Did you watch the World Cup? It was on constantly at our house and has sparked a real love of soccer in my 3 year old, something my husband and I am excited about since we both love the sport as well.
One thing that can really keep that spark alive while also fueling a love of books if to jump on your child's new interests and find books with that theme at the library or online. Here are some soccer books we loved.
Winners Never Quit by Mia Hamm is a cute book about her not always sunny attitude about winning! Not only has lots of soccer action in this biographical picture book, but it also has made a great change in our house. My son has started saying " I quit" to some challenges and after reading this book I simply remind him " Winners never quit!" and he takes a deep breath ( sometimes whines a few more times) but gets the task done! Ah the power of books!
Big Kicks by Bob Kolar is a cute tale on not judging a book by it's cover. In the book the local soccer team needs another player because one of their players is hurt. They think that the game will be a shoe in if they get Biggie the Bear to play. Well it turns out Biggie is great at a lot of things but soccer isn't one of them. What I like about this is that in the end he doesn't keep playing( his heart is not in it), he does what he likes, plays music and cheers them on! I adored the illustrations in this book - grab it and you will see why!
For The Love Of Soccer by Pele is another quasi biographical story, but what I like about this book in particular is that on each page the left hand page is a picture of a little boy and the right hand is about Pele. So you see that a book like this isn't just about one of the world's greatest players and his accomplishments but about the kid down the street or perhaps you too!
Benjamin's Machine by Jennifer Tutwiler is sorta about soccer... it's a story about a little boy who can't wait to get outside to play but his dad has to mow the lawn first. When things don't go as planned Benjamin uses his imagination and crayons to make his own plan to get outside and play. You can read this book online over at
Memetales.com