The theme of seasons can be popular with preschoolers, but to reinforce the concept, it is helpful to break it down into a storytime for each of the four seasons. Leaf rubbings is a natural and fun art activity to fit the theme. You can also try these tree centerpieces.
Arnosky, Jim. EVERY AUTUMN COMES THE BEAR. A bear goes through his routine in autumn to prepare for hibernation.
Berger, Carin. THE LITTLE YELLOW LEAF. A leaf is not ready to leave the tree until he is joined by another leaf.
Brown, Marc. ARTHUR JUMPS INTO FALL. Arthur gets help from his friends when it is time to rake leaves.
Ehlert, Lois. LEAF MAN. Ehlert’s dramatic, colorful collage illustrations tell the story of a leaf man who travels in the wind.
Fleming, Denise. IN THE SMALL, SMALL POND. A rhyming text and colorful pictures tell the story of small animals adjusting to the upcoming autumn season.
Glaser, Linda. IT’S FALL. Part of a series of simple picture books that explain each season, along with nature craft activity ideas.
Hawk, Fran. COUNT DOWN TO FALL. The numbers one through ten describe different aspects of autumn in the forest.
Lin, Grace. THANKING THE MOON: CELEBRATING THE MID-AUTUMN MOON FESTIVAL. A Chinese-American family has a night-time picnic in honor of the harvest moon.
Metzger, Steve. WE’RE GOING ON A LEAF HUNT. Three friends go on a leaf hunt in this take-off on “We’re Going on a Bear Hunt.”
Plourde, Lynn. WILD CHILD. Mother Earth tries to put Autumn to bed.
Raczka, Bob. WHO LOVES THE FALL? Both autumn in nature and fall holidays are mentioned in this brief celebration of the season.
Rockwell, Anne. APPLES AND PUMPKINS. A family visits a farm to pick apples and pumpkins to use on Halloween.
Schnur, Steven. AUTUMN: AN ALPHABET ACROSTIC. Short verse describe the season, with vertical acrostics giving a word for each letter of the alphabet.
Shecter, Ben. WHEN WILL THE SNOW TREES GROW? During the fall, a boy and his bear prepare for winter.
Stein, David Ezra. LEAVES. A curious bear observes the leaves changing color.
Wallace, Nancy. LEAVES! LEAVES! LEAVES! Using her customary cut paper collage illustrations, Wallace shows leaves during each season.
Wells, Rosemary. RUBY’S FALLING LEAVES. Max helps Ruby collect leaves for a school project.
Ziefert, Harriet. BY THE LIGHT OF THE HARVEST MOON. Leaf families celebrate autumn and the harvest moon.