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Board Books to Build Vocabulary

Thirty board books designed to build your baby or toddler's vocabulary while having fun!

Glenview Public Library

30 items

  • Real-life photographs with brightly colored backgrounds make this an eye-pleasing take on learning the names of things that go.
    Board BookNew York, NY : St. Martin's Press, [2019] — jT PRIDDY, R.
  • My personal favorite of the Mrs. Peanuckle alphabet series. The only slight stretch for a fruit is letter "Z" and even then, zinc is found in fruit!
    Board BookEmmaus, Pennsylvania : Rodale, [2017] — jT PEANUCKLE
  • This vocabulary builder is a book with 100 words to learn about the garden, presented in a picture dictionary-esque way. Each page has a scene with the pictures labeled. Great for pointing and talking with baby!
    Board BookMission Viejo, CA : Happy Yak, an imprint of the Quarto Group, 2022. — jT BUURLAGE, M.
  • Read along as different pets are introduced including cats, dogs, rabbits, fish, frogs, and lizards.
    Board BookNew York : Doubleday, an imprint of Random House Children's Books, a division of Penguin Random House LLC, [2019]
  • Teach thirty first words with this book from the Alphaprints series. Each illustration is made using thumbprints, so matching your thumb to the picture can become a game as baby gets older.
    Board BookNew York : Priddy Books, [2018]
  • Learn two languages at once with an out-of-this-world board book all about space. Written by Latina author and space engineer!
    Board Book[Los Angeles, CA] : Lil' Libros, 2022. — jSPANISH HERNANDEZ, Z.
  • Learn words all about kindness along with illustrations that can prompt a conversation. For example, "Share" shows a picture of four people sharing an umbrella. Describe what's happening in the picture for your child!
    Board BookNorth Adams : Storey Publishing, [2020] — jT PAN, H.
  • An alphabet book with lift-the-flaps and lots of familiar words for baby. Most letters feature three to six words (with "Q", "U", and "X" being the letters with only two words), and the last page offers an illustrated alphabet to sing…
    Board BookLondon : Nosy Crow Ltd, 2023.
  • My First Words

    Let's Get Talking!

    Sirett, Dawn,
    Baby-friendly tabs allow little ones to practice turning pages as they learn or review words.
    Board BookNew York, NY : DK Publishing, 2022.
  • Vehicle-obsessed little ones with love each page spread that's dedicated to a particular vehicle from electric cars to ice cream trucks. Part of the "HELLO WORLD" series.
    Board BookNew York : Doubleday, an imprint of Random House Children's Books [2021] — jT MCDONALD, J.
  • Baby Loves

    a First Book of Favorites

    Magnuson, Molly,
    Photos of real life baby favorites (like ball and cup) are showcased and babies are asked to pick out each item from a group picture.
    Board BookNew York : Abrams Appleseed, 2019. — jT MAGNUSON, M.
  • Animals from the land, sea, and air are explored in this title from Jenkins—an impressive non-fiction author for kids.
    Board BookBoston, Massachusetts : Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, [2021] — jT JENKINS, S.
  • Learn Ant to Zorapteran and hopefully that will help show babies that insects are friends and not to be feared.
    Board Book[New York?] : Rodale Kids, [2018] — jT PEANUCKLE
  • This board book has great words all about a child's day, but more importantly the illustrations are raised, which give babies and toddlers a unique to interact with a book.
    Board BookSan Francisco, California : Handprint Books, an imprint of Chronicle Books LLC, [2019] — jT ALEXANDER, R.
  • Technology covers everything from tools to nautical to Internet to medical in this board book. Most words are age-appropriate, but there are a few pages written for parents/caregivers: spyware, anyone?
    Board BookNaperville, IL : Sourcebooks Explore, [2020] — jT FERRIE, C.
  • Maisy's Town

    a First Words Book

    Cousins, Lucy,
    Introduce Maisy Mouse to your baby and follow her as she moves around town. If your child is enamored with Maisy, move up to picture books for more titles.
    Board BookSomerville, MA : Candlewick Press, 2022. — jT COUSINS, L.
  • A mix of illustrations and photographs showcase words related to love, kindness, and caring.
    Board BookNew York, NY : St. Martin's Press, [2021] — jT FIRST
  • An oversized board book that teaches each letter on the left side and adds more words on the right. The book has a bit of a retro feel and has some interesting choices for each letter, like "Y is for Yeti".
    Board BookMontrouge, France : Twirl/Bayard Éditions, an imprint of Bayard Group (Tourbillon, Bayard Editions, Editions Milan), 2018. — jPRESCHOOL BIN ABC
  • If you have a foodie in your life, this book is a must for them. Babies and toddlers will love the colorful illustrations and caregivers can whip up a literary storm of words.
    Board BookNew York : Rodale Kids, an imprint of Random House Children's Books, [2022] — jT PEANUCKLE
  • Join the Very Hungry Caterpillar as he learns words based on each color and featuring Eric Carle's signature illustrations. Red gives us: heart, strawberry, fire truck, barn, apple, and ladybug.
    Board BookNew York : World of Eric Carle, an imprint of Penguin Random House LLC, 2023.