There seems to be an infinite number of options when it comes to picking children’s books. From classics to new releases, fiction and non-fiction, board books to novels, there is something for everyone and a slew of children’s book genres to choose from. But it can also become habit for kids to continually return to the types of books they enjoy and getting them branch out into other children’s book genres is not always an easy task.
I mean, we all just want our kids to read something. So long as they are opening books it’s a good thing, right? While I do believe that any reading is better than no reading at all, I also believe that variety is super important (in addition to high-quality selections, but that’s a post for another day).
So what are the different children’s book genres out there and how do we get kids to actually ready different types of books? The easiest way is to pick a topic they are interested in and branch off from there. Most topics, even very narrow ones can be found in a variety of different children’s book genres, all it takes is a little digging and creative linking.
So what are the different children’s book genres all kids should be reading?
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Traditional Stories
These are the stories that have been passed down through generations and ages and are often the first stories we learn as children.
Myths
Myths are often based in religious ideas and often use Gods or other super-human characters to explain happenings and phenomenon that pre-date history such as creation stories and natural phenomena.
Fables
Fables are generally short tales, usually based around animal characters, that teach a moral lesson.
Folk Tales
Folk tales are cultural stories that have been passed down orally over time featuring fictional characters and events and based on what is culturally important to the storyteller.
Fairy Tales
Fairy tales usually feature fantasy creatures and often magical events.
Legends
Legends are based around extraordinary historical figures and events but can not always be proven as historically true.
Fictional Stories
Fictional stories are not based on real people but can feature real places and times or events throughout history or can take place in made up worlds, past, present or imagined future.
Contemporary Fiction
These are the stories that are set in modern times and are relatable to the reader.
Historical Fiction
Historical fiction stories feature made up characters during events or time period that actually happened.
Adventure
Adventure books are exciting stories that often take the reader along with the protagonist as s/he goes on a dangerous voyage or expedition.
Fantasy
Fantasy books focus on supernatural and magical elements and also often feature the protagonist embarking on a journey or quest.
Mystery
Mystery books focus around solving a problem or puzzle, usually a crime or unexplained happening.
Science Fiction
Science fiction stories are usually based upon technology or scientific ideas and often take place at some point in the future.
Non-Fiction Books
Non-fiction books are based on fact without made up elements.
Biographies and Autobiographies
Biographies are stories written about people who actually lived and autobiographies are a person’s telling of their own life story.
Science
Science books focus on and teach about an element or area of earth, physical or life science.
History
History books teach about a specific point in time and what events occurred and who lived during that time.
Geography
Geography books focus on teaching about a place, near or far.
Poetry and Drama
Poems
Poetry often uses figurative language and express feelings and emotions, usually written in a specified format of rhythm and syllables though poetry can also be free form with no specific formatting.
Plays
Plays and dramatic stories feature dialect between characters and are often written to be read in front of an audience.
Inspiration and Growing Up
While not one of the major recognized children’s book genres, I personally think this category of reading is essential to today’s children.
Inspirational
Inspirational books are usually written to help uplift the reader, featuring inspirational characters and encourage readers to achieve greatness.
Growing and Changing
Books in this are can include physical, mental and/or emotional changes that children go through as they grow and mature.
Why not try a different way to encourage kids to read and instead of marking off how many books or how many minutes your kids read, encourage them to read many books across different genres!
Grab my Book Genre Reading Challenge:
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