Oracy Booklist for EYFS and KS1

A delightful, funny picturebook about Jenny Peckles, who lays eggs with speckles and other hens on Old Worrall’s Farm!

From the title, it gives the clue that rhyme is present throughout, which causes lots of giggles from children at story time (think of a tongue-in-cheek version of Hairy Maclary, but with chickens!). Children will find the writing engaging and have fun guessing at what the rhyme might be. There is also a brilliant surprise at the end of the story in the author’s note, for readers to realise that there is a real Jenny Peckles and the author is writing about the farm where she grew up.

This book is excellent for enjoying rhyme and language. It is a quick story to share, with vibrant pictures for the readers that add to the enjoyment of the book.

A lovely picture book to have in a class book corner or for a bedtime story for a younger reader.

This is the ultimate rhyming story book for preschool, by the much-loved illustrator Nick Sharratt.

Timothy Pope heads to the park with his telescope, but when he looks down it and is sure he sees a shark, we soon learn that things are not always as they seem! There are flaps and die-cut holes to explore, making this a memorable interactive story choice.

The repeated refrains of Timothy Pope, Timothy Pope, what can you see through your telescope? and ‘Is there a shark in the park?’ are remarkably catchy and will quickly have children joining in. A really fun must-read book for EYFS children!

Michael Rosen is a master of the word. He is a master of rhythm and rhyme and a master of the engagement of young children. This book is full of poems specifically aimed at the youngest children. It recognises that enabling children to hear and feel words in an enjoyable and engaging way, is not just a foundational skill for learning to read and write, but a fundamental entitlement for all children to be able to be introduced to the joy of playing with words.

The poems and rhymes follow the loose structure of a child’s day from the rhyme “Up” at the start to “Goodnight” at the end. In between come rhymes that can accompany all sorts of activities, such as “On the swings” and feelings, like the rhyme “Happy”. The rhymes are simple and easily recalled, but the joy for the child will also be in the illustrations by Polly Dunbar. Pictures of children illustrate each rhyme – my particular favourite is the illustration of the child ‘putting on’ her pyjamas to accompany the rhyme, “Jimmy Jams”.

Children will quickly know their favourites and, in no time, will be reading along with the adult.

Steve Smallman is the master of funny rhymes for children and as luck would have it, quite a lot of words rhyme with ‘zoo’.

Take a menagerie of animals, a thumpingly fast rhyming verse and a dash of toilet humour and you have the makings of a riotous storytime favourite. As well as the tongue-twisting story filled with funny-sounded onomatopoeia (there’s plenty of plopping and splatting), the book also features themes of keeping the environment clean, animal tracking and caring for wildlife. This book will become an instant favourite with children who love a good giggle at storytime.

This is a delightfully silly story that will engage children of all ages, but especially younger ones who can delight in the opportunities for silly voices and revelling in the funny relationship between the bear and the mouse.

Alongside the energy and vibrant colour of the illustrations, the quirky story and the witty rhyme, this book also comes with a QR Code on the inside cover for listen to the story online, This is the kind of book that young children absorb and learn off by heart in no time at all.

The Cat And the Rat And The Hat by Em Lynas and Matt Hunt is going to be a firm favourite of mine for reading to KS1 classes! As a cat-owner (slave?) myself, I absolutely love the scene-setting of the cat on the mat, playing and sleeping and dreaming…only to be interrupted by the rat, swanning around in his great big hat. The ensuing tug-of-war fight is brilliantly illustrated, the back-and-forth pictures giving children lots to notice and comment on. This is where the book really comes into its own as both a class read-aloud and a shared-focus – in a class situation you’ll have children taking sides, you could even act it out with props and be completely raucous!

We’ll never grow tired of this creative tongue-twister series of stories that make for perfect read-it-together books for families and classroom settings – it’s ridiculously good fun that takes ‘the cat sat on a mat’ to a whole new level of hilarity.

The award-winning series includes Oi Frog!, Oi Dog!, Oi Cat!, Oi Duck-billed Platypus! and Oi Puppies!, and each book is based on the premise of instructing a menagerie of animals where to sit, using rhyme (for example, hares sit on chairs and lions sit on irons). The funny interplay between the unconvinced frog (who does not want to sit on a log, by the way), and the experienced mat-sitting cat, is what makes this book such a hoot.

Children in EYFS love this book, which always gets little ones joining in with the wonderfully silly rhymes. It is a good book for Reception phonics learning and also just to read for fun. The illustrations are bright and colourful and it is exactly the kind of go-to story time treat that teachers rely on for guaranteed giggles for classroom story sessions.

This is a fantastic twist on the classic fairy tale ‘The Three Little Pigs’. In this hilarious new version of the story, the three little wolves build houses of bricks, concrete and steel in an attempt to escape the Big Bad Pig, who is well armed with a tool kit including a sledgehammer and a pneumatic drill. Highly recommended.

We absolutely love Barry Falls’ rhyming and joyful picturebook, Tiny McToot. It tells the fun tale of Tiny McToot, a surprisingly small giant who demonstrates that even the littlest can make a big impact.

The story’s vibrant rhythm and engaging illustrations make it an entertaining read-aloud, sure to bring smiles to EYFS and KS1 classrooms.

This book also carries an empowering message. It champions the idea that size doesn’t determine strength or significance, making it a brilliant choice for boosting confidence among the youngest children in the school. Tiny McToot is simply a really fun and uplifting story that children will want to revisit again and again.

This excellent picture book has enough depth to captivate pupils and is an entertaining storytime choice for Year 1 and 2. It follows the story of Bob, an ordinary man with the extra-ordinary job of keeping the moon clean and entertaining moon tourists. Readers will delight in spotting all of the aliens that Bob misses noticing as he goes about his work as the man on the moon. Highly recommended!

This one is an oldie but a goodie. This fast-paced, hilarious, rhyming text follows Eddie. who is looking for his teddy in the woods. It’s super-fun to join in with the repeated rhymes and readers will love the HUGE surprise in store for Eddie when he eventually finds what he’s looking for. This book is a timeless classic, gorgeously illustrated throughout.

A beautiful, award-winning wordless picture book. It follows the journey of a young girl who draws a magic door in her bedroom and travels through fantasy worlds by boat, balloon and magic carpet. Highly recommended for pupils across the whole primary range.

This book has such an intriguing title to explore with children – what or who is a momo-la and how can they be a museum? A moma-la, we soon infer, is the Tibetan name for a grandmother and the grandmother in this story takes her granddaughter on a day trip to lots of museums to show her where stories come from.

For many children, a visit from a grandparent is a special event and this story can encourage children to share some of their own stories about their grandparents and perhaps also inspire a renewed curiosity about the life of their grandparent. The Moma-la in this story reveals various aspects of her life through the objects and wonders found in the different museums, art galleries and craft centres that the pair visit. There is ample opportunity to explore the Tibetan culture through the traditional dress that is highlighted and through glimpses of the history of these people.

The clear and vibrant illustrations very effectively support the meaning of the words. The end note is a direct letter to the reader and is as important to read as the story, as it helps children begin to think about the stories that all families have in their histories. This is a powerful story and one that children will relate to.

An affectively engaging, wonderfully illustrated picture book. It shows how sensitive teachers can unlock the voices of the young and help them develop confidence as children and as writers.  Superb.

Inspiring, lyrical, engaging, emotional and satisfying!

Get pupils choosing, imagining and expressing their own preferences with this massively appealing picture book full of choices.

Each double-page spread is themed around a different choice to make and packed with all sorts of possibilities from the tame to the outright wacky; choose furniture for your ideal house, choose a pet (watch out for the dragon) and choose favourite food (the ice cream looks good but I’m not sure about the boar’s head!).

The You Choose series of books have seen enormous popularity and are well-loved by children because of the premise of letting the reader choose items from an appealing illustrated scene on each page. Readers are invited to select their favourite food, destination, clothing, hobby and family from a mix of plausible and not-so-plausible cartoon options, illustrated by the inimitable Nick Sharratt. These engaging books have mileage to be read over and over again, and children love interacting with them together with friends or family as they discuss their choices.

There is nothing that can quite take the place of this fantastically engaging series!

A popular transport-themed book with oodles of funny things for children to spot and choose between.

Each page is themed around a different type of transport, from buses and trucks to emergency vehicles and rockets, and displays an array of different cartoon examples, while the reader is asked to choose which one they would ride. Added details make the act of choosing on each page fun. On the trains page, for example, a steam train is filled with animals eating spaghetti and doughnuts, while an Elf Express is taking Lego to Santa’s workshop, and a slick intercity train driven by a sloth has a swimming pool carriage but also a wolf disguised in grandma’s clothing.

Children who like ‘You Choose’ style books will enjoy poring over this over and over again, as will transport lovers and fans of funny animal characters. It’s a great book for getting children talking and interacting, or for poring over independently and spotting something new each time.

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.

For many children, moving to a new school, town, street or even within a block of flats, can be a daunting experience, not least because old friends may be lost and there is a fear of not making new friends. This book is perfect for children in situations of change (including class transitions) or for teachers and parents to explore with children what makes a ‘good friend’.

The character in the book creates a new friend from a variety of art materials, and this is a worthwhile activity to do for children, enabling them to talk about friendships and what is important to them about either their friends or about a friend they would like to have. Clearly, sensitivity is key to sharing this book.

The illustrations are bold and vibrant with a wide representation of children shown in the pictures. There is plenty to talk about in the pictures, providing scope for discussion and questions. This is a simple book with a clear and easy message to follow and useful for any early years or KS1 class.

I was delighted to receive We Are Definitely Human the night before World Book Day – what perfect timing!

Children love feeling that they know more than the hapless storyteller and We Are Definitely Not Human gives plenty of scope for that. Three aliens crash-land in Mr Li’s field and are keen to insist how very ‘human’ they are. The story itself is told through pared-back, simple language, giving just enough information for the children to then look at the pictures and infer what was really going on.

I tried this book out on all our EYFS/KS1 classes on World Book Day and they thoroughly enjoyed it – there was even an honorable mention in assembly from Reception for “best story heard today”. I think that says an enormous amount that a child of five would hear multiple stories throughout the day and still go back to the first one as being their favorite. Several teachers commented on the vibrant color scheme and use of neon pink and blue to pick out the aliens, especially during the night-time scenes.

Whilst the story is about three aliens who crash-land in Mr Li’s field – who does what any kind human would do and helps them to fix their “car” – I fell immediately in love with the dog, who is the best side-eyed, suspicious hound I’ve ever seen! A message about kindness to people who are not like you is clear and warmly given. Readers can also have lots of fun creating voices for the aliens’ not-quite-English speech.

We loved it and I’m sure you will too.

This is a beautiful and timeless story by renowned author-illustrator Anthony Browne, and a true Year 1 classic read.

This story follows a lonely girl called Hannah, who loves gorillas and longs for her Dad to spend time with her, perhaps taking her to the zoo. The night before her birthday, Hannah’s toy Gorilla magically comes alive and takes her on brilliant adventures, visiting the cinema, a cafe and the zoo, where they meet the real-life gorillas. The next morning, Hannah celebrates with her dad and wonders whether her nighttime adventures were as real as they felt.

This is a unique and interesting picture book – not one to be rushed over but one to spend time thinking about and discussing. The story is emotive and thought-provoking, and the illustrations are rife with intriguing details (including repeated gorilla shapes and patterns to spot everywhere) and evoke the depth of the characters’ unspoken emotions.

We adore this first-class picture book and, even now, find something new to consider on every read.

Fish are fishy! Have you ever noticed? This phenomenally tongue-in-cheek picture book starts deadpan and dull, explaining that a mammal is a mammal, a bird a bird – predictable features and characteristics, with staid illustrations. But when it comes to fish, the reader is warned that fish are different. Fish are not to be trusted. And things turn wild.

Sharpson’s deadpan tone makes for a fantastically funny book, allowing the reader to read between the lines. The book lends itself brilliantly to discussions about bias and evaluating what we read by considering the reliability of the source and context, perfect for the modern world in which even young children are confronted with fake news and online prejudice.

Dan Santat complements Sharpson’s text with clever wacky illustrations, from the tube that leads from a domestic fish tank to the sea, to the page that will make younger children think twice before sitting on the toilet, to the nightmarish vision of robot fish towards the end. This is a book that will challenge, while poking enormous fun at the whole endeavour.

A picture book that does not condescend to its audience nor preach any kind of sensible message – other than, obviously, don’t trust fish! Brilliantly funny. To be read again and again.

There’s nothing like good home-cooked food to fill a child with delight. This vibrantly illustrated book – from the front cover onwards – presents an endearing close-up look at celebrating other cultures, taking pride in one’s own, and also sharing – all through the realm of rice.

Shane loves his rice and peas, and is does look enticing, steaming hot with its scent wafting into his living room, and the most ultra-super-duper litany of adjectives to describe it. The illustrations take us from Shane’s domestic life, complete with notices on the fridge and a stash of tinned tomatoes behind proud mum, to his visions of grandiosity after eating the best rice in the world.

But what’s wonderful is the careful insertion of family heritage – a recipe passed down through generations, with its own secret ingredient of pimento seeds. All is well with Shane. Until lunchtime at school, and Yinka’s claim that her Jollof rice is the best. Illustrator Oginni could not convey the emotions of small children more strongly. Shane and Yinka’s standoff is one of the best I’ve seen in a picture book. But that’s not it. In this ultimate battle of food, everyone joins in, proclaiming their own rice is best – risotto, paella, pilau and more. The resolution, of course, is a tasting and sharing, but there’s also a beautiful little twist.

An absolute zinger of a picture book, showing that food and culture and heritage is diverse, and is to be shared and celebrated.

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?

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.

‘If I were Prime Minister…’ is a feel-good story which looks at how our country is run through the eyes of a kind, thoughtful and playful child.

The story follows a young child’s imagination and their desires for the community and country that they live in. They go through numerous wishes, including changing the sea to water that swallows plastic, making sure everyone has at least two friends, that every garden has a swimming pool and that woolly jumpers would not feel itchy. The real question is, ‘What would you do if you were Prime Minister or Team Captain?’

This feel-good picture book is a beautifully illustrated story which gets the reader thinking about what they would change if they were in charge. It covers major socio-political themes including the environment, education and immigration in a child-friendly way. The designs of the pages are playful and eye-catching with an easy-to-read font with the words strewn around pictures, making it fun to read and keeping big themes light-hearted to encourage creative and imaginative thinking.