Developing Early Phonological Awareness - A CPLE Book List
From Centre for Literacy in Primary Education
The Centre for Literacy in Primary Education is a UK-based children's literacy charity working with primary schools. Their work raises the achievement of children's reading and writing by helping schools to teach literacy creatively and effectively, putting quality children’s books at the heart of all learning. They offer courses at our literacy library in central London, deliver online training and provide a wide range of free teaching resources for Primary teachers. They also conduct research into all areas of primary literacy, using the findings to inform practice and contribute to national and international perspectives on literacy.
Quiet! by Kip Alizadeh Child’s Play, 9781846438882
A small brown skinned girl notes all the household sounds around her as she spends time throughout the day with her dad and baby brother. All the words for the onomatopoeic sounds are placed in the pictures beside the related object.
Catch That Chicken! by Atinuke and Angela Brooksbank Walker, 9781406394504
No-one in Lami’s village is as good at catching chickens as she is. Then, one day, she has an accident that means for a while she will not be able to chase chickens. However, resourceful Lami soon finds a solution! Angela Brooksbank’s illustrations depict the busy life of the African village where Lami lives while Atinuke’s brief text plays joyfully with alliteration and repetition.
Show and Tell by Rob Biddulph HarperCollins, 9780008318031
It’s Show and Tell Day in Class 2L and each child has something more incredible than the last to display. And although the first item presented seems the most mundane it turns out to be the most magical. The children in this multi-ethnic class are introduced in alphabetical order and this, along with the rhyming text and the detail in the humorous illustrations, aids prediction and encourages joyful anticipation.
Mr Gumpy’s Outing by John Burningham Penguin, 9780099408796
Two children and a variety of animals insist on accompanying Mr. Gumpy on a boat trip - each request is a differently worded variation on the same basic theme. Despite his warnings to them not to get up to their usual tricks, the inevitable happens and they all fall in the water, but the day ends happily around the tea table.
Sand Between My Toes by Caroline Cross and Jenny Duke Child’s Play, 9781786283498
Sparse rhyming text and carefully crafted language tells of a family's trip to the seaside, narrated by a young girl, and filled with familiar sensations and experiences: "Wave crashes, ball splashes. / Seaweed, shells, salty smells". The endpapers depict not only the passage of time as the sun is replaced by the moon, but also carries a memory of the day gone by, with the family's sandcastle standing proud on the beach.
What the Ladybird Heard by Julia Donaldson and Lydia Monks Macmillan, 9781509862566
In this clever plotted rhyming tale, a ladybird overhears a secret plan to steal the prize cow. Through teamwork and communication the animals work together to foil the burglars and save the cow. The tactile illustrations feature an appealing, glittery ladybird to follow and feel throughout the story.
Listen, Listen by Phillis Gershator and Alison Jay Barefoot Books, 9781846862014
Rhyming text – with the repeated invitation to “listen, listen” – and onomatopoeia come together to lead the young reader through an atmospheric series of seasonal landscapes and settings. Alison Jay’s warm illustrations come with a clever cracked paint effect, like an aging canvas. The book closes with a ‘search and find’ image for each of the four seasons. Available in board book format only.
Monster Food by Daisy Hirst Walker, 9781406389401
Learn all about the favourite foods of monsters in this light-hearted and engaging board book, with bold and friendly illustrations that will greatly appeal to young readers. Hirst's patterned rhyming text encourages prediction and leads to unexpected surprises: a spread showing monsters sensibly eating noodles and stew is followed by one of a little monster munching on a shoe. A playful read, and a lovely introduction to topics of food and nutrition.
Monster Clothes by Daisy Hirst Walker, 9781406389418
This delightfully engaging board book shows a series of colourful little monsters sporting alliterative outfits...but does it always have to be clothes? Hirst's playful text continually subverts linguistic expectations: we see Harriet wearing a hat, and Terrence? He tries on a tomato. Great for capturing the early experience of getting dressed, with bold and friendly illustrations that early readers will enjoy.
Storm Dragon, by Dianne Hofmeyr and Carol Thompson Otter-Barry Books, 9781913074272
A grandfather and grandchild engage in a day of imaginative outdoor play, exploring the beach on a wild and windy day and searching for dragons. This atmospheric book is packed with onomatopoeia and evocative language, formatted with different fonts and in speech bubbles, while the swirling and scrappy mixed media illustrations perfectly capture the sensations of a stormy day at the beach.
Choo Choo by Petr Horáček Walker, 9781406325065
This engaging board book follows a noisy train on its journey over bridges and through tunnels to reach the seaside. Filled with onomatopoeia and prepositions, and with cut-out pages showing the rolling, changing landscape.
Zeki Loves Mummy by Anna McQuinn and Ruth Hearson Alanna Max, 9781907825330
Spend a day in the company of Zeki and his mummy as they build dens, do yoga, paint pictures and cuddle on the sofa, told in rhyming text. Filled with carefully crafted moments shared between mother and child, and small relatable details in Hearson's illustrations that children will love poring over.
I Love My Bike by Simon Mole and Sam Usher Frances Lincoln, 9780711256217
The unity of text and illustration in this book perfectly captures the ups and downs of learning to ride a bike for the first time. Sam Usher's ink and watercolour illustrations show the physicality of the young girl as she pedals, wobbles, swerves, and leans forward with determination. There is a poetry to Simon Mole's language, moving effortlessly from pacey to reflective, its rhythms, rhymes, alliteration and vowel sounds fitting together like links in a bicycle chain. Depicts a mixed heritage family, a wonderful father-daughter relationship, and sings the joys of perseverance.
There’s Nothing Faster than a Cheetah, by Tom Nicoll and Ross Collins Macmillan, 9781529060553
A dynamic and entertaining picturebook, narrated by two unseen voices, in which a series of alliterative animals attempts to beat a cheetah in a race with increasingly absurd results - if a hippo in a hang-glider fails to be faster, perhaps squirrels on snowmobiles will succeed? Perfect for fans of the Oi Frog series, Cheetah also features two comedic twists, and a graphic showcasing the top speeds of all the animals depicted.
A Great Big Cuddle by Michael Rosen and Chris Riddell Walker, 9781406373462
Subtitled ‘Poems for the Very Young’, this is a collection children can have fun and identify with, enabling them to see the point of poetry. There are high production values surrounding this large and beautiful book with a happy marriage between word and pictures, the illustrations being like another version of each poem. The design of each spread is a joy, incorporating the use of different colours and sizes of fonts. The language is playful and rhythmic and impossible to read out loud without wanting to share it.
Honey for You, Honey for Me by Michael Rosen and Chris Riddell Walker, 9781406374636
A companion volume to A Great Big Cuddle and a collaboration between two former Children's Laureates, this is a first collection of nursery rhymes for the very young, packed full of rhymes, rhythms and onomatopoeia, perfect for sharing together and reading aloud. Familiar playground and bedtime songs sit alongside hidden gems, all of which are accompanied by exuberant illustrations and inviting, colourful design.
Too Green! by Sumana Seeboruth and Maribel Castells Barefoot Books, 9781646869930
Barefoot's 'Feelings & Firsts' board book series is perfectly designed to help toddlers to navigate early experiences and emotions. In Too Green!, a child works up the courage to try a new food for the first time after he helps his two mums to prepare the meal. Packed with lively rhymes and onomatopoeia - "Drizzle sizzle, whizz and whirr!" - with inclusive illustrations in a vibrant, retro style.
Stomp, Chomp, Big Roars! Here Come the Dinosaurs! by Kaye Umansky and Nick Sharratt
Penguin, 9780140569353
Huge dinosaurs in luminous colours stomp, chomp and romp across the pages of this picture book of poems which can quickly be memorised. The poems are short and lively with dynamic rhythms, sometimes substituting dinosaur lyrics for those of well known rhymes: “One, two,/Three, four, five,/Five fat dinosaurs/Take a dive”.
Monster! Hungry! Phone! by Sean Taylor and Fred Benaglia Bloomsbury, 9781526606808
Anarchic ink-splatter illustrations accompany this comedic story of a hungry and increasingly frustrated monster, who struggles to order a pizza because his mobile phone keeps redirecting his call. He gets through to a jaguar in Nicaragua, a ping-pong-playing panda, and even a space alien, but will he ever get the pizza he craves? An expressive, patterned text, in which the monster gets even more frazzled after each call, and featuring onomatopoeia, rhymes and repetition that make this a great text for reading aloud.
Snap! by Anna Walker Scribble, 9781914484346
A delightful book about a little frog’s adventures in the forest, told entirely through onomatopoeia. Its lively, rhyming and alliterative language, coupled with an engaging patterned narrative and playful and dynamic text formatting, make this the perfect book for supporting engagement and predictions from the youngest of readers. Snap! is a joy to read and share aloud, with bright, expressive illustrations in both natural and vibrant tones which evoke the sensory atmosphere of a day in the forest. Even the endpapers carry meaning and delight: in the beginning, Frog’s nervous little face peers out amidst a jungle of leaves; by the end, Frog is surrounded by friends, all happily peeping out from the undergrowth.
Tanka Tanka Skunk by Steve Webb Penguin, 9780099439776
An elephant and a skunk set up a rhythmic repetitive drumbeat with which readers are encouraged to join in. Their other animal friends ranging from a kangaroo to a spider enter the game with each syllable of their names forming a beat. Each animal is clearly labelled against a background of big blocks of colour.
Here are the other CPLE book lists in this series
Introducing Blending and Segmenting, the Basic Code
Exploring Alternative Graphemes and Pronunciations, Complex Code
This is so useful ! Thanks