Looking for the absolute best educational children’s books to get your kids excited about learning? You’ve come to the right place!
The best educational books are the perfect mix of colorful illustrations, fun plots, engaging materials, and of course, are interesting enough to keep parents awake.
Curious as to which ones made the cut?
Let’s get right to it.
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The Top 15 Educational Children’s Books
We’ve put together the ultimate list of educational children’s books. Here were the best of the best that made the cut:
A Is for Awesome!: 23 Iconic Women Who Changed the World
This book follows the alphabet to introduce some truly iconic women including A for Amelia Earhart, M for Malala, and R for Ruth Bader Ginsburg.
It’s designed for younger ages so don’t expect a long history about every figure. Each page has an illustration, brief description, and quote for every iconic woman featured.
Good for ages 3+
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What If You Had Animal Teeth?
This is an adorable book that talks about the different kinds of animal teeth and what they mean for each species. Kids will love the hilarious pictures of kids with different types of teeth!
This is part of the educational children’s books ‘What If You Had…?’ Our other favorite is What If You Had Animal Eyes?
Good for ages 5+
Who Pooped in Central Park?
Join four kids as they explore Central Park and learn all about the habits and diets of various animals by investigating scat and tracks.
While they have versions of this book that explore different parks (like the Redwoods), New York City is our favorite because it’s a good reminder that we’re surrounded by wildlife even in the busiest of bustling cities.
Good for ages 6+
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National Geographic Little Kids First Big Books
National Geographic Kids makes some amazing educational children’s books about a variety of different topics from dinosaurs to space and even bugs.
While these are advertised to serve as an introduction for these subjects, even my 7-year-old loves them as he learns something new every time we read them.
These are a little long so for younger kids with shorter attention spans you might need to do a chapter at a time.
Good for ages 5+
Cat in the Hat’s Learning Library
All the characters you love having adventures and exploring educational topics, what’s not to love?
Your kids will love the funny cat and his adventures. You’ll love that it’s one of the more educational children’s books. As one reviewer said, it’s “a perfect blend of fun and education!”.
This one is also a larger series with book topics ranging from space to deserts and even weather!
Good for ages 4+
Baby University Board Books
Even though the Baby University Books say they’re “for babies”, everyone (including you!) will learn something.
It’s a great book to introduce science concepts – quantum physics, rocket science, organic chemistry, etc – in fun, colorful, and engaging ways!
Good for ages 1+
The Magic School Bus Books
Yes, the books from your childhood. There’s a reason these books are considered the bestselling science series!
Your favorite eccentrically dressed teacher is still here with her off-the-wall educational field trips. Kids love learning about the characters (most importantly, Arnold) and seeing what crazy form that old bus will transform into next. Join the class as they take a trip inside the earth, through electricity, inside the human body, and to explore the five senses.
One thing I love about these books is that you can easily control how long and detailed the story is. Don’t have much time? Just read the main text. Got lots of time to kill? Read all of the speech bubbles and the sciency stuff on the margins.
Good for ages 4+
Ordinary People Change the World
This series is a collection of kid-friendly biographies about some amazing individuals who have shaped our world from the past and present.
It covers a variety of different political, social, art, scientific, historic, and sports topics. Think people like Malala, Muhammad Ali, Jackie Robinson, Marie Curie, and so so SO many more.
I find these books to give the perfect amount of information and history – enough to give a solid foundation but not so much that children start to become bored. I also love that it talks about the early life of the individuals so children can realize that many of them were not born into fame.
Good for ages 4+
My First Human Body Book
Yes, this is a coloring book, but don’t hold that against it.
Full of details and interesting facts about the body, this book is a fantastic introduction to anatomy. The interactive value of being a coloring book makes learning fun and helps kids absorb the information!
Good for ages 6+
My Encyclopedia of Very Important Things
This is a great first encyclopedia for curious kids. Though not super detailed, it provides simple information on a very wide variety of topics including history, space, animals, and so much more.
It’s actually part of the My Very Important Encyclopedia series which includes more books on animals, dinosaurs, sports, and the world.
Good for ages 4+
Ten Magic Butterflies
This fun story makes math fun by showing different ways to add numbers to equal 10. It has a cute story and beautiful illustrations while also reinforcing important math concepts.
The author, Danica McKellar, also has more books that we really like about math and simple counting including Bathtime Mathtime and Goodnight, Numbers which are great for even younger kids.
Good for ages 3+
This is How We Do It
This book follows 7 kids from around the world through their day to compare the differences and similarities. Great for teaching kids about different cultures, the book talks about what each child eats, where they go to school, what clothes they wear, and so much more.
Kids can compare their own experiences with the children in the book too making it interactive and a perfect jumping off point for further discussion.
Good for ages 5+
All About Weather
A simple introduction to weather for toddlers and preschoolers, this board book is full of fun facts about weather. The book asks questions allowing an interactive element to engage your child as well as bright illustrations to keep their attention.
Good for ages 2+
The 50 States
This book is full of fun facts about each of the 50 states in the USA. With bright pictures and interesting tidbits and trivia, everyone is sure to learn something from this book.
Packed with so much information, I have to be honest, we don’t read every single bubble and graphic each time (there is hours of info in here).
Good for ages 7+
What Should Danny Do?
A great book for social-emotional learning, this interactive story lets your child decide what Danny will do. In a “choose your own adventure” style, the story changes based on your child’s decisions and we all see the consequences of our choices. The active participation keeps kids engaged and promotes learning.
Good for ages 4+
How Do Educational Books Help Children?
Kids need to experience material in a variety of different methods to learn and retain information. They need to hear educators talkings, look at pictures, and read along (even at young ages!) with text.
Reading aloud to children stimulates their imagination and verbal comprehension skills. Not to mention helps develop a life-long love of reading at an early age!
How Do I Find a Good Children’s Book?
Get recommendations from other parents like us!
We only recommend educational children’s books we can personally vouch for – ones that help them learn in a fun, exciting, and interactive way.
Did we miss any of your favorite educational children’s books? Let us know in the comments below!
