10 Story Books Your Primary 1 Kid Will Love

embarks on their Primary 1 journey, fostering a genuine love for reading becomes more important than ever. Beyond academic success, the right books can ignite curiosity, build empathy, and significantly enhance their vocabulary, reading comprehension, fluency, and grammar. So, if you're wondering, what books should a 7-year-old be reading? Let's dive straight into our top picks.

For Learning about the World and Its Diverse Cultures

Reading is like a magic carpet that can transport your child to fascinating new places and introduce them to diverse cultures, broadening their horizons from the comfort of home. Books are a wonderful tool to cultivate curiosity about the world around us. 

Put your child on the path to becoming a tiny global citizen with the following titles:

1. Around The World With Friends by Philip Waechter

A book about Raccoon, who is ready for thrills, excitement, and to cross the ocean. This book teaches children that life's better when you bring your friends along for the ride. Your child will love the charming illustrations of animals living their best lives.

2. The Yellow Bus by Loren Long

Follow the journey of The Yellow Bus in this New York Times Bestseller, which helps children learn about how time changes everything. Bittersweet and deeply meaningful, it will teach children how to find joy in uncommon places.

3. The Adventures of Miss Petitfour by Anne Michaels

This book by an internationally acclaimed novelist and poet details the adventures of a Mary Poppins-esque heroine who travels with her sixteen cats. Impart the importance of small pleasures (like nibbling on cheddar) and good storytelling to your little one. 

For Discovering the Wonders of the Natural World

Engage your child's innate curiosity about nature with stories that bring the animal kingdom and its vibrant cast of characters to life.

Help your child spark a lifelong love for natural science and the great outdoors with these stories.

4. Creep, Leap, Crunch! by Jody Jensen Shaffer

How to make reading fun for children? It's hard to do better than providing sound-rich rhyming verses and enchanting illustrations of the natural world. This book about food chains will teach your child about how every element in nature has its place while making them fall in love with the sound of the English language.

5. Help Wanted: One Rooster

What's a farm without a rooster? And what are mornings without coffee? Give your child an understanding of life before WiFi and more than a few laughs with this masterpiece. They’ll even learn a thing or two about job interviews, even if the interviewer and interviewee are both barnyard animals.

For Learning to How to Navigate Emotions 

Books offer a safe and relatable space for children to explore and manage their feelings. As they see characters respond to challenges by expressing themselves, they learn it is okay to have needs and talk about how they feel. 

Teach your children the importance of identifying and managing their own emotions with these titles.

6. Dear Stray by Kirsten Hubbard 

This story about a little girl and the cat she adopts from the street teaches children that they should treat others like they would like to be treated, even if they need more space, even if they don't feel like playing right now, even if... they're a kitten!

7. The Fast and The Furriest by JaNay Brown-Wood

This book is about a baby corgi training to become a Love Puppy, a dog that helps children navigate social situations with a dash of magic. Through reading, children can learn how even the smallest of corgis can stand up to bullies.

For Understanding Family Dynamics and Cultures

Stories are a fun way for children to learn about different cultural backgrounds and family dynamics, fostering acceptance and understanding of the varied world we live in. 

Introduce them to how other families and cultures work with the following books. 

8. Dory Fantasmagory by Abby Hanlon

This is the book for the youngest, often overlooked child in every family. Meet Dory, a little girl with a huge imagination who is never alone. All her friends may be imaginary, but they keep her busy all the same. From exacting revenge on her sister's prized doll to outsmarting monsters, they're up for it.

9. Mindy Kim and the Mid-Autumn Festival by Lyla Lee

Do your children love dancing to the sound of K-pop? Teach them about the wonders of the annual Chuseok celebration in South Korea with this Mindy Kim book, where she honours the first mid-autumn holiday without her beloved grandfather.

10. Stars on Orchard Road by Valerie Pereira

Every Singapore resident knows about the Orchard Road light-up in December. Introduce your kid to this longtime tradition with this beautifully illustrated book that captures the spirit of Christmas in a uniquely Singaporean way.

Cultivating a Lifelong Love for Reading

Help your child excel in English by helping them discover the lifelong joys of reading. A love for books is key to reading comprehension, which leads to a deeper understanding of our world. Reading for children is key for unlocking a world of profound benefits for their development and sets the stage for a lifetime of learning and growth. 

How Does Reading Benefit a Child's Development?

Discover how My English School's English enrichment classes for Primary 1 students can nurture your child's language ability and bring it to the next level. Paired with reading classes for kids and a continuously updated syllabus that meets evolving MOE requirements, our enrichment classes cultivate confident speakers and proficient writers. Or, explore how our P1 preparation classes are designed to ready students for Primary 1 English classes, and help them acclimatise to structured learning and adjust to new routines. 

Book a free assessment for your child today.