Christmas picture books that toddlers can enjoy! A collection of read-aloud stories that will leave a lasting impression.

10 years as a kindergarten teacher / elementary school teacher / junior and senior high school teacher / childminderkepiko
Graduated from Kunitachi College of Music, Faculty of Music (now: Department of Music Culture and Education, Early Childhood Music Education major). In elementary school, my homeroom teacher was Jun Kusaba, a game researcher. After graduating from university, I worked as a kindergarten teacher for 10 years and as an after-school childcare instructor for 7 years, then took a position as a music teacher at an international school in Singapore. In addition to music education, I engaged in activities that introduced Japanese culture, traditional games, and recreational activities, working with many children. Later, through freelance writing, planning, and editing at Shogakukan, I met many delightful adults and experienced the joy of communicating and sharing. Drawing on the perspective cultivated in the field of education and my experience as an editor, I provide practical information with an emphasis on both input and output, mainly in areas related to music and children. My hobbies include instruments, singing, handicrafts, toys, drawing, traditional games, the outdoors, and books. My special skill is spinning-top tricks.
lighterutatane
A person from the melodic hardcore boom generation who loves music, photography, and eating. I’ve been going to live houses for over 20 years. I’m at the age where summer festivals are starting to feel tough physically. I sometimes try shooting live photos and videos for MVs. I’m not great at English, so I often listen to straightforward Japanese rock that hits directly, but if someone recommends something, I’ll listen to anything—Western or Japanese—broadly and casually. I like cooking while listening to music; it’s a nice way to relieve stress.

How about enjoying a Christmas picture-book read-aloud with your children? As you watch the snow fall outside the window, spend a special time together in a warm, cozy room.

Open your favorite Christmas picture book, and a wonderful world of stories unfolds before you.

Here, we’ll introduce heartwarming picture books perfect for the holiday season and tips for read-alouds that will resonate with children.

It’s sure to create lovely Christmas memories for both kids and adults.

Christmas picture books toddlers will enjoy! A collection of read-aloud stories that leave a lasting impression (21–30)

Before the morning comes

http://www.amazon.co.jp

It seems that the mother in this story has to go to work after the children have fallen asleep.

Her job is a pilot… Even though it can’t be helped because it’s her work, she must be worried about her kids.

Perhaps that’s why, in this picture book, someone wishes to “change the world before morning.” Is it because heavy snowfall can cancel flights? Is it the mother’s wish, the children’s wish… or perhaps both? This is a wintertime picture book I recommend, one you’ll want to read carefully and savor.

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Merry Christmas

http://www.amazon.co.jp

Many children write letters to Santa at Christmas, don’t they? The siblings in this story, Yoshi and Na-chan, also wrote to Santa every year and set out some juice for him.

But then their mother suggests that, instead of juice, they should leave alcohol on Christmas.

It seems she’s planning to keep all the presents in the world for herself.

However, Yoshi doesn’t want everyone to end up feeling sad, so he…? This gentle, Christmas-themed tale depicts children’s growth.

Please pick it up and give it a read.

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Little Santa

http://www.amazon.co.jp

The story’s protagonist is a boy who wanders into Santa Claus’s house.

In that house stands a Christmas tree with many cards hanging from it.

The cards are messages to Santa from children.

Seeing them, the boy wonders what it would be like if he could become Santa Claus himself… and then he actually transforms into Santa.

It’s a dreamy tale, but the developments that follow may give adults more to think about.

What is the true meaning of Christmas? This picture book seems to depict questions we hadn’t even thought to ask.

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Hikari’s Adventure

http://www.amazon.co.jp

Betty is a girl who loves picture books.

One day, a bear named Cosmo popped out from the pages.

Though Cosmo is afraid of the dark, Betty invites him into the nighttime world, and their adventure begins.

It’s a charming story with gently dreamlike illustrations that make this a delightful book.

The very idea of an animal leaping out of a picture book is enough to fill any child with excitement.

Maybe Betty wanted to keep playing with Cosmo all along.

It’s also a perfect choice for bedtime reading.

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Fir Tree’s Wish

http://www.amazon.co.jp

Fir trees have those distinctive jagged needles, don’t they? The fir tree in this picture book absolutely hates its own leaves and longs for the soft, rounded leaves of others.

So it asks a fairy to change the shape of its leaves.

The fir tree is delighted—but once its leaves have changed, new problems it had never imagined begin to appear…

It’s an intriguing setup, with the fir tree—often the star of Christmas—struggling with self-doubt, and it makes you want to know what happens next.

Will the fir tree learn to like the way it looks, different from those around it, and find confidence in itself?

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The Christmas Tree Deep in the Forest

http://www.amazon.co.jp

This is a Christmas-themed book with a story that unfolds around a lonely fir tree.

In the forest, there was one fir tree that didn’t grow as splendidly as the others, and unlike the other trees, it wasn’t cut down and was left behind.

But the animals decorated it, and it became a wonderful Christmas tree in the forest.

At first you worry, wondering what will happen, but you feel relieved when it turns into what you can call a happy ending.

Perhaps there’s a kind of happiness you can find precisely because you’re different from others… It’s a story that makes you think so, isn’t it?

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Christmas Adventure

http://www.amazon.co.jp

Cosmo, who doesn’t like winter, sets out at Betty’s invitation to find the “Christmas Tree of Light,” said to stand in the forest where the brightest star in the world shines.

But even when they ask the animals, no one knows about it, and they can’t seem to find it.

Does the Christmas Tree of Light really exist…? This is a thrilling yet delightful book for children about an adventure through the forest at night.

Turn the pages with excitement, wondering what kind of tree they’ll discover, and join the adventure yourself.

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