A Year of Stories: A Free 2026 Daily Picture Book Read-Aloud Calendar for Families and Educators
- Diane Schnoor
- Dec 16, 2025
- 3 min read
Daily picture book read-alouds are one of the most powerful—and simplest—ways to build connection, empathy, and curiosity with children.
Whether it’s a story shared at the kitchen table, during morning meeting, or as part of a library program, picture books open doors to conversation, imagination, and understanding.
That belief is what inspired me to create Dr. Diane’s 2026 Daily Picture Book Read-Aloud Calendar—a free daily picture book calendar designed to make read-alouds easy, meaningful, and sustainable all year long.
What Is the 2026 Daily Picture Book Read-Aloud Calendar?
The 2026 Read-Aloud Calendar delivers one thoughtfully curated picture book suggestion every day of the year, directly to your digital calendar.
Each daily entry includes:
A picture book title and author/illustrator
A short empathy or inquiry-based prompt
A simple STEAM engagement idea
Instead of searching for read-aloud ideas, you can simply open your calendar and begin.The calendar works with Apple Calendar, Google Calendar, and Outlook, making it easy to integrate into home routines, classrooms, and library programming.
👉 Learn more and add the calendar here: https://www.drdianeadventures.com/read-aloud-calendar
Who Is This Picture Book Calendar For?
This daily read-aloud calendar was created with flexibility and accessibility in mind. It’s ideal for:
Families building consistent reading rituals
Early childhood and elementary educators
Middle grade and high school educators seeking mentor texts to foster deeper discussions
Librarians and literacy coaches
Homeschoolers and learning pods
Anyone looking for daily picture book inspiration
The book selections support conversations around empathy, identity, belonging, curiosity, creativity, nature, and community—making it a strong fit for SEL, STEAM, and cross-curricular learning. They are also connected to STEAM suggestions designed to spark collaboration, critical thinking, creative problem solving, and communication skills -- all from a learning through play lens.
Free to Access, Rooted in Shared Values
The 2026 Daily Picture Book Read-Aloud Calendar is free to access.
This was an intentional choice. Literacy and joyful learning should be accessible to all families and educators, regardless of budget.
Optional support opportunities (e.g. pay what you wish) are available for those who wish to contribute. These contributions help sustain this work and make it possible to continue creating free literacy resources, educator tools, and professional learning experiences. Support is always appreciated—but access is never dependent on it.
How to Get Started
Adding the calendar takes just a few minutes. Once subscribed, all 365 entries for 2026 appear automatically—one for each day of the year.
You’ll find:
Platform-specific instructions
A downloadable “How to Subscribe” guide
Easy access across devices
A PDF with all 365 books (because you need the flexibility to plan ahead and create your own adventure!)
👉 Get started here:
Explore More from Dr. Diane’s Adventures in Learning
If you enjoy the calendar, you may also enjoy:
🎧 The Adventures in Learning Podcast: Join me for weekly conversations about literacy, play, creativity, and learning from early childhood to adulthood.
📚 Featured Picture Books. Each calendar entry includes a direct link to the featured book for easy access.
A Note of Gratitude
This calendar exists because of the extraordinary authors and illustrators who create picture books that shape childhoods and invite empathy, wonder, and imagination.
Thank you to the families, educators, and librarians who make space for stories every day—and for being part of this learning adventure.
— Dr. Diane
Disclosure: Some book links on this site are Bookshop.org affiliate links. If you choose to purchase through these links, Dr. Diane’s Adventures in Learning may earn a small commission at no additional cost to you. These earnings help support the creation of free literacy resources.
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