Sports Day Books: 5 Recommended Books for Children

July 2, 2025

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This blog post recommends 5 children’s books perfect for preparing for sports day. To complement our range of sports booklists, our team has chosen 5 super sports day titles that help encourage participation, manage emotions linked to competition and ensure every child focuses on the fun of being active. Essential reading for primary teachers and librarians seeking to inspire confidence and enjoyment in sports day.

Five recommended children’s books for Sports Day

The end of the summer term in primary schools often brings with it the joyful chaos of sports day! For many children, it’s a highlight – a chance to run, jump and cheerfully compete. But for others, the mix of anticipation and competition can feel overwhelming.

Books offer a fantastic way to prepare children for this annual event in the primary calendar. Through stories, young children can explore the many facets of sports day from the comfort of the classroom or library. Reading about others’ experiences can help children understand and manage their own emotions around competitiveness, encouraging them to focus on personal effort and the sheer fun of taking part rather than solely on winning. Stories can also support children who feel underconfident about being active to be encouraged to have a go and enjoy a shared experience with their friends and family.

If you’re looking for more children’s books about sports, we have booklists for Sports in KS1 and KS2 as well as individual pursuits like football, tennis, swimming and paralympics. In this blog post, we’ll specifically look at five children’s books recommended with sports day in mind, perfect for a primary audience. These titles will help children feel encouraged to join in, equip them with strategies for handling the ups and downs of competition and ultimately encourage them to be active and celebrate everyone’s achievements on sports day.

5 Children’s Books for Sports Day

1. The Big Cheese by Jory John and Pete Oswald

A witty picture book about dealing with competitiveness and the desire to always win

The Big Cheese is a super-fun picture book by Jory John and Pete Oswald and a brilliant addition to the fantastic Food Group series, which includes The Couch Potato and The Smart Cookie. This witty fable introduces a high-performing cheese, who learns a big lesson about competitiveness and winning when a new rival appears.

Many young children struggle with keeping winning or losing in perspective, and this story provides a good way to discuss sportsmanship and the benefits of sport without focusing purely on winning.

For children who will find the competitiveness of sports day a big deal, The Big Cheese approaches the issue with well-natured humour and can lead to discussions and reflections on the joys of taking part and celebrating others.

Jory John’s witty narrative and Pete Oswald’s expressive illustrations perfectly capture the Big Cheese’s journey from pride to newfound empathy with brilliant humour and appeal.

The book earned a place on our Recommended Reads for Y1 booklist, but has a wide-reaching appeal that could be used with children across all primary year groups. There is also an accompanying activity pack to download.

The Big Cheese is a superb, cheese-pun-filled tale that subtly shows how losing is not always negative, and that celebrating others’ successes can be just as rewarding.

Other recommended books that you can use to discuss being a good sport are I Really Want to Win, Daisy and the Trouble with Sports Day and Olympig.

Purchase The Big Cheese from Amazon or BookShop.

2. Strong Like Me by Kelechi Okafor and Dias-Hayes

An empowering picture book encouraging self-belief and different ways to be strong

In Strong Like Me, sports day is coming up, and super-speedy Kamara is all set to run the Big Race. The story is about self-belief and the power of words and features on our Sports and Healthy Lifestyle booklists.

Strong Like Me is a beautifully illustrated text with a strong female protagonist, and the book has been shortlisted for the Inclusive Books for Children Awards. The illustrations represent a diverse range of pupils from primary schools across the UK with experiences that pupils can relate to, such as Sports Day and swimming lessons.

The main character, Kamara, has been brought up always believing she is strong in every sense of the word and has strong female role models, such as her charismatic Aunt.

However, a few discouraging words from classmates cause Kamara to worry that she shouldn’t be so confident in her strength. The story develops to teach her that everyone shines in different ways, and you mustn’t allow others to dim your light.

This would be a lovely text to promote discussions about the power of words. Primary teachers can use Strong Like Me as a springboard to discussions about how positive words can be used to encourage others in their efforts in sports day, as well as a reminder that there are many different ways to be strong.

Purchase Strong Like Me from Amazon or BookShop. d

3. The Corinthian Girl by Christina Balit

A historically based picture book for linking ancient games to modern sports days

Key Stage 2 readers will enjoy a dive into the history of sport with this illustrated picture book from both our Ancient Greece Topic list and Y3 Recommended Reads list.

Based on the real-life ancient Heraean Games for women and girls, held at Olympia, The Corinthian Girl carries themes of resilience and female participation in sport. Reading this book will help children to draw links between modern sports days in schools and ancient Olympic-style games like running, jumping, throwing the javelin and the discus.

In Ancient Athens, a young slave is known only as ‘The Corinthian Girl’ in a reference to where she had been found, left by her father, who couldn’t afford to keep her. She grows up learning to serve her new Athenian family by fetching, carrying, cleaning and scrubbing. Girls were unimportant; slave girls even less so.

Very occasionally, she can play with the youngest son, and her athletic talents are noticed by the master of the house, himself a famous athlete. He forms an ambitious plan for her – will it succeed?

This inspiring short story is based on the Heraean Games, a real event held every four years in honour of Hera and only open to female athletes. The text of The Corinthian Girl is accompanied by gorgeously subtle but graphic watercolour illustrations that suit the subject matter perfectly, both in style and colour palette. Readers who have enjoyed Escape from Pompeii, which has been used in classrooms for years alongside the Romans topic, will immediately recognise Christina Balit’s distinctive style.

In The Corinthian Girl, it is pleasing to see these lesser-known Greek games brought to light to counterbalance the male perspective, which dominates the study of Ancient Greece. You may wish to pair this book with non-fiction books for KS2, like Women in Sport, Action Replay or Ancient Games.

A comprehensive pack of teaching notes is also available to download.

Purchase The Corinthian Girl from Amazon or BookShop. d

4. Lottie The Little Wonder by Katherine Woodfine and Ella Okstad

An illustrated early chapter book about perseverance in sports against the odds

This short, colour-illustrated first chapter book for newly independent readers is based on the true story of Lottie Dod, a talented young athlete in the late 1880s who proved that she could do whatever she set her mind to. Lottie succeeds against the odds, and her story will encourage children who feel too insignificant to compete in sports due to age, gender or ability.

Lottie the Little Wonder is one of Barrington Stoke‘s super-readable ‘Little Gems’ series, and has earned a spot on a number of our booklists including dyslexia-friendly books, children’s books about sports, Year 2 recommended reads and our brand new booklist of children’s books about tennis, which we’ve published to celebrate Wimbledon 2025.

Lottie the Little Wonder tells the story of Lottie, who was born to wealthy parents in the north of England. Lottie and her siblings were tutored at home and prevented from venturing outside the family estate. When a grass tennis court was created in the grounds, just as the sport of lawn tennis was gaining popularity, Lottie discovered that she had real talent for the game. Despite her mother’s refusal to allow her out to participate in a competition, Lottie sneaked out early and travelled to Manchester to take part. This is the start of a competitive career which sees Lottie winning many tournaments, culminating in lifting the Wimbledon trophy at the age of 15!

She also discovered a talent for golf, archery and hockey, amongst other sports. She became, perhaps, the world’s first female sports superstar. Lottie’s story inspires readers by showing that hard work and passion can lead to remarkable achievements in sport, however disadvantaged your starting point may make you feel.

Lottie the Little Wonder is an excellent choice for children around Sports Day because it champions determination, perseverance and breaking barriers in sport. On Sports Day, when children are engaging in various athletic activities, the story of Lottie can motivate them to try their best, challenge themselves and celebrate their strengths, regardless of gender or perceived limitations.

Purchase Lottie the Little Wonder from Amazon or Bookshop.

5. Jabari Jumps by Gaia Cornwall

A gentle picture book to encourage children who are reluctant to try new challenges

Jabari Jumps is a heartwarming picture book that beautifully captures the universal feeling of facing a new challenge – freshly added to our brand new swimming and diving booklist.

This gently encouraging story follows young Jabari as he decides today is the day he will jump off the diving board for the very first time. Anyone who has made the nervous steps towards the edge of a diving board will relate to his reluctance, as will readers who have needed encouragement in the build-up to undertaking any brave new challenge.

In Jabari Jumps, Cornwall masterfully portrays the mix of excitement, apprehension and, ultimately, the quiet courage that comes with stepping outside one’s comfort zone. The simple yet powerful sports-themed text allows young readers to easily empathise with Jabari’s journey. The expressive artwork, with its emotive use of colour and perspective, enhances the emotional depth of the story, making Jabari’s internal world feel tangible.

Jabari Jumps is an excellent choice for a book to read around sports day, as it captures the experience of facing a new challenge with mixed feelings. Jabari’s journey to jump off the diving board mirrors the nerves and anticipation many children feel before a sports day event, especially an activity they may not have competed in before.

The book offers an empathetic portrayal of overcoming fear, showing that it’s normal to feel nervous and that positive encouragement can make a difference. It’s a wonderful way to discuss encouraging others, perseverance and overcoming nerves as winning personal qualities, regardless of the outcome of the race.

This book would make a fantastic addition to PSHE lessons, prompting rich discussions around growth mindset, overcoming fears and celebrating personal achievements in sports and hobbies. Jabari Jumps might also help children who are nervous around water or reluctant to get in the swimming pool.

Highly recommended for any primary classroom or home library, Jabari Jumps is an inspiring read that empowers children to take their own leap of faith. We also recommended the companion book, Jabari Tries, a staple of our Reception Recommended Reads list.

A pack of activity sheets is also available to download.

Purchase Jabari Jumps from Amazon or BookShop.