How to Make Toddler Literacy Bags

Toddler literacy bags are a great way to encourage families to read together at home. They don’t have to be expensive or time-consuming to prep either.

I’ve got easy tips and resources to help you save time!

Toddler take home literacy bags are perfect for promoting family literacy at home.

How to Get Started With Take Home Literacy Book Bags

Full Disclosure: This post contains affiliate links.

The Reason to Use Take-home Literacy Bags

Some families do not have reading materials for kids. We can help increase the likelihood that reading will take place in homes by providing books to read.

How to Get Started

Create the same number of take-home bags as you have students in your class. So, if you have 10 students, we are going to make 10 take-home bags. It is helpful to have a couple of extra bags on hand.

What to Put in the Literacy Bags

You could buy sturdy fancier bags (plastic bags with handles or canvas bags) to hold the contents of your take home bags. But, I guarantee you that some of your bags will be lost or unreturned. So, I like to keep my replacement costs down. That means a good old plastic gallon-sized freezer bags will do the trick. You can also reinforce the edges of the bag with duck tape.

Attach an “if lost please return to label” on the bags in case they get lost.

Make it simple. Simple to prepare, simple to manage, and simple to use. Your bags will contain two things. First, a book. Second, a laminated book buddy sheet.

Acquiring Books

Board books are key for durability in this project. I’ve picked up books at library book sales, yard sales, and resale shops. If you are a public school teacher, setting up a Donors Choose project can be a great way to fund your take-home bags.

Here’s my top list of books to use for this project. I’ve chosen these for their popularity and ease of finding in second-hand shops or in book club orders. You can also click the links of each title to add straight to your cart on Amazon to purchase. Make your wishlist now. I’ve also included some toddler life titles for when special occasions arise too.

Good Night Gorilla by Peggy Rathmann
My Truck is Stuck by Kevin Lewis
We’re Going on a Bear Huntby Michael Rosen
Peekabo Morningby Rachel Isadora
The Three Bears by Byron Barton
Is Your Mama a Llama by Deborah Gurano
Brown Bear, Brown Bear ,What Do You See? By Bill Martin Jr
More More More Said the Baby by Vera B. Williams
Leo Can Swim by Anna McQuinn
The Wheels on the Bus illustrated by Jerry Smath
Blue Hat Green Hat by Sandra Boynton
Feast for 10 by Cathryn Falwell
Five Little Ducks by Raffi
Bear Snores On by Karma Wilson
The Very Hungry Caterpillar by Eric Carle
The Eensy Weensy Spider by Mary Ann Hoberman
Hickory, Dickory, Dock: And Other Favorite Nursery Rhymes illustrated by Sanja Rescek
Clap Your Hands by Lorinda Bryan Cauley
Lots of Feelings by Shelley Rotner
Big Red Barn by Margaret Wise Brown

Here are a couple of special occassion titles.

We Have a Baby by Cathryn Fallwell
Pottyby Leslie Paricelli

Whether you use the suggested book list or your own, number your list and your bags so that you can easily monitor checkout.

The Book Buddy Sheets

You will also want to put a book buddy sheet in each bag. This sheet will give families some conversation starters and easy to do activities for each bag. Remember to keep a master set to replace any that get lost throughout the year.

If you don’t want to create your book buddy sheets from scratch, I have prepped 22 book buddy sheets for you that are ready to go into bags. I’ve taken 20 favorite board books for toddlers and created the conversation starters and easy to do activities for you. I’ve also included two speical occassion (new baby and potty training) transition book read alouds. All you have to do is print, laminate, and put in the bags.

Storing Suggestions

I like to keep my take-home book bags in a crate or basket. Keep them in number order so you can quickly see which bags are still checked out.

Store the crate or basket on a shelf and pull it out for your once a week checkout process.

When to Send Bags Home

A weekly checkout routine is manageable and predictable. I like to do a Monday checkout. You can send home a Thursday reminder to return books on Friday. Then, you have the weekend to repair or replace any pieces in the bags.

To monitor which family has which set checked out, I keep a simple list of take-home bags. It has several columns to keep track of which bags are checked out each week. I place the child’s initials in a column when the book bag is checked out. Then, I circle the number in the column when a bag is returned.

You could also use an electronic system such as the free service called Book Source Classroom Organizer.

Introduce the Program to Families

A back to school or open house meeting is a great time to share the program with families. A letter home explaining the take-home bags also works.

Be sure to cover the following points.

The purpose of the take-home bags
What can be found inside each bag
How and when to use the bags
When the bags will come home and when they should be returned
What to do if a bag or its contents are damaged
The program is not mandatory but highly encouraged

I Really Want Something Where Most of the Work is Done For Me!

I hear you! If you would rather spend your free time doing something else rather than writing all the questions and activities for over twenty books, creating a parent letter, and putting together all the management forms, I have you covered.

I’ve created a nice neat package for you. All you need to do is print, gather the books and bags, and assemble your bags. Yep, I’ve got all your book buddy sheets and forms done. Here is what you get in the download.

An easy step by step guide/checklist (cheat sheet) of all the information provided in this post
Suggested book list and shopping list
22 Book Buddy Sheets for the books listed above plus a blank template for other titles you may choose (before, during, and after questions, activity experiences, and further reading book suggestions for families)
Introduction letter for families
Check out master sheet plus a blank check out sheet
Family due date reminders
If lost, please return notes

Get all of this for the affordable price of $6.

*Please note this is a downloadable file. Once you make your purchase, a PDF file will be emailed to you to download. It does not include the actual books or bags. You must have Adobe Reader to use the editable fields portion of the document.

Have a question. I’m happy to help you get this project off the ground. Feel free to leave a comment and I’ll get back to you.

Get ready to help families bond over books at home with these literacy bags.

P.S.- If you have a need for preschool/kindergarten literacy bags, I have those for you too.—>PRESCHOOL TAKE HOME BAGS

Bring joy and play into children's lives through books.