First Dance Books for the Very Young

A friend with a 1.5 year old daughter recently asked me for book recommendations. Here is a short list of books for children 0-5. I am a big proponent of reading books to children from a very early age. My boys heard books in my lap as babies and after lunch while still sitting in their highchairs. Board books helped them experience books in their own way from a very early age.

I have selected nine books that specifically include the word "dance" in the title or in the story. Another posting will list books that are about moving, but do not necessarily call it "dancing" — books about walking, jumping, and bouncing. I have selected a group of books with both male and female characters, culturally diverse dancers, and various dance forms (not simply ballet). I am not a huge fan of dance books with animals dancing, so you will see this selection is about boys, girls, men, and women dancing.

Let me start with three fun board books:

These three books are:

Watch Me Dance  by Andrea Davis Pinkney and Brian Pinkney

Matisse Dance for Joy  by Susan Goldman Rubin

Dance with Me  by Charles R. Smith Jr.

Six other great dance books for children 0-5 include:

Dance  by Bill T. Jones and Susan Kuklin

Dragon Dancing  by Carole Lexa Schaefer and Pierr Morgan

I am a Dancer  by Pat Lowery Collins

Let's Dance  by George Ancona

On Your Toes: A Ballet ABC  by Rachel Isadora

Rap a Tap Tap  by Leo and Diane Dillon

Please let me know if your child gets excited about some of these titles.