I have two avid readers at home and I cannot emphasize enough how important reading is in their bilingual journey! Reading plays an important role in communications development and learning. Books help your child to connect words with speaking, teach them new vocabulary, create conversations, and encourage creativity and imagination.
When my daughter was a baby, I did not have a good collection of Chinese children’s books so I would translate English books into Cantonese on the spot as I read to her. Children’s books are not PhD thesis so their content is not complex, but it could still be tiring at times when you do it with very little rest. Now she is a preschooler and our Chinese library has grown, I still find myself doing that to this day:)
Types of book that Babies love
1. Books with realistic pictures
Research have shown that babies are drawn to realistic images. My 1-year old son is a good example for this. He did not start out loving books like his sister did. He was more into chewing the books and we tried to nurture his love for reading as much as we can. We felt guilty because we were spread much thinner with two kids and we could not read as much with him and as early on like we did with our daughter. I made it my goal to read at least once with him every day. Over time, I noticed that he was drawn to books with real photos and realistic pictures. I then started focusing on those books, and now he loves to read!
2. Tactile books
Books with flaps, mirrors, texture, and sounds.
Babies discover their world with their hands and bodies, and in academia they call this behavior “kinesthetic learning.” Both of my kids are kinesthetic learners and they like to touch and feel things. You will see in my list below that tactile books make up the majority of the list.
3. Books with simple plots
This includes books that have a pattern of plot repetition. Eric Carle comes to my mind when I think about books with simple, repeating plots. His books have stood the test of time, and both my 3yo and 1yo love his books.
Best Books for Babies in Traditional Chinese
Below are 10 books that my kids keep picking up to read again and again. Some of them are held together by tape so this is a good evidence that they are well-loved!
1. Baby’s First Chinese New Year • 寶寶的第一本節日小書：農曆新年
Where to buy: Little Kozzi, China Sprout
Age: +0
It is always fun to tell my kids about Chinese New Year because it is such joyful time of the year! I remember my daughter being obsessed with this book during her first CNY and carried it everywhere she went.
This book features the different activities and traditions during CNY. My kids love the realistic pictures, big letters, and colorful images. This is a great book to introduce to early readers to the festivities in CNY. It is a board book so little fingers can flip through the pages with ease and parents don’t need to worry about your kids eating the pages.
2. DK Baby Touch and Feel: Playtime • 寶寶全接觸 — 遊戲時間
Where to buy: Little Kozzi
Age: +0
As mentioned above, both of my kids are kinesthetic learners and so are most babies in the world. This books is great for teaching kids new vocabulary and connecting textures with the real objects. It is also a bilingual book so it is great for multi-lingual families.
3. Touch and Feel: Things That Go • 準備出發囉！：寶寶認知觸覺單字書
Where to buy: Little Kozzi
Age: +0
This is a transportation-themed board book, and one of my 1yo’s favorite books at the moment! He will carry it with the little red handle on the side of the book around the house and then sit down and read and repeat! This book is bilingual in Chinese and English so it is great for multi-lingual families.
4. The Very Lonely Firefly • 好寂寞的螢火蟲
Where to buy: Little Kozzi, China Sprout
Age: +6mo
This is a heartwarming story about a firefly searching for other fireflies at night, and all the interesting things it encounters along the way. The plot of this story is simple with a surprise on the final page (lights!). My kids sometimes go straight to the last page just to see the surprise!
5. A Nest in Springtime • 春天的鳥巢
Age: 0-3
This is a good bilingual book for babies and also preschoolers who are learning to count. It’s a cute and simple book with short sentences and well-illustrated images about springtime and a family of ducks. If you are a mandarin speaker, you will find the pinyin at the back of the book helpful.
6. Hurry Home, Hedgehog! 刺猬猬快回家
Where to buy: Amazon
Age: 0-3
Similar to “A Nest in Springtime,” this is a beautifully-illustrated book for early readers. The story is about a hedgehog going out to find food but had to hurry home to safety due to a storm. The story ends with a happy ending where the little hedgehog returns home to mama. My kids enjoy all the sounds that I act out while reading this book. So, if you want to make your kid laugh, try exaggerating and acting out the sounds.
7. SQUEAK-A-BOO! Baby 咕嘰咕嘰躲貓貓
Where to buy: Books.com.tw
Age:+0
As the title suggests, this is an interactive lift-a-flap/ peek-a-boo/ squeez-baby-belly book. Each page has a baby hiding behind something and both of my kids had fun lifting (and tearing) the flaps and squeezing the babies’ belly. You might need to help your baby “squeeze the belly” to make the squeaky sound since it can be a little hard to press. But the squeaky sound makes them laugh every single time so it is worth the trouble!
8. Soft to Touch Words: Animals • 幼兒羊毛氈觸覺認知書：可愛動物
Where to buy: Little Kozzi
Age: +0
This is another great tactile book to teach early readers vocabulary. My only complaint is that some of the felt/ cut-out areas are a little too small even for little hands, and I prefer the book bigger so that it will be easier for the little hand to find the felt fabrics to feel the texture.
9. Dinosaur Sounds • 恐龍樂園
Where to buy: Books.com.tw
Age: +0
Here’s a book for all the dinosaur-loving kids. Each page has sound buttons for your little one to explore the sounds of various dinosaurs. It’s got colorful images and a simple story line to follow. My kids can sit on the floor and play with the buttons for quite some time on their own reading this book!
10. Farm Sounds • 農場樂園
Where to buy: Books.com.tw
Age: +0
Similar to the dinosaur book, this is a sound book with buttons for animal sounds. The story is about a day at the farm and how all the sounds of the different animals come together to make up a musical performance. Pictures are fun and engaging. There’s much to look at, and my preschooler is discovering more details in the pages and is having fun pointing them out to this day.
Above is our list of favorite baby books in traditional Chinese. What are your babies’ favorite Chinese books? I would love to know!
As always, thank you for stopping by, and happy learning!
