EAL Resources to Support Reading

I’ve found these EAL resources very helpful when engaging EAL learners in reading. This can be the key to their enjoyment of learning and school as a whole. Fill your shelves with books with simple narratives, relatable characters, and vibrant illustrations that complement the story. Where possible, stories that your EAL students can see themselves in are a great choice too! 

The Bell Foundation has some excellent resources and research to support EAL learners.

Here’s a small selection of EAL resources to get you started:

1. I Want My Hat Back by Jon Klassen – a superbly funny tale with simple but effective illustrations. Used to encourage anticipation and simple comprehension.
2. You Choose by Nick Sharratt – bursting with clear and inspiring images to support creative writing and opinions.
3. The Book Without a Story by Carolina Rabei – when the library is closed the books come to life in the librarian’s absence! Captures the magic of reading, sharing stories and readers, and fostering a love of books
4. Katie’s Picture Show by James Mayhew – thought-provoking illustrations to demonstrate the fun of the world and encourage vocabulary building.
5. Dave’s Cave and Dave’s Rock by Frann Preston-Gannon – simple and entertaining tales that highlight the beauty of simplicity. 
6. The Day the Crayons Quit by Drew Daywalt & Oliver Jeffers – introduction to colours and emotions.
7. 13 Words by Lemony Snicket – beautiful journey through thirteen wonderful words, featuring such marvels as Bird, Dog, Panache accompanied by stunning illustrations. Celebration of words and pictures.
8. Another by Christian Robinson – simple and effective illustration with minimal text about a young girl who discovers another world and another self! Lovely discussion piece and great for developing imagination.
9. Beegu by Alexis Deacon – heart-warming tale of Beegu who’s found herself on Earth and feels rather unwelcome. Lovely for relatability and empathy.
10. Under the Same Sky by Britta Teckentrup – beautiful and heart-warming peek-through picture book celebrates the closeness of the world’s communities through their shared hopes and dreams.
11. Kindness Grows: A Peek-through Picture Book by Britta Teckentrup – thought-provoking read about what happens when we shout or if we disagree. Angry words cause a crack to open and widen, but find out what happens when kindness begins to blossom.
12. Handa’s Surprise by Eileen Brown – classic illustrations to accompany rich text about smells, sights, colours, and landscapes of Africa. Use this as a lovely discussion piece.
13. Today I Feel by Madalena Moniz – fun and interactive book to teach about emotions that are hard to describe and the alphabet.
14. The Colour Monster by Anna Llenas – simple and lovely introduction to colours and emotions.
15. Look & See ABC: (Animal Friends Concept Board Books) by Amber Lily – traditional teaching of animals and alphabet.
16. Iggy Peck, Architect by Andrea Beaty – inspiration for creativity, determination and following dreams.
17. The Snail and the Whale by Julia Donaldson – lovely book with rhyme, alliteration, and key phonemes.
18. Moon Rabbit by Natalie Russell – the story of the friendship of a city rabbit and a country rabbit who in spite of her friendship struggle to adapt to a different setting. 
19. 999 Tadpoles by Ken Kimura – EAL students could empathise with and compare to their move to the UK.

For more recommendations for individual cohorts and year groups, check out our other reading lists!