If you’ve ever felt like academic success is hard to reach, this sweet picture book about different types of intelligence will resonate with you.

The central character, Cookie, grapples with traditionally academic challenges within the classroom of Ms. Biscotti. However, a transformative moment occurs when an assignment requires a bit more creative originality, leading Cookie to uncover her hidden poetic talent. As her peers also showcase their distinct abilities, ranging from artistic endeavors to inventive creations, Cookie gains a profound understanding of the different types  of intelligence. Through sharing her poem, her self-assurance grows, igniting a belief in her potential to become the “Smart Cookie” she aspires to be.

This is a really funny book and is always a winner with children (we also love the other books in the series – check out The Couch Potato, The Good Eggand The Cool Bean). Enhanced by the vivid illustrations of Pete Oswald, the narrative seamlessly weaves clever wordplay with a universal message of self worth and being willing to grow. The story underscores the significance of valuing different kinds of strengths and fostering self-worth in a classroom, and provides an opportunity for adults and children to reflect on the classroom culture they want to create.

Like many of the funniest books, the simple honour and bold illustrations make this a laugh-out-loud hit in KS1 classrooms. How to Be Cooler Than Cool hilarious and engaging picturebook that will keep you laughing and eagerly turning the pages.

In the story, a cat finds a pair of sunglasses and thinks they’ll make her look cool. However, her attempt at being cool by gliding backwards down a slide ends in a clumsy fall. Much hilarity ensues when her friends Pig or Cockatoo try to have better luck. But in the end, we all know that it’s not clothing, fashion accessories or sharp moves that make friends cool.

We adore this charming story about a young boy who is tasked with finding a hat in order to be allowed into a party. When the boy struggles to find one, a helpful animal friend steps in to save the day. However, when he arrives, a tough doorman and an even tougher series of entry requirements lead to a snowballing of humorous actions and a hilarious climax.

The story is filled with wonderfully illustrated, silly characters and a ridiculous storyline that will have children and adults alike laughing out loud.  This is a picturebook to recommend to anyone looking for a fun and engaging story to share with children. With vibrant illustrations and humorous characters, We Must Bring a Hat is a sure-fire hit in the classroom and a book that children will ask for over and over again. We think this is a perfect choice for entertaining storytimes with Year 2.

This illustrated chapter book about a flying pony is just so endearing and very entertaining. As you’d expect from this author-illustrator dream team that brought us Cakes in Space and Oliver and the Seawigs, this story is amusingly original at every turn and is overflowing with the feel-good factor. Kevin is a flying pony who lives on the Outermost West hills and loves biscuits (especially custard creams). One day, a wild storm brings Kevin roly-polying through the air and crashing into Max’s flat in the town of Bumbleford. Max has always wanted a pet and is delighted by Kevin’s arrival…

This super-popular picturebook that combines pirates, dinosaurs and plenty of action is always in high demand in the classroom.

While searching for some coloured pens to finish his dinosaur drawing at school, Flinn discovers Captain Stubble, a real pirate captain, in the art cupboard. Stubble informs Flinn that his ship, the Acorn, has been stolen, and he needs Flinn’s help to retrieve it. Flinn becomes the captain, and they set sail on an old pirate ship. However, they soon discover that the Acorn has been taken over by pirate dinosaurs! After a fierce battle, Captain Flinn and his crew regain control of the ship. They then return to the harbour undetected, sneaking back into the art cupboard …without the teacher realizing they were ever gone. We just love this brilliantly fun and imaginative picturebook that cries out to be read over and over again.

Here at BooksForTopics HQ, we are big fans of the InvestiGators graphic novel series. This pun-filled action series is a hit with younger fans of the graphic novel format and has hooked in lovers of Dog Man and The Bad Guys through its full-colour animal antics, funny cases to solve, and clever wordplay.

We love the good, clean fun of this series, and parents and teachers know that young graphic novel fans are in good hands with these books. Author John Patrick Green said of the series, “Of all the comics I’ve created in my professional career, making InvestiGators has come closest to recapturing that feeling of being 11 years old, drawing comics in my bedroom, with the sole intention of making my friends and classmates laugh.”

John’s commitment to child-centred visual humour and puns has clearly paid off and is reflected in the popularity of this series, which teachers and librarians tell us is flying off primary bookshelves at lightning speed. For children, the books are funny from the get-go, and pun-loving grown-ups like us can’t help but smile at the non-stop wordplay woven through the action scenes, too.

This is a wonderful book that follows the cycle of a mysteriously individual jellyfish-like creature named Stanley as he travels through the ocean. As he meets other sea creatures, differences between him and them start to become apparent – like his two handles and colourful stripes. Various creatures swallow Stanley as he tenaciously continues on his journey until he is found by a human, on the shore, who chooses to put Stanley to much better use. A fun and brightly illustrated picture book with a clear message that plastic does not belong in the sea.

This story follows Aaron, a boy who loves stories but struggles with writing due to his difficulty in deciphering letters. But when his turn to write a story for the class comes around, inspiration strikes, and he finds another way to share his tale through the pictures he draws.

This book is part of a larger series that has gained popularity in schools, and for good reason. The other titles, such as “Rosie Revere, Engineer” and “Iggy Peck, Architect” are also engaging and give validity to the talents and strengths of each individual.

We love Aaron Slater, Illustrator as an empowering storytime read that can also lead to discussions about helping individuals find ways to personally thrive as well as touching on themes of dyslexia and the power of art.

As Lubna arrives in the World of Tents, so begins an emotional story about the power of friendship set against the background of the refugee crisis. Lubna’s best friend is a pebble, found on the beach as they arrived in the night. We are not told who ‘they’ are or where ‘they’ came from but throughout the captivating story there are many clues which help to build a picture of this family’s journey (for example, ‘she fell asleep in Daddy’s salty arms’). So it happens that a pebble becomes Lubna’s best friend – a friend to whom she can tell stories of her previous life, the life with her brothers and the life during the war. This picture book is a good introduction for younger children to the refugee crisis and the power of friendship.

A moving, powerful story that shines a light on those that feel invisible in our world. Isabel and her loving family are forced to leave their home due to poverty. Feeling alone and invisible to the world, Isabel begins to notice the many other people living in similar circumstances – in fact, there are other ‘invisible’ people everywhere. Isabel is stirred to action and decides to make a difference to her new community in the little ways she can. By gradually improving small things that cost nothing, she starts a community movement and, before long, colour floods into her life and the lives of others once again.

​This story links to whole school values of tolerance, kindness and caring and can be used for developing a sense of belonging and community. It shows how anyone can make a positive impact on those around them, regardless of how little they have.​

This is a wonderful picturebook about the nature of individuality, perfect for building a classroom or school culture where the uniqueness of each person is celebrated.

The book invites readers on a whimsical journey that follows a young boy’s desire to create a robot clone of himself. However, before he can bring his cloned self to life, he must embark on a quest to uncover the essence of his individuality. What is it, exactly, that makes him who he is?

Bursting with imaginative illustrations, this thought-provoking book offers an engaging and enjoyable experience that not only sparks discussion but also serves as an ideal catalyst for exploring the concept of each person’s distinct uniqueness. Teachers could use this book as an icebreaker discussion to enable a new class to get to know themselves and others, for thoughtful artwork based on the fun labelled diagrams in the book or for PSHE lessons about expressing and celebrating individuality.

Younger classes will enjoy imagining what a robot close of themselves might look, act and feel like, while older children can get philosophical about the factors that have come together to make them who they are, or even about the potential ethics of cloning oneself (I’m sure overly busy teachers may also be tempted to wish for a clone!).

Either way, this is a really fun focal point for classrooms and one that works best if children are given enlarged or close-up access to the illustrations.

Inspired by her Grandpa’s tales of global exploration, a little girl chooses to pen a love letter to the Earth, gently exploring both the diverse beauty and the fragility of our planet.

As Tessa walks with her Grandpa, she listens to his tales of adventures from his days as an explorer. As Grandpa describes different places he has visited, he paints in Tessa’s mind vivid images of the Earth’s diverse natural wonders. Inspired by what she has heard, Tessa decides to write a letter to the planet, letting her imagination flow as she dreams of global explorations of her own. Through Tessa’s imaginative lines, coupled with Clara Anganuzzi’s gently flowing illustrations, the book addresses the aspects of nature that capture a child’s heart and imagination: Tessa imagines sliding down desert dunes, floating in lagoons, gliding like a turtle, flitting with butterflies, sliding and soaring with birds. Tessa wants to revel in the Earth’s natural beauty – to play gleefully in it, to partake, to sense it, to fully experience it, but not for a second spoil it. At the end of her letter, Tessa’s mind falls to thoughts of the Earth’s need for love, care and healing from the damage caused by humans.

Finishing her letter with ‘Love from Tessa’, she holds Grandpa’s hand and together they wander along the beach and discuss what might cause more people to be better at treasuring the Earth instead of harming it. The pair agree that sharing a message of the planet’s wondrous beauty might be the best way to help people to realise how special the Earth is and to begin to take more care of it.

This is a beautifully illustrated picture book that is perfectly gentle and encouraging in its message of appreciation and environmental care. There’s nothing to scare young children here – instead, it simply moves readers towards reflecting on the diversity of the planet’s natural wonders, as the additional facts and tips at the end of the book gently move readers onto positive and achievable steps to help to care for the planet.

We just can’t get enough of this oversized interactive picture book that children in Year 2 adore.

This exquisitely produced book is a celebration of three of the most infamous fairytale villains. Filled with dark humour and detail on every page, the book has flaps and fold-outs for readers to open up and reveal the innermost secrets of an ogre, a big bad wolf and a wicked witch. Peek under the flaps to reveal what lies beneath their disguises and to uncover the identity of their last meal, now nestled comfortably in their bellies as well as their hobbies, personal belongings and secret plans.

Inside the Villains is a multi-layered book with the potential to entertain readers for hours. This is a great choice for children who love interactive elements and are ready to dive deeper beneath the surface of their favourite fairytales.

A gentle story about a family of toy rabbits and their owner, a girl called Stevie. As her family moves house to the country, Stevie discovers a box with a teacup house inside and four toy rabbits. Little does Stevie know that the rabbits magically come alive when nobody is looking. This is a charming chapter book series with appealing, full-colour illustrations.

One for fans of Harriet Muncaster’s Isadora Moon and Sarah MacIntyre’s Grumpycorn, this is the first story in a series of illustrated short chapter books about Princess Pea and her rather un-royal palace pet – Unipiggle! A madcap and muddy adventure with high-energy design in full colour and tips to draw your own Unipiggle too.

There is something about Jeremy Strong books, they have a particular appeal, being both entertaining and slightly wacky. This book is in that same mould and in addition, the format is super child friendly, being both small in size but very inviting and looking like a ‘proper chapter book’!

Nellie Choc-Ice is a well-travelled penguin, who also happens to be slightly accident-prone and just wants to find her way home. Nellie is a very endearing and entertaining character and the illustrations should get a special mention here. They capture the essence of the story brilliantly and bring the whole book to life.

For its target age of 5-8 year-olds, it works perfectly as an early chapter book; not taking too long to plough through, but instead giving the text in manageable bites with colour illustrations and an easy-to-read font. This is part of a Barrington Stoke set of Little Gems books, designed specifically for young readers starting out reading independently.

A classroom favourite from the popular children’s author Roald Dahl. This is the laugh-out-loud tale of George Kranky, who plots revenge on his mean and miserable Grandma by concocting a magic medicine for her. Little does he realise that the medicine will have weird and wonderful effects on the old lady’s body…

Meet the Microbes is a captivating insight into the tiny creatures that live under our noses and have a massive impact on our lives despite only being visible through a powerful microscope. Through the colourful and lively pages, children will meet a succession of cartoon microbes and learn all about them. They will learn about where they can be found and how they multiply; how they survive in the most extreme of conditions; the jobs that they do and how they might be beneficial to our future.

By the end of the book, they will have reached an understanding that microbes can be both good and bad for our bodies and how we can avoid spreading the less desirable ones. They will be fascinated to find out that mould is formed from microbes and that some of their favourite foods such as yoghurt, fluffy bread and cheese would not exist without them. The language is accessible to younger readers and concepts are explained clearly.

This book would be an excellent accompaniment to science topics or just a great addition to the non-fiction, reading for pleasure offer in the school library.

This is the story of a class of children learning about different animals. At the end of the term, when they have discovered all kinds of amazing things, the teacher asks them to share their ideas about which is the most important animal of all. The pupils share fascinating facts and illustrate how each species fits into a wider ecosystem. We loved this precise perspective and it seems that the British Ecological Society do too, as it is the first children’s book they have endorsed. The book fits neatly into KS1 Science curriculum and is accompanied by school resources to download.

Close your eyes and you can probably imagine the cities of London, Paris and New York -but what about Buenos Aires or Singapore or Mumbai?
With a globetrotting penguin as our guide, in The Big City Atlas we embark on a world tour to 28 different cities. With each city offering something completely new, whether it be showing the local cuisine, traditions or landmarks, readers are given a taste of what life might be like there. As a geography-enthusiast and fan of maps in general, this book appealed to me from the outset. The wealth of information included on each page paired with the bold and colourful designs make for such an enjoyable read. I was also drawn in as this book focuses solely on cities within countries rather than the countries as a whole…