Wordless picture books: a great way to get your child to tell the story
Illustrated stories are an enjoyable way to develop visual literacy and help lead a child through a story. But have you tried a wordless picture book?
These encourage children to think for themselves and form their own interpretation of what is happening in the narrative. They’re a great way to expand the imagination and have a lot fun doing it!
Why not give one of these a go and see what you come up with…?
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Lines
Author: Suzy Lee
Publisher: Chronicle Books
Interest age: 6-8
A winter-themed wordless picture book about a skating girl that is both deceptively simple and completely delightful.
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Return
Author: Aaron Becker
Publisher: Walker Books
Interest age: 4-8
A lonely little girl can't distract her hardworking dad, so she takes her amazing red pen and draws herself into an adventure. This imaginative, fantastical escapade is wordless, but overflows with creativity.
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Dog on a Digger
Author: Kate Prendergast
Publisher: Old Barn Books
Interest age: 5-10
Reading age: 5+This delightful pencil-drawn wordless picture book is a real beauty, with an affectionate relationship between a dog and his owner. Because it’s wordless, it presents a great opportunity for shared reading and talking about the lovely pictures.
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Footpath Flowers
Author: JonArno Lawson Illustrator: Sydney Smith
Publisher: Walker Books
Interest age: 5-7
A little girl spreads joy and colour through the grey townscape, when she picks and presents flowers from the pavements to the people and animals she meets. This wordless picture book is a beauty to behold.
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Tuesday
Author: David Wiesner
Publisher: Andersen Press
Interest age: 3+
Reading age: 5+On a Tuesday evening, the sun is setting, and in the distance, an army of frogs on flying lily pads is approaching.
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Here I Am
Author: Patti Kim
Publisher: Curious Fox
Interest age: 5+
Reading age: wordlessThe word-less book deals with the challenges of leaving a beloved home; coming to terms with the big changes you face in your new world; and the emotions surrounding this journey.
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Small Things
Author: Mel Tregonning
Publisher: Allen & Unwin
Interest age: 4-8
Reading age: 5+This brilliant book manages to deal with bullying, fear of being different, frustration at underachieving, and the fact that while some things may appear small from the outside, they can feel unconquerable to those experiencing them.
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Professional Crocodile
Author: Giovanna Zoboli and Mariachara Di Giorgio
Publisher: Chronicle Books
Interest age: 4-7
Reading age: 5+What does a crocodile do for a living? This delightfully unusual picture book explores that very question. A sophisticated yet accessible book that reminds us not to prejudge, but rather to examine, ask questions and to wonder at the world around us.
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The Arrival
Author: Shaun Tan
Publisher: Walker Books
Interest age: 8-9
Reading age: 8+In this unusual book, we follow a young man as he packs his bags and leaves his family to go and start a new life in another country
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Flotsam
Author: David Wiesner
Publisher: Andersen Press
Interest age: 7+
Reading age: 7+The story of a boy finding a vintage camera washed up on a beach unspools like a silent film in this mind-expanding wordless picture book.
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Little Eli: Egg, Cards, Pencil
Author: Laura Bellini
Publisher: Tiny Owl
Interest age: 7-12
Reading age: N/AThis unusual and beautiful set of three tall, thin hardbacks in their slipcase chronicle Eli the dragonfly's simple story of perseverance without any words.
