Maybe it’s their colorful wings, sweet nature, or magical transformation from a caterpillar, but butterflies have always captivated little kids!
We’ve gathered some of the best butterfly themed books for babies and toddlers!
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Happiness is like a butterfly: the more you chase it, the more it will elude you, but if you turn your attention to other things, it will come and sit softly on your shoulder.
J. Richard Lessor
Butterflies make an excellent theme for spring or summer reading. When I was a preschool teacher, we would incorporate butterflies into our spring unit.
As a stay-at-home-mom, I create little weekly themes for my baby. We then check out books from the library and do activities based on that theme. We are definitely having a butterfly week this spring!

Why should you read to your baby?
According to Zero to Three (click for link):
Reading together when babies are as young as 4 months old increases the chances that parents continue reading to babies as they get older. Beginning early is important because the roots of language are developing in a baby’s brain even before he can talk! The more words your baby hears over time, the more words he learns.
Zero to Three, “Read Early and Often”
Is a butterfly a caterpillar?
This one stumped me. Here’s an answer from Science ABC that sums it up more efficiently than I could!
Is a butterfly the same as a caterpillar? Well, allow me to answer that question with another question! Is an adult the same as a child? Perhaps you see where I’m going with this. A child and an adult are both humans, just at different stages of life. Similarly, a butterfly and a caterpillar belong to the same species (organisms belonging to the same taxonomic group), but are at different stages of their life. Just as a child slowly grows into an adult, so too does a caterpillar grow into a butterfly, albeit at a much faster rate. Basically, at some point in time, every butterfly was a caterpillar.
Science ABC, “Is A Butterfly The Same As A Caterpillar?”

What are the best butterfly books for babies and toddlers?
Below are some of the very sweetest butterfly books for babies and toddlers! Butterfly Colors and Counting is my favorite on the list!
The Best California Books for Babies and Toddlers
Butterfly’s Marching Band by Little Hippo Books
Little Butterfly: Finger Puppet Book by Chronicle Books
Butterfly Colors and Counting by Jerry Pallotta
Butterflies and Moths by Scarlett Wing
How Does a Butterfly Grow? by DK
Butterflies Soar by Amber Hendricks
Let’s Count Butterflies by Susan R. Stoltz
My, Oh My–A Butterfly!: All About Butterflies (Cat in the Hat’s Learning Library) by Tish Rabe
Ten Magic Butterflies by Danica McKellar
Flutterby Butterfly: A Slide-and-Seek Book by Emma Parrish
The Very Hungry Caterpillar by Eric Carle
So, there are some of the best books on butterflies for babies and toddlers!
Does your little one like butterflies? Are they interested in caterpillars?
Are you familiar with any of these books?
Let me know below!
O.