I was a horrible child athlete, the second to worst player on my elementary school softball team. During a 6th grade basketball game, I think I made a basket for the other team, too. Despite my lack of talent with hand-eye coordination, I was an active child. I spent many years participating in track-and-field and dance lessons. Though decades have passed since my childhood, I’m still excited to run races and take dance classes. Knowing that kids today are often immersed in video games and constantly connected to gadgets, I hope to instill my life-long love of fitness to my son. Being a role model is key, so I do my best to create family fun and fit opportunities throughout the year. Also, a wonderful way to reinforce a world filled with personal interaction and teamwork is by surrounding him with stories of exercise, activities and team sports so that he can make his own connections. Below is my list of children’s books with a focus on an active lifestyle. I’ve read most of these and received recommendations for the others from my favorite local librarian.
50 Children’s Books that Promote Fitness (4-7 years old)
Favorite Characters
1. Elephants Cannot Dance, Watch me Throw the Ball by Mo Willems
2. Curious George Rides a Bike, Curious George Goes Fishing, Curious George at the Baseball Game by H. A. Rey
3. Angelina Ballerina Ice Skates by Katharine Holabird
4. Clifford’s Field Day by Norma Bridwell
5. Dora Plays Sports by Alison Inches
6. Jake and the Never Land Pirates Surfin’ Turf by Melinda LaRose
7. Babar’s Yoga for Elephants by Laurent de Brunhoff
8. The Berenstain Bears Go Out for the Team by Stan and Jan Berenstain
9. Learning to Ski with Mr. Magee by Chris Van Dusen
10. Maisy Learns to Swim by Lucy Cousins
Picture Books
11. Dino-Basketball, Dino-Baseball and Dino-Football by Lisa Wheeler
12. Mooses Come Walking by Arlo Guthrie
13. Ladybug Girl Plays by Jacky Davis
14. Duck on a Bike by David Shannon
15. Spot Loves Sports by Eric Hill
16. Froggy Plays Soccer, Froggy Plays T-ball by Jonathan London
17. The Magic Hockey Stick by Peter Maloney
18. Sally Jean, the Bicycle Queen by Cari Best
19. Casey at the Bat by Ernest L. Thayer
20. Mitchell Goes Bowling by Hallie Duran
21. First Sail: An Adventure Story Designed to Help New Sailors Learn the Ropes by Richard Henderson
22. Stretch by Doreen Cronin and Scott Menchin
Pictures Books with a Deeper Message
23. Zach Gets Some Exercise by Sarah, Duchess of York
24. Hamster Camp – How Harry Got Fit by Teresa Bateman
25. Winner’s Never Quit by Mia Hamm
26. Baseball Saved Us by Ken Mochizuki
27. Players in Pigtails by Shana Corey
28. Dream Big: Michael Jordan and the Pursuit of Olympic Gold by Deloris Jordan
29. Get Up and Go! by Nancy Carlson
30. You can Do It! by Tony Dungy
Favorite Teams/Favorite Players
31. Yankee Town Featuring Robbie the Rookie by Aimee Aryal
32. Becoming Babe Ruth by Matt Tavares
33. ABCs of Baseball by Peter Goelenbock
Early/Emerging Readers
34. Play Ball, Amelia Bedelia by Peggy Parish
35. Magic Treehouse #16 – Hour of the Olympics by Mary Pope Osbourne
36. The Littlest Leaguer by Syd Hoff
37. Fred and Ted Go Camping by Peter Eastman
38. Flat Stanley at Bat by Jeff Brown and Macky Pamintuan
39. Tae Kwon Do! by Terry Pierce and Todd Bonita
40. Lily’s Lucky Leotard (a first graphic novel) by Cari Meister
41. Kick, Pass, and Run by Leonard Kessler
42. I want to be a Gymnast by Kate Simkins
43. To Dance: A Ballerina’s Graphic Novel by Siena Cherson Siegel & Mark Siegel
Early Reader Non-Fiction
44. Basketball is Fun by Robin Nelson
45. Let’s Talk Baseball by Janice Behrens & Let’s Talk Basketball by Amanda Miller
46. Fishing by Julie K. Lundgren
47. Keeping Fit by Emily K. Green
48. National Geographic Readers: Race Day! by Gail Tuchman
49. Cheerleading by Holly Karapetkova
50. Cool Skateboarding Facts by Sandy Donovan and Gail Saunders-Smith, PhD
If your child has outgrown this list – we have a list for TEENS AND TWEENS, too.
Please help grow this list and add your favorite stories about sports, fitness or energetic activities in the comment section below. We’re a baseball family, love to root on the Yankees and all our local Little League teams, too. Here are some of our favorite baseball books.
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