Non-Fiction Children's Books 

A-B-C-D....The Beginning

The idea of non-fiction books for beginning readers sounds odd, but the truth is that tiny tots usually have their first experience with books in that genre. Think of alphabet books, and books about body parts. These are non-fiction books. The use of activities is a great way to help young children connect with books. With very young children, picture books are always a hit. Baby books, designed with infants and toddlers in mind, contain bright illustrations that draw their attention and keep them interested in the story - if there is one and they don't have to be fairy tales. Some baby and toddler books are books without words. Instead they are the alphabet, numbers, or animals and birds. By opening the books and engaging the tot in making sounds or singing the alphabet they discover the magic of learning from a book. Pointing to the picture and asking questions can be a game of learning for your little one.

Pirates Are Real

As children grow they begin to define some of their likes and dislikes. As a parent, you can help shape their tendencies by exposing them to a variety of different experiences. Some kids love stories of knights and kings, or pirates on the high seas. By introducing historical non-fiction books to children, they can discover that pirates are not make-believe, they actually did sail the seas in high-masted ships. Many wonderful stories abound of knights and kings, race horses and elephants, that are true stories and every bit as amazing as any fantasy could be.

Keep It Short

For the most part, young children do not have a long attention span, so finding non-fiction short stories and articles for kids is useful. There are great stories available in the children's editions of National Geographic, where the reading is rich and the pictures are breathtaking. Non-fiction books can explain a lot of things to children, answering questions and posing them as well. Some kids love to gather facts and there are a plethora of facts available in science non-fiction books. As a matter of fact, there are books just filled with facts, nothing but facts. For the inquisitive mind, this is a gold mine and something a youngster can sit with for hours.

What About Teenagers?

Teens will either be readers or non-readers it seems. They tend to have a lot on the go and getting them to sit with a book can be like trying to nail jello to the wall. But, if they can find something that really interests them, they're hooked. So, that's the task - find out what they love. Non-fiction books for teenagers can stimulate them toward career decisions as well as exploring their world. Youth who are attracted to computers may experience a great deal of pleasure reading the story of Google, or a biography about Bill Gates. How may mechanics today got their start in a book some twenty years ago? Life stories of sports heroes, past and present, often inspire teenage athletes. If your young person has shown an interest in horses, there are many books available to help them learn husbandry through activities. Dress design can be learned the same way. There's no limit to what is available to the seeking mind.

Popular Reading

Some of the more popular books for children and youth in the genre of non-fiction include, Anne Frank: The Diary of a Young Girl, Eleanor (the story of Eleanor Roosevelt), Animal Facts/Animal Fiction, and The Wright Brothers: How They Invented the Airplane. These are time honored and lasting pieces of non-fiction literature that will remain for years to come. Your children can enjoy real life stories, learn new facts, gather pertinent (and not-so-pertinent) information, and investigate scientific phenomena through the medium of non-fiction books.