Cat and the Magic Sunglasses by James Dean (Bodhi, May 2020)
Fancy Nancy: Oodles of Kittens by Jane O'Connor (Quinn, May 2020)
Red is Best by Kathy Stinson (Elin, June 2020)
Potato Pants by Laurie Keller (Ozzi, June 2020)
Memorial Bridge Cat by Crystal Ward Kent (Enzo, June 2020)
Urgency Emergency: Itsy Bitsy Spider by Dosh Archer (Camilla, June 2020)
Learning to Ski with Mr. Magee by Chris Van Dusen (Marina, September 2020)
Car, Car, Truck, Jeep by Katrina Charman (Callan, April 2021)
Construction Site: Road Crew, Coming Through! by Sherri Duskey Rinker (Nash, September 2021)
Fancy Nancy: Saturday Night Sleepover by Jane O'Connor (Emmy, October 2021)
Monsters in the Briny by Lynn Becker (Kellen, July 2022)
The Little Book of Woodland Bird Sounds by Andrea Pinnington (Leo, July 2022)
The Pigeon Will Ride the Rollercoaster by Mo Willems (Olympia, August 2022)
Pete the Cat Plays Hide-and-Seek by James Dean (Liam, August 2022)
Noodle and the No Bones Day by Jonathan Graziano (Jace, September 2022)
Mr. Brown's Bad Day by Lou Peacock (Charlie, April 2023)
1,000 Books Before Kindergarten
At Home Edition
New to the 1,000 Books Before Kindergarten? Read up on the program in our Welcome Letter, and feel free to email Miss Leah if you have any questions!
Already started? Print your next checklist from here!
100/200 Books
300/400 Books
500/600 Books
700/800 Books
900/1000 Books
101 Books to Read with your Child
Some Recommendations to Get You Started
Printable Version (2 pages)
Each Peach Pear Plum - Ahlberg
Miss Nelson Is Missing - Allard
Giraffes Can’t Dance - Andreae
Please Mr. Panda - Antony
Cloudy With a Chance of Meatballs - Barrett
A Visitor for Bear - Becker
Madeline - Bemelmans
The Berenstain Bears and Too Much TV - Berenstain
Hippos Go Berserk - Boynton
Moo, Baa, La La La - Boynton
Annie and the Wild Animals - Brett
The Mitten - Brett
Clifford the Big Red Dog - Bridwell
Goodnight Moon - Brown
The Runaway Bunny - Brown
The Little House - Burton
Mike Mulligan and His Steam Shovel - Burton
Stellaluna - Cannon
The Very Hungry Caterpillar - Carle
Miss Rumphius - Cooney
Dancing Feet - Craig
Click, Clack, Moo: Cows that Type - Cronin
I Took the Moon for a Walk - Curtis
The Day the Crayons Quit - Daywalt
Last Stop on Market Street - De La Pena
Jamberry - Deegan
Strega Nona - dePaola
Llama Llama Red Pajama - Dewdney
The Pout-Pout Fish - Diesen
The Gruffalo - Donaldson
Are You My Mother? - Eastman
A Hat for Mrs. Goldman - Edwards
Olivia - Falconer
Bark, George! - Feiffer
Don’t Worry Bear - Foley
Corduroy - Freeman
Orange Pear Apple Bear - Gravett
Chrysanthemum - Henkes
Duck and Goose - Hills
Bread and Jam for Frances - Hoban
Harold and the Purple Crayon - Johnson
The Fantastic Flying Books of Mr. Morris Lessmore - Joyce
The Hello, Goodbye Window - Juster
The Snowy Day - Keats
The Mysterious Tadpole - Kellogg
I Want My Hat Back - Klassen
The Story of Ferdinand - Leaf
Frederick - Lionni
Pete the Cat and His Four Groovy Buttons - Litwin
Frog and Toad are Friends - Lobel
Otis - Long
Have Fun, Molly Lou Melon - Lovell
The Poky Little Puppy - Lowrey
Brown Bear, Brown Bear, What Do You See? - Martin
Chicka Chicka Boom Boom - Martin
Tap the Magic Tree - Matheson
Guess How Much I Love You - McBratney
Blueberries for Sal - McCloskey
Make Way for Ducklings - McCloskey
Little Bear - Minarik
The Night Before Christmas - Moore
Thank You, Omu - Mora
The Paper Bag Princess - Munsch
If You Give a Mouse a Cookie - Numeroff
Amelia Bedelia - Parish
The Kissing Hand - Penn
The Rainbow Fish - Pfister
The Lion and The Mouse - Pinkney
The Little Engine That Could - Piper
Not a Box - Portis
The Tale of Peter Rabbit - Potter
Good Night, Gorilla - Rathmann
Curious George - Rey
The Dot - Reynolds
Goodnight, Goodnight, Construction Site - Rinker
We're Going on a Bear Hunt - Rosen
Dragons Love Tacos - Rubin
Skippyjon Jones - Schachner
Little Blue Truck - Schertle
Where the Wild Things Are - Sendak
The Cat in the Hat - Seuss
Green Eggs and Ham - Seuss
Horton Hears a Who - Seuss
A Bad Case of Stripes - Shannon
Sheep in a Jeep - Shaw
Caps for Sale - Slobodkina
Grandpa Green - Smith
A Sick Day for Amos McGee - Stead
Sylvester and the Magic Pebble - Steig
The Monster at the End of this Book - Stone
Press Here - Tullet
The Polar Express - van Allsburg
Alexander and the Terrible, Horrible, No Good, Very Bad Day - Viorst
Knuffle Bunny - Willems
Don’t Let the Pigeon Drive the Bus - Willems
A Chair for my Mother - Williams
Bear Snores On - Wilson
How Do Dinosaurs Eat their Food? - Yolen
Found - Yoon
Harry the Dirty Dog - Zion