Winter in the Woods Preschool Books

Winter might just be my favorite time of year to curl up with my girls and have cozy reading days. When I made my daughter a Winter in the Woods Preschool Unit for our homeschooling, I included some of our favorite books that capture that cozy feeling of wintertime in the woods.

Below are the books I recommend the most if you’re looking for winter in the woods preschool books (and any toddlers that also might be curling up, too!)

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Favorite Picture Books

Bear Snores On

If you’ve never read any of the Bear Books by Karma Wilson, please please please go check some out right now. These are absolute gems.

The illustrations are vivid. The rhyming is original and distinct. The word choice is so unique and these books are just meant to read aloud. How often in a children’s book do you get to read words like dank, pitter-patter, and scuttles?

The vocabulary in these books is so rich. Not only are the words themselves a great opportunity for preschoolers to expand their own vocabulary, but the rhyming and the cadence also support early reading skills.

In Bear Snores On, Bear is asleep in his cozy lair while a winter storm blows on. His friends stop by to get out of the cold and they all make the den cozier and cozier with brewing tea, popping corn, making soup, etc.

It’s so incredibly cozy and my daughter LOVES the idea of animals in the forest having cozy winter nights around a fire together like this.

This is one we read again and again and again. And again. It’s available on Amazon here.

Winter Days in the Big Woods

We love the My First Little House books. They’re such a great way to not only introduce the works of Laura Ingalls Wilder to little learners, but they’re also a fantastic way to begin to instill a love for learning history.

In Winter Days in the Big Woods, the Ingalls family prepares for winter. Ma and the girls harvest fall fruits and vegetables from their garden and store them in the house.

While it snows, the Ingalls family stays warm and snug in their cabin baking, playing with dolls, reading by the fire, and drawing patterns in the frosted glass.

After reading this, my daughter always wants to play “cabin in the woods” and pretend that there’s a big snowstorm coming and that we need to get ready for it.

It’s cozy, sweet, simple, and just delightful.

It’s available on Amazon here.

Animals in the Forest

Cub’s First Winter

In this adorable picture book, Cub (a baby fox) asks his mom all sorts of questions about how different forest animals prepare for winter.

His mom patiently answers him as they walk through the first snow of the winter.

Eventually, they have to run back to their cozy den and curl up together.

Not only is it cozy and a great bedtime read, but it also answers a lot of questions that preschoolers tend to have about the forest in the winter.

Tracks in the Snow

It’s available on Amazon here.

This is another series surrounding the four seasons that we really enjoy.

In this book, the little girl goes exploring in the woods after a fresh snowfall. She follows tracks in the snow and learns about all kinds of different forest animal behavior in the winter.

And eventually, she follows the tracks back to her own cozy home.

It’s sweet, simple, but also tucks in some really good information about how different forest animals behave in the wintertime.

This is also a great book to partner with matching animal tracks in the snow in real life or using the Animal Track Matching Cards I created for our Winter in the Forest preschool theme. (The cards are available on Teachers Pay Teachers here.)

The book is available on Amazon here.

Pop-up Surprise Winter in the Forest

I love this series. There’s four books in the series- one for each season. All feature the same little area in the forest and the same animals, but emphasize their different activities based on the season.

In Winter in the Forest, a fresh snow leads to two racoons playing in the snow, looking for food, and exploring the frozen pond. Along the way, deer, birds, bunnies, and squirrels also enjoy a snow-covered forest.

The flaps are large and sturdy, and when you pull down on the flaps there’s a pop-up scene on each page.

My preschooler loves the illustrations and the story; my toddler LOVES the flaps. And amazingly enough- the flaps have held up to a ton of use from little hands, which is honestly pretty rare in my house.

It’s available on Amazon here.

Easy Readers and Early Chapter Books

Mouse and Mole: A Winter Wonderland

Cozy reading days at home are a great time to bring in easy readers and early chapter books for your preschooler.

In Mouse and Mole: A Winter Wonderland, Mouse and Mole spend several days enjoying a snow covered forest. They sled, build a snowman, shovel, all of it.

The short chapters and illustrated pages are great for preschoolers brand new to longer texts.

And the sweet friendship between Mouse and Mole remind me a bit of the classic Frog and Toad books.

It’s available on Amazon here.

And if you haven’t introduced easy chapter books to your preschooler yet but are wanting to, I have some tips here.

Sophie Mouse: Winter’s No Time to Sleep

Sophie Mouse might just absolutely be my preschooler’s favorite chapter book series. In Winter’s No Time to Sleep, Sophie and Hattie Frog are excited to go sledding.

However, they go a little too fast down a hill, accidentally knock into a hedgehog family’s home, and wake up Pippa Hedgehog.

They take their new friend on a tour of all the greatest parts of a snow day. But after a great day, they need to help their new friend get back to sleep!

It’s a super fun read and also sparked a curiosity in my daughter to learn more about which animals hibernate in the winter and which don’t.

It’s available on Amazon here.

And if you’re looking for more winter books and activities, be sure to check out my posts below!