Recently, a mom told me her 4 year old is obsessed with the idea of evolution, so she was looking for some good books or videos on the topic, but most were aimed at older children, not preschoolers. Here are a few good options to consider that might work for children in the 3 – 6 year old zone, depending on their interest level in the topic.

Grandmother Fish: A Child’s First Book of Evolution by Tweet, illus. Lewis. (Video preview.) The subtitle describes it perfectly. It is a simple, child-friendly explanation of the evolution from prehistoric aquatic creatures to us. “This is our grandmother fish. She lived a long, long, long, long, long time ago. She could wiggle and swim fast. Can you wiggle?” Shows how at each stage of evolution, creatures branched out, and when branch moved forward toward us. I especially like the “can you wiggle” questions that help a child see how they relate to this ancestor.

Our Family Tree: An Evolution Story by Peters, illus Stringer. (Video preview.) Talks about how we started out as single cell organisms that floated in the sea for millions of years. Then multi-cellular, then moved to land, grew legs and so on. Talks of how our ancestors survived the dinosaur extinction, and continued to evolve. Addresses what we’re like “on the inside” – what we have in common with our ancestors and how they were different from us “on the outside.” “We began as tiny round cells, and we’ve changed a lot since then but we carry with us reminders of each step of our past.”

One Day a Dot: the Story of You, the Universe and Everything by Lendler, illus. Paroline and Lamb. (Video preview.) Starts with dots (molecules?) that joined together to form light, planets, water, single-celled organisms who fed on the light then grew, then fed on each other and grew. Continues onward, including how tiny mammals survived when dinosaurs went extinct, how mammals evolved into apes, and how apes developed into humans that build adaptations to help them in their environment, who evolved to become modern humans: “they had families. They had you!” This is a huge swath of science ideas, but somehow comes together into an engaging book, that tells a story children can follow.

How the Borks Became – An Adventure in Evolution by Emmett, illus. Dolan. (Video preview.) Set on an alien planet, where llama like creatures evolve over four generations. This condensed view simplifies the idea of evolution so it’s easy to grasp. (And you can always clarify the real science of earth-based evolution as they get older.) Doesn’t shy away from death / survival as a big aspect of evolution. For example, the words “When the storm stopped and a new day arrived only the shaggy-furred Borks had survived” accompanies an illustration where the short-haired Borks are buried beneath the snow.

I think all four are good options to choose from.

Also, be sure to check out my recommended books that tie into our Adaptations class theme, which include: Who Has These Feet? (YouTube) by Hulbert and Brooks. What Do You Do with a Tail Like This? (YouTube) by Jenkins and Page. Moth. An Evolution Story by Thomas, illus. Egneus. (Preview video.) and Unbeatable Beaks by Swinburne, Paley. Age 4 – 7. (YouTube) And my ideas for hands-on activities for teaching the science of animal adaptations and habitats.

This post includes Amazon affiliate links. If you click through and purchase something, I do get a small referral bonus. I have included YouTube links so you can preview the book; however, I encourage you to purchase your book of choice to support authors and illustrators, as they often receive no benefit from the YouTube video someone has made of their work.