Classroom Management, Teaching Tips & Tricks | Sep 4, 2013
101 read-alouds for creating a caring classroom
By Angela Watson
Founder and Writer
101 read-alouds for creating a caring classroom
By Angela Watson
One of the best ways to prevent behavioral issues and conflicts in the classroom is to teach kids how to get along with others. And what could be a more fun approach to that than a shared read-aloud?
The slideshow below features some excellent books to read aloud to children ages 3-11, not only during the first few weeks of school as you set new expectations, but throughout the year to address behavioral concerns as they arrive. I’ve selected titles that teach about kindness, sharing, team work and cooperation, personal responsibility, dealing with bullies, manners, and more. I’ve also included a few teacher resource books that I think have good ideas for preventing discipline issues and interpersonal conflicts between children.
Morning Meeting is an excellent time to read books like these and talk about how the concepts apply to situations you’ve noticed (both positive and negative) in your classroom. I also used read-alouds like these at the end of the day during dismissal time to help my students reflect on their choices and think about how they would treat one another the following day.
After reading the books, make sure you place them in your class library for the kids to look at throughout the year. Most students love to re-read anything that you’ve already shared with the whole class, and they’ll return to these books over and over again.
To click through the images quickly, mouseover a book and use the forward and backward arrows that appear at the top.
(ETA APRIL 2017: The slideshow is an Amazon widget that apparently is no longer available. I’m sorry about that!)
If I had to pick a favorite book from the slideshow above, I would recommend What If Everybody Did That? It’s a very short, easy book which resonated with my third graders in really powerful ways. The premise is this (from the book description): “If you drop just one soda can out the window, it’s no big deal … right? But what if everybody did that? What if everybody broke the rules … and spoke during story time, didn’t wash up, or splashed too much at the pool? Then the world would be a mess. But what if everybody obeyed the rules so that the world would become a better place?” I read this book aloud a few times each school year to help students reflect on how their personal choices affect everyone around them, and I often heard kids using the phrase with each other when they noticed one another making irresponsible decisions.
What are your favorite read-alouds for teaching classroom norms and creating a positive learning community?
Angela Watson
Founder and Writer
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I wasn’t able to see the slideshow of the books, although I am very interested in seeing the list of books. Is there any way to access the titles?
I also would love to see the list of books. Thanks!
Hi, Allison and Peg, I’m sorry there’s been some trouble with Amazon’s slideshow widget. It appears not to work on mobile devices. 🙁 Please try accessing the post from a computer. Thanks for your understanding!
Here’s an update from Amazon for anyone else who’s having trouble:
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Hope that helps!
Hi there,
Thanks for all the reading you did to make this list! I did manage to go through the slideshow but having the books in a list which I can run off and refer to when I am planning my classes and lessons would be really helpful.
Hi, Corri! It would take me quite a while to type up 101 book title and author names, but if I have chance, I’ll do it! I thought I was making things easier by using an Amazon widget so you all can see the book covers instead of just a plain long list of books, but I think I just made things more complicated. Sorry!
Bummer! I tried it on Chrome and Firefox, but to no avail.
Sigh. Lesson learned: no more Amazon slideshows! Sorry about that.