Celebrate gratitude, family, and traditions with these fun Thanksgiving books for preschoolers.
Thanksgiving time is the perfect holiday season for preschool-aged children to learn all about gratitude.
There’s no worrying that presents will overshadow the true meaning of the holiday or that the certain pesky Elf will “forget” to move somewhere new each night.
It’s just a time to gather with family, relishing all the wonderful blessings in our lives.
Preschool kids are at the perfect age to learn more about the reasons why we celebrate Thanksgiving and the history behind this delicious celebration!
Read on below to find the best Thanksgiving books for your preschooler!
The Best Thanksgiving Books For Preschool Kids
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Turkey Trouble is cute Thanksgiving story about the lengths Turkey will go to avoid being eating for dinner. Will he live past this holiday season?! No need to worry, Turkey figures out the perfect solution for him and for Farmer Jake’s family. Kids will laugh at all the hilarious illustrations in this fun storybook.
Bear Says Thanks is an adorable story of Bear and his kind friends who all gather in his cave to share their yummy food. Bear feels sad because he has no food to share, but then learns he can say thanks and be grateful for his wonderful pals.
Duck and Hippo Give Thanks is a lighthearted book about the preparations of Duck and Hippo to make a good, old-fashioned Thanksgiving dinner. Hippo wants a classic Thanksgiving, but Duck and his friends surprise Hippo with something special! This Thanksgiving storybook is a cute reminder of gratitude for friends and each animals’ uniqueness.
‘Twas the Night Before Thanksgiving is a spin-off of the classic book about Christmas Eve. This children’s book tells the tale of a class of students who visit Farmer Nuggett and his flock of turkeys destined to be Thanksgiving dinner. Unless, of course, the kids have anything to say about that! This book has a happy ending but does talk about killing and eating the turkeys, so if you have sensitive kids, read this book alone first to determine if it’s ok for your kids to hear.
Balloons Over Broadway is the true story about the original puppeteer of the Macy’s Thanksgiving Day parade. This may possibly be my most favorite Thanksgiving book ever! It is a long story for preschoolers, so I would recommend it for the older end of the range. My 3-year-old was a little wiggly, but he loved the whimsical illustrations. If your family has the tradition of watching the Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade, this is a must-read for Thanksgiving this year!!
There Was An Old Lady Who Swallowed A Turkey is one of those “new” classics that kids just have to read each year. Just like all the other Old Lady Who Swallowed A Fly books, this book is filled with crazy shenanigans and rhyming words. Kids love the utter nonsense of the book and the distinct illustrations.
Thankful is a simple and sweet book all about the things various different people are grateful for. Each page has friendly illustrations that kids will enjoy.
Pete The Cat: The First Thanksgiving is a great story to teach preschoolers about the original celebration of Thanksgiving. In this book, Pete and his friends reenact the story of the pilgrims and the Indians. This book doesn’t have the classic Pete the Cat song inspired story, but it does have flaps so kids can lift them and stay engaged through the whole storybook.
10 Fat Turkeys is a silly countdown book for preschoolers that reinforce numbers one through ten.
Llama Llama Gives Thanks is a very simple board book that even the youngest preschoolers will love. In it, Llama Llama talks about Thanksgiving and all the things he and his family are grateful for.
The Night Before Thanksgiving is another Thanksgiving twist of the classic Christmas book. This one is much more traditional and follows the story of a brother and sister preparing for their extended family to come into town. If your family likes classic stories, they’ll love this one!
The Thankful book is not exactly a Thanksgiving book per se, but it does a wonderful job about getting kids thinking about what they’re grateful for. The vividly colored illustrations and the simple text make it great for any aged child!
Did your family’s favorite Thanksgiving children’s book make the list? If not, share it with us in the comments below.
More Thanksgiving Activities For Kids
- Thanksgiving Pattern Block Mats
- Fun Thanksgiving Activities For Kids To Celebrate Gratitude
- Kids Thanksgiving Printable Placemat
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