Research has shown that reading to your child is super important for his/her development. But it’s not just hearing the words (like in an audiobook), it’s the interaction time, being held and talking with a loving caregiver that’s crucial1. As your child grows from being a young baby to an older baby and then into the toddler and preschooler stages, s/he can become more engaged in storytime, beyond just turning to the next page. So what are different types of interactive books for kids?
Interactive books: definition
There seem to be two competing definitions of interactive books.
- An interactive picture book is a book for children that includes components to encourage the child to interact with the book, such as something to feel, flaps, pop-ups, etc.2 (see more below)
- An interactive electronic book is an eBook with content that “go[es] beyond traditional printed text and illustrations”, such as things the reader can click on, exercises/ quizzes, games, audio, video, or augmented reality features.2
Interactive books for toddlers vs. interactive books for preschoolers
Many interactive picture books ‘work’ for both toddlers and preschoolers.
In general, books for preschoolers might have more text. For instance, one article for aspiring children’s book authors recommends aiming at 200 words or less for 0 to 3-year-olds, and 200 to 500 words for 2 to 5-year-olds.3
Preschoolers can already talk much more than toddlers, opening up different ways of interacting with books. They also have better fine motor control, don’t put things in their mouths as much, and have fewer restrictions on small parts (choking hazards), opening up interactive elements such as reusable stickers. They can also follow more complex directions, such as making more complex movements.
Which interactive book to select also depends very much on your child and the book. For instance, some toddlers might enjoy some picture books for older children.
Types of interactive books
Some books have only one of the interactive components, while others combine more than one.
Lift-the-flap books
A lift-the-flap book has little paper or cardboard flaps that a child can lift to reveal something underneath. There are two types of flaps. Some books have both types of flaps. Usually, these books are board books with flaps.
Lift-the-flap books where the flaps are part of the story
In this type of lift-the-flap book, what the flap hides is part of the story. An example is the book “Where’s My Little Love Bug?” by Pamela Kennedy, in which different animals look for their ‘love bug’, i.e. a smaller animal of the same type. Each flap reveals the ‘love bug’ the animal looked for with the words “Here I am!”.
Lift-the-flap books where the flaps are not part of the story
These flaps invite the child to explore the page, but they are not part of the story. For instance, a washing machine or cupboard might open to reveal the contents.
Touch-and-feel books
Touch-and-feel books provide a sensory experience e.g. through different raised areas on a page or different materials that have been added (e.g., fur or leather added to a page). Some books combine both types.
One example is “See, touch, feel – a first sensory book to share with your baby”, which includes e.g. a page with raised fingerprints and a page with fur.
A special type of touch-and-feel book is a Braille book that caters to both seeing and non-seeing audiences, i.e., the text is both visible letters and Braille. Images are visible but also have some touch and feel characteristics.
Pull-tab books
In this type of book, one can pull a tab that then changes the image on the page. For instance, pulling one of the tabs in the book “Cook in a Book – Pancakes!” creates the appearance of milk pouring into a container.
Turn-the-wheel books
This type of book contains a wheel. For some, the wheel makes the image change from one to another. For instance, turning a wheel in “Cook in a Book – Pancakes!” changes a picture of ingredients into a picture of mixed dough. In other books, there are many individual pictures on the wheel, and the child or caregiver turns it until a specific one is visible (e.g., the cat).
Mirror books
Mirrors allow the reader to see themselves. Even babies can already enjoy this interactive component.
Mirror-on-one-page books
This type is quite common. For instance, at the end of „Where’s My Little Love Bug“, there is a mirror that is part of the story.
Fold-out-mirror books
The book “Hello Baby” takes another approach. The mirror folds out so that it is visible while turning the pages of the book. Each page has a question that gets answered with “It’s you. Hello baby!” and a look in the mirror.
Trace-with-your-finger books
In this type of interactive book, the child traces an element on the page. This can be either just printed or facilitated through areas on the page that are lower than the rest.
An example is the book “A is for Apple” (which also contains flaps) in which the child should trace the letters that are lower than the rest of the page.
Move-a-character-along books
In this type of book, the child or caregiver moves a character figure from page to page.
An example is “Pat the Bunny: Sleepy Bunny” in which a bunny is moved along the page until he is tucked into bed on the last page.
Pop-up books
In this type of book, folded paper “pops up” when the book is opened to that page, creating a three-dimensional (3D) shape.
An example is Marion Bataille’s “ABC – 3D” book. For many of the letters, 3D pop-ups appear.
This type of book is usually not suitable for toddlers, as the pop-ups can be easily torn.
Do-this books
These books tell the reader what to do!
The commands can relate to the reader’s own body. An example is Caroline Jayne Church’s “Ten Tiny Toes” which asks the child to do things like “Touch your ears. Make them wiggle.”
The commands can also refer to the book page itself. An example is Hervé Tullet’s “Press here” which asks the child e.g. to “Rub the dot on the left … gently“.
Slide-open tab books
In tab books, the pages are marked by tabs, making it easy to find a specific page. In slide-open tab books, pulling on the tab opens up the page to reveal something in between the two now-separated parts. It’s similar to an extendable table: pulling on one side reveals the leaf that extends the table.
One example is Kathy MacMillan’s “Nita’s Day”, which teaches basic sign language. The child or caregiver can slide open each tab to reveal pictures/text on how to make the sign.
This type of book requires batteries. If there are no batteries (or they aren’t working), the child can still press the button(s), but nothing will happen. If the batteries work, each time the child presses a button, the child (and everyone around) can hear a sound, such as an animal sound, a flushing sound, etc.. That’s why this type of book can get annoying quite fast.
Attach-pieces-to-the-page books
In this type of book, the child is asked to attach a piece to the page by various means. There are:
Velcro books
In this type of book, there are little velcro spots on the page and the other side on little pieces, such as pictures or letters. Each piece can be attached to the book with a string or there can be loose pieces. Since attaching the piece works with velcro, there is only one spot on the page where it can go.
Reusable sticker books
In this type of book, usually, the whole page is coated so that the child can put the stickers anywhere on the page and peel them off again, although there is a specific place where the sticker should go based on the story. Over time, some stickers might lose their stickiness. This type of book is usually not suitable for young toddlers, as they need to develop the fine motor skills to peel off a sticker and stick it back on.
Magnet books
In this type of book, the whole page is magnetic. Therefore, the child can stick each magnet either in the intended spot based on the story/instructions in the book, or s/he can get creative and move it around the page or even on another page.
Felt books
Just like with magnet books, usually, the whole page is made out of felt, i.e., the child can place the felt pieces anywhere. Often, however, it seems there is no story for felt books, instead, they are more activity books.
Search-and-find books
In this type of book, the child is asked to find one or several objects, animals, etc. in a picture on the page. Some books only consist of that – which makes it rather boring. Other books include it as an optional element (e.g., on each page, there is a specific animal hidden in the picture somewhere, the caregiver can either just read the story or also ask the child to find the animal on each page). In a third type, the searching is part of the story.
AniMotion/Scanimation books
In this type of book, tilting the page makes it appear as if part of the image is moving. The images are actually composed of several images4. An example is Accord Publishing’s “Hanukkah”, which I saw in the library. For instance, chocolate coins appear to drop into a bowl. Personally, I find the images really hard to look at.
Based on pictures I’ve seen, Scanimotion books (like the “Waddle!” book) are basically the same.
Create-your-own-adventure books
In this type of book, the reader gets to make choices. Depending on which choice s/he makes, the story continues differently.
In this type of book, there are little dots. When pressed, they make a popping sound.9 Think of bubble wrap, but reusable.
Press-out-and-play books
This type of book has cardboard pieces that the child can remove from the page. Some of these pieces are puzzles (either jigsaw or put on a cutout on the page). Some are pieces that the child can color. With some pieces, the child can interact in other ways (e.g., assembling a doll, using tools in pretend play, etc.).10
Books with other interactive elements
One of the classic interactive books is Dorothy Kunhardt’s “Pat The Bunny”. This book is a do-this book, it has a piece of felt that the child can lift to play peekaboo, a mirror, and some touch-and-feel elements. But it also e.g. contains a smell-infused page to sniff and a page with a hole to stick the finger through.
Leapfrog “books”
Leapstart has several systems, such as the LeapReader and LeapStart Go for 4 to 8 year olds as well as LeapStart Preschool Success and LeapStart 3D for children aged 2 to 7. There are also “books” that go with the system. For the LeapStart Preschool Success, there is a stylus. When the child touches things with the stylus on the page, the leapfrog plays audio. The LeapStart 3D also has a stylus, but it also a video screen with “3D-like animations” that get triggered in addition to audio. Leapfrog also has things like word ”books”, in which one touches a word with the finger to trigger audio. 5
This is an example of an electronic interactive book, really, more than a traditional interactive book.
So there are several important points to consider:
- Like with the push-the-button books above, if the batteries are working it has the potential to quickly get annoying. I even just found the product videos with the few samples that they show on their webpage to be hard to get through, and they’re less than 2 minutes. I can’t imagine having to listen to that again and again.
- It’s trying to basically outsource much of the caregiver’s role in reading. However, reading research has shown that reading aloud is about so much more than just hearing the words. A human not only provides touch and connection but also elaborative assistance, e.g. linking the book to the child’s life (“This flower is purple. It looks similar to one we saw yesterday, remember ?”), being able to fill in more details about a picture or break down words into letters. In short, the human is crucially important. It cannot be replaced by a machine.6
- The 3D version has a screen, so it is in the screen category. Toddlers should not have screen time at all except for things like video calls with loved ones. Even for preschoolers, research has found very negative effects of screen time on brain development.7
- Whether the impact of things like the LeapStart Preschool Succes (which doesn’t have a screen) is more like a paper book or like a screen is unclear. Based on the descriptions of some of the books, even the non-video animation books seem to want to get as close to tablet-based games/ activities as they can. This isn’t completely surprising, since Leapfrog also makes tablets, videos, and apps for children5. LeapStart books seem to be somewhat similar to digital picture books, even if the kids flip to the next page instead of swiping. One meta-analysis of digital picture books found that “the more unrelated bells and whistles, the worse a child’s comprehension was after reading the digital version of the story, compared to the print version. […] many digital books are overstimulating children and the unrelated add-ons are overtaxing a child’s “cognitive load.””8 There’s just so much going on (audio, tapping, seeing).
- The Leapstart doesn’t just work with any book, but only with those specifically designed for it. And there are only very few LeapStart books available. In contrast, there is a huge number of paper books. While repetition is very important when reading to young children, they also need variety to build their vocabularies.
So, better keep away.
Online interactive books and eBooks
Of course, online interactive books and videos of book readings, etc., whether on an iPad, other tablet, or computer, also fall under the ‘screen time’ category. As discussed above, screen time has negative consequences for toddlers’ and preschoolers’ development. Thus, keep your child away.
Making the reading of any picture book interactive
The reading of many “normal” picture books and board books can be made more interactive. For instance, even if the book doesn’t actually tell you to do it, get in on the action. For instance, if you read Leslie Patricelli’s “Huggy Kissy” – go down on the floor with your child for some “huggy on the ruggy”. As another example, if your child points to a letter – or even the coconuts or leaves in Bill Martin Jr.’s “Chicka Chicka Boom Boom”, identify it for him/her. Later on, you can ask your child to identify letters and other things on a page.
References:
1 e.g., Isenhour, J.A (n.d.). Book Review of "The Literacy Crisis: False claims, Real Solutions. by Jeff McQuillan" (1998). https://archive.nwp.org/cs/public/download/nwp_file/534/The_Literacy_Crisis.pdf?x-r=pcfile_d, All4Kids. (n.d.) The importance of reading to your children. https://www.all4kids.org/news/blog/the-importance-of-reading-to-your-children/#:~:text=Studies%20have%20shown%20that%20“the,”%20(PBS.org) Natural Literacy Trust (2020). Reading to children is so powerful, so simple and yet so misunderstood. https://literacytrust.org.uk/blog/reading-children-so-powerful-so-simple-and-yet-so-misunderstood, literature review in Duursma, E, Augustyn, M & Zuckerman, B. (2008). Reading aloud to children: the evidence. Arch Dis Child, Vol 93, No. 7, p. 554-557; https://psycnet.apa.org/record/2020-62984-001 Hart, B., Risley, T. (1995). Meaningful Differences in the Everyday Experience of Young American Children (Abstract) and https://products.brookespublishing.com/Meaningful-Differences-in-the-Everyday-Experience-of-Young-American-Children-P14.aspx and http://www.wvearlychildhood.org/resources/C-13_Handout_1.pdf, Sheldon-Dean, H. (2023). Why Is It Important to Read to Your Child? https://childmind.org/article/why-is-it-important-to-read-to-your-child/ (last checked Oct 22, 23)
2 Bidilică, M. (2023). Guide to Interactive Ebooks: What Are They and How to Make Them. https://publishdrive.com/guide-to-interactive-ebooks.html (last checked Nov 21, 2023)
3 Eliza. (n.d.) How to Make a Children’s Book Without an Illustrator or a Publisher. https://www.bookbildr.com/how-to-make-a-childrens-book-without-an-illustrator-or-a-publisher/ (last checked Nov 21, 2023)
4 Lodge, S. (2009). The Buzz About Accord’s AniMotion Series. https://www.publishersweekly.com/pw/by-topic/childrens/childrens-book-news/article/9107-the-buzz-about-accord-s-animotion-series.html (last checked Nov 28, 2023)
5 LeapFrog https://store.leapfrog.com/en-us/store/p/leapstart-3d-green/_/A-prod80-603900, https://store.leapfrog.com/en-us/store/p/leapstart-go/_/A-prod80-605900, https://store.leapfrog.com/en-us/store/p/leapstart-preschool-success/_/A-prod80-602170, https://store.leapfrog.com/en-us/store/c?format=321, https://store.leapfrog.com/en-us/store/p/leapreader-reading-and-writing-system/_/A-prod21301, https://store.leapfrog.com/en-us/store/p/learning-friends-100-words-book/_/A-prod80-601540, https://store.leapfrog.com/en-us/store/c?age_years=182_183_184 (last checked Nov 28, 2023)
6 e.g., literature review in Duursma, E, Augustyn, M & Zuckerman, B. (2008). Reading aloud to children: the evidence. Arch Dis Child, Vol 93, No. 7, p. 554-557; see also e.g. Powell, D. & Atkinson, L. (2021). Unraveling the links between rapid automatized naming (RAN), phonological awareness, and reading. Journal of Educational Psychology, 113(4), 706–718. (Abstract) https://psycnet.apa.org/record/2020-62984-001, senhour, J.A (n.d.). Book Review of "The Literacy Crisis: False claims, Real Solutions. by Jeff McQuillan" (1998). https://archive.nwp.org/cs/public/download/nwp_file/534/The_Literacy_Crisis.pdf?x-r=pcfile_d, 14 All4Kids. (n.d.) The importance of reading to your children. https://www.all4kids.org/news/blog/the-importance-of-reading-to-your-children/#:~:text=Studies%20have%20shown%20that%20“the,”%20(PBS.org). Natural Literacy Trust (2020). Reading to children is so powerful, so simple and yet so misunderstood. https://literacytrust.org.uk/blog/reading-children-so-powerful-so-simple-and-yet-so-misunderstood/; Sheldon-Dean, H. (2023). Why Is It Important to Read to Your Child? https://childmind.org/article/why-is-it-important-to-read-to-your-child/ (last checked Oct 23, 23)
7 HealthySD.gov (n.d.) Screens: Not for Babies! https://healthysd.gov/screens-not-for-babies/#:~:text=The%20American%20Academy%20of%20Pediatrics,Essentially%2C%20anything%20with%20a%20screen.; LaMotte, S. (2020). This is your child’s brain on books: Scans show benefit of reading vs. screen time https://www.cnn.com/2020/01/16/health/child-brain-reading-books-wellness/index.html (last checked Oct 22, 23)
8 Barshay, J. (2021). PROOF POINTS: Paper beats pixels on most picture books, research finds https://hechingerreport.org/proof-points-paper-beats-pixels-on-most-picture-books-research-finds/#:~:text=They%20found%20that%20the%20more,a%20child's%20%E2%80%9Ccognitive%20load.%E2%80%9D (last checked Nov 28, 2023)
9 e.g., videos on https://www.amazon.com/Melissa-Doug-Old-MacDonalds-Farm/dp/160169024X?th=1 (last checked Nov 28, 2023)
10 e.g. descriptions on https://www.amazon.com/Kippers-Snacktime-Press-Out-Play/dp/0152024336/ref=sr_1_14?qid=1701163653&refinements=p_n_feature_browse-bin%3A2656019011%2Cp_n_feature_eight_browse-bin%3A15129594011&s=books&sr=1-14, https://www.amazon.com/Princesses-Make-Now-Press-Play/dp/1328714985/ref=sr_1_5?qid=1701163653&refinements=p_n_feature_browse-bin%3A2656019011%2Cp_n_feature_eight_browse-bin%3A15129594011&s=books&sr=1-5, https://www.amazon.com/My-First-Toolbox-Press-Press-out/dp/1419729292/ref=sr_1_3?qid=1701163653&refinements=p_n_feature_browse-bin%3A2656019011%2Cp_n_feature_eight_browse-bin%3A15129594011&s=books&sr=1-3, https://www.amazon.com/Sea-Jigsaw-Puzzle-Board-Book/dp/1680529021/ref=sr_1_2?qid=1701163653&refinements=p_n_feature_browse-bin%3A2656019011%2Cp_n_feature_eight_browse-bin%3A15129594011&s=books&sr=1-2, https://www.amazon.com/We-Are-Firefighters-Pat-Cake/dp/1526382636/ref=sr_1_10?qid=1701163653&refinements=p_n_feature_browse-bin%3A2656019011%2Cp_n_feature_eight_browse-bin%3A15129594011&s=books&sr=1-10 (last checked Nov 28, 2023)