Books for Kids Who Love Collecting Things
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Do your kids enjoy collecting and building collections of favorite things?
I collected erasers and smelly stickers when I was little.
Do your kids collect anything?
How about you?
What can kids collect, anyway?
Start with their interests! Kids can collect anything. Here are a few ideas to get your kids started…
- sports cards
- rocks
- friendship bracelets
- stamps
- coins
- books
- LEGO
- toy cars
- stuffed animals
Get excited about other collectors with these picture books all about collecting!
Books for Kids Who Love Collecting Things
In a Jar by Deborah Marcero
Your kids are sure to be inspired to start their own collections after reading this sweet story. Llewellen loves collecting all sorts of things in jars — feathers and leaves, buttercups and heart-shaped stones. Then he meets a girl who also loves collecting things, Evelyn. Together they collect hard-to-hold things like rainbows, the sound of the ocean, and the long days of summer. Their jars filled the walls of Llewellyn’s house. Sadly, Evelyn moves away but the friends continued to collect special moments and share them with each other through the mail.
The Collectors by Alice Feagan
Winslow and Rosie collect natural wonders in their treehouse and they travel far into the forest to find something else extraordinary. As they do, they explore, observe, discover, and unearth. When they’re chased back home by a bear, the two realize that they had something in their collection all along — eggs that are about to hatch in a nest right outside their treehouse window. Interesting cut-paper collages show an exploratory journey and adventure.
What’s in Your Pocket? Collecting Nature’s Treasures by Heather L. Montgomery, illustrated by Maribel Lechuga
A delightful introduction to both collecting and to famous scientists when they were curious children and their later contributions as adults. Gorgeous illustrations and clear text will captivate readers as they learn about kids like Diego who collected snails as a child and later became a herpetologist, Mary who collected caterpillars and eventually wrote a book on metamorphosis, or Bonnie who collected sea slugs and later helped discover a new kind of sea slug. Readers will be inspired to start their own collections and see where their curiosities take them!
Memory Jars by Vera Brosgol
Freda saves things to protect memories but she goes overboard — and soon realizes that if she bottles up certain things, she can’t enjoy them anymore. Instead, she learns that something can be collected by other things are better as memories.
Dakota Crumb Tiny Treasure Hunter by Jamie Michalak, illustrated by Kelly Murphy
When the museum closes for the night, Dakota Crumb collects treasures one might consider garbage for a mouse museum. But it’s dangerous work — she has to watch out for the broom and the cat. A fun adventure!
The Word Collector by Peter H. Reynolds
The Great Whipplethorp Bug Collection by Ben Brashares and Elizabeth Bergeland
There’s a lot to love about this story — the loving father-son relationship and Chuck’s character arc from bored to engaged in pretend play. Chuck’s family tree has a lot of famous, daring explorers but he’s glad to his dad is at home willing to explore and imagine with Chuck.
Arnold and Louise Lost and Found by Erica S. Perl, illustrated by Chris Chatterton
Arnold collects things — rocks, pinecones, sticks. His best friend, Louise, likes to borrow Arnold’s treasures. And lose them. So Arnold isn’t too keen on lending Louise his newest treasure — a shiny, greenish lens from broken glasses. When Arnold wants it back, Louise sends him on a treasure hunt. And it turns out that Arnold’s treasure becomes a wonderful gift for a nest of baby birds.
