A clothing theme will quickly become a hit in the preschool classroom. It connects to children’s everyday experiences and gives them a playful way to talk about self-help skills, favorite outfits, and personal style. These clothing books for preschoolers fit perfectly into literacy time, circle time, or themed units, and many come with opportunities for art, sorting, and pretend play.
Clothing Books About Underwear
Preschool is the perfect time to be talking about underwear. Students are learning self-care in the bathroom, how to dress themselves, and potty training is a not-so-distant experience. It’s also, for some reason, an absolute attention-getter because children find underwear hilarious! It is the perfect start to a clothing unit as students will be fully invested in the topic when underpants are on the (clothes) line. Here are some great titles to check out:
- Vegetables in Underwear by Jared Chapman*
- The Underwear Book by Todd Parr
- Monsters Love Underpants and Dragons Love Underpants by Claire Freedman and Ben Cort
- Creepy Pair of Underwear by Ryan Reynolds
- The Underpants Zoo by Brian Sendelbach
- The Frog Who Lost His Underpants by Juliette MacIver
- Polar Bear’s Underwear by Tupera Tupera
Stories about underwear never fail to make preschoolers laugh, and that’s part of their magic. These silly tales turn something ordinary into something exciting, giving children a fun way to talk about dressing, privacy, and growing independence. The colorful illustrations and playful rhymes keep everyone giggling, while also supporting social-emotional growth and confidence. Whether it’s vegetables*, monsters, or polar bears showing off their undies, these stories remind children that even the most everyday routines can be full of humor and imagination.
*There’s a HOLIDAY version out now as well!
Extending the Learning: Try some of these ideas to keep students engaged after the story ends:
- Provide vegetable cut outs and scraps of fabric so students can make their own “vegetables in underwear” art project.
- Fill a sensory bin with fabric scraps, mini clothespins, and laundry baskets for a “monster laundry” activity.
Getting Ahead: Books about Hats
Whose Hat Is This? by Sharon Katz Cooper
This book invites children to guess who wears each hat by looking at the clues on each page. It introduces community helpers in a way that keeps little readers guessing.
Extending the Learning: Set up a dramatic play area with a variety of community helper hats, such as firefighter, chef, and construction hats. Children can match hats to jobs and talk about the roles they see in their community.
We Found a Hat, This Is Not My Hat, and I Want My Hat Back: a Hat Trilogy by Jon Klassen
Jon Klassen has a charming trio of books about hats perfect for preschoolers. In We Found a Hat, two turtles discover a single hat. The pictures tell a slightly different story than the text – because one of the turtles is waiting for the other to fall asleep so he can snatch the hat. But will his plan work?
In This is Not My Hat, a little fish tells the readers how he stole a hat and his plan to keep it. Again, the pictures tell a different story, and students will delight in watching the justice served to the rightful owner of the hat. And finally, I Want My Hat Back follows a similar theme as a very polite bear asks various forest creatures if they have seen his missing hat. But is everyone telling the truth? Keep an eye out for cameos from the first two books as well!
Extending the Learning Provide pieces for retelling of these three stories. Make color copies of pages with the characters (and their hats) and laminate them. Simply add felt, velcro, or magnets to the backs and turn a vertical space into a learning center.
Jennie’s Hat by Ezra Jack Keats
Jennie wishes for a fancy hat, but when she’s disappointed, her bird friends swoop in to help her create something beautiful. It’s a gentle story about creativity, kindness, and surprises.
Extending the Learning: Provide an assortment of collage materials and some cut-out hat shapes. Students use the materials to create their very own fancy hat to display around the classroom.
Very Good Hats by Emma Straub
This charming story encourages imagination by showing how almost anything – a leaf, a shoe, a cup, or even the wind – can be a hat. It also asks questions that students discuss, such as, “If a turtle pulls his head inside of the shell, does that make the shell a hat?”
Extending the Learning: Offer a bin of safe, everyday items and let children explore which items they feel are “very good hats.”
Cats in Construction Hats by Sudipta Bardhan-Quallen
A group of kittens puts on construction hats and gets to work, showing teamwork and persistence. The simple rhymes and bright illustrations are perfect for preschoolers. The book teaches that working together and being persistent pays off in the end, even if sometimes setbacks occur.
Extending the Learning: Add toy tools and hard hats to the block area so students can pretend to build just like the cats in the book.
If the Shoe Fits: Clothing Books about Shoes
Whose Shoe? by Eve Bunting
This sweet classic begins with a mystery: whose shoe did little mouse find in the bamboo? The well-meaning mouse asks a variety of animals if the shoe belongs to them. Eventually, he solves the mystery and enjoys his reward.
Extending the Learning: Since this book talks about matching, create a simple memory game with pictures of different types of shoes.
Pete the Cat: I Love My White Shoes, and Rocking in My School Shoes by Eric Litwin
Pete’s cool attitude and catchy songs make these stories preschool favorites. In I Love My White Shoes, Pete steps in different things, changing the color of his shoes – but he goes with the flow because, of course, “It’s all good.” Rockin’ in my School Shoes has Pete going to school. Each page has Pete visiting a different area of the school, where he then “rocks” a different activity. Students enjoy guessing where he’s going by listening to the clues. Both stories teach resilience and optimism as Pete goes with the flow, no matter what happens to his shoes.
Extending the Learning: Gather a variety of old shoes in a variety of sizes and have students paint “shoe prints” with washable paint on paper to make colorful classroom art inspired by Pete.
It’s Shoe Time! by Bryan Collier
This fun, easy reader from the Elephant and Piggie series, celebrates mismatched shoes and individuality. Silly puns and shoe jokes keep the readers on their toes, while an unexpected twist (a grown-up not matching their own shoes?) adds a nice ending.
Extending the Learning: Mix and match paper shoe cutouts, then have students find their matching pairs or invent silly combinations.
Shoe-La-La! by Karen Beaumont
Four friends shop for the perfect pair of shoes before a big party. The rhyming text and bright art make this book a joyful read-aloud.
Extending the Learning: Turn the dramatic play area into a pretend shoe store with boxes, price tags, and play money.
Bedtime Stories: Books About Pajamas and Sleepwear
Winding down for bedtime is a big part of a preschooler’s day. And who doesn’t love putting on comfy pajamas and warm slippers and snuggling up with a bedtime story (or three)! Try these favorites for naptime or to calm down.
- The Cat’s Pajamas by Catherine Foreman
- Llama Llama Red Pajama by Anna Dewdney
- Pete the Cat and the Bedtime Blues by Kimberly and James Dean
Extending the Learning Ideas:
- Have children design their own pajama patterns on paper or fabric squares to make a classroom quilt display.
- Plan a pajama day at school with bedtime-themed songs and stories.
- Encourage students to stamp paper with different types of stamps. Cut out the paper into pajama shapes and display them in the classrrom.
- Add stuffed animals, flashlights, and books to a cozy reading corner for a “bedtime stories” dramatic play setup.
Books About Laundry, Clothing Care, and Accessories
Caring for clothing is an important part of a preschool clothing theme, and these stories make the concept both playful and relatable. These clothing books show children that clothes aren’t just for dressing up—they’re for expressing personality, showing responsibility, and even having a little fun.
- Mrs. McNosh Hangs Up Her Wash by Sarah Weeks
- Smelly Socks by Robert Munsch
- Philomena’s New Glasses by Brenna Maloney
- Dress Like a Girl by Patricia Toht
- Lilly’s Purple Plastic Purse by Kevin Henkes
- Clothesline Clues to Jobs People Do by Kathryn Heling and Deborah Hembrook
- Sashiko’s Stitches by Sanae Ishida
Try some of these fun activities to extend the learning beyond the story time rug:
- Add a clothesline to your dramatic play center for hanging doll clothes or socks with clothespins.
- Play a sock-matching game for colors and patterns, or let children design their own “silly socks.”
- Bring in real clothing items or printed pictures to match to different occupations.
- Provide play glasses or paper templates for children to decorate their own.
- Invite students to dress up for their favorite future job and talk about what they’d need to wear.
- Make paper purses and have children fill them with drawings of special items they’d keep inside.
Clothing books for preschoolers connect reading with real-world experiences in fun, relatable ways. Whether it’s shoes, hats, or even pajamas, these stories encourage creativity, language development, and self-help skills. By pairing each book with a simple activity, teachers can build engaging lessons that help children play and learn through every part of the preschool day.
