Now I know that right before bed is prime reading time. This is a special opportunity to bond with your children, to cuddle and share, and to get those kids to sleep so you can finally have some time to yourself!
The best picture books for this prime reading time .... ones that make your kids want to fall asleep! A great going to bed book will help them relax, make them realize that the end of the day is at hand, and send them off into the quiet zone where no more bathroom trips, glasses of water or sheet adjustments are required.
This week I am profiling two great going to bed books for kids who love trucks and trains. These books are so good that your kids might actually ask to go to bed just to hear them ... well perhaps I exaggerate, but they are really good! They are from the proven team of Rinker and Lichtenheld, who I hope are making beautiful books together for many years to come.
To see another favorite bedtime book of mine, visit my previous post Sleep Like a Tiger or visit my blog at www.onegreatbook.com to see Rinker and Lichtenheld's latest train book.
Title: Goodnight, Goodnight, Construction Site
Author: Sherri Duskey Rinker
Target: Preschool - Kindergarten
What this book is about:
The day is ending on the construction site and all the trucks are getting ready to sleep. The story follows the activities of each type of truck (crane, cement mixer, bulldozer and excavator) as they finish up their work and prepared to go to bed.
Why I love this book:
First off the cadence of this book is lovely and it makes reading it quite rhythmic which is lovely for a going to bed book. Each segment ends with the refrain "Shh... goodnight, (appropriate truck) goodnight"
I also adore the illustrations by Lichtenheld. They are fun and charming. Crane has his nightlight and teddy bear, cement mixer his blanket and bulldozer's dirt bed looks just like a comfy pillow. I also enjoy that each truck has a face which gives them personality. These pictures will suck you in!
But I also love that the book shares some of the activity that the trucks do during the day. It makes it the perfect story where kids can appreciate the differences in the truck's functions, while still not rilling them up, but calming them down before bed.
Who this book is for:
Any young child who loves trucks!
Final thoughts:
I would have had this book memorized in a matter of days if it had been out when my boys were young!
