Comics

Grown-ups

A guide for families

First comics: what a 5- or 6-year-old can read alone

A comic can be a five- or six-year-old's first book read alone, because the pictures carry the story and the words come a few at a time. Not every comic for young children is easy, though. Here is what to look for, the series on Peabody that fit, and the kindergarten page for the whole list.

Start here: Comics for kindergarten · Checked

What makes a comic easy

Four things matter more than the age on the cover:

  • A few words in each bubble, in big clear letters. Short bubbles let a new reader finish one before losing the thread.
  • A few big panels on each page, so the eye knows where to go next. Pages packed with small panels are harder, however simple the words.
  • Two or three characters who come back every page, so a reader isn't sorting out who is who.
  • Jokes and stories that finish in a page or two, so a reader can stop and come back without starting again.

An easy comic is still a real book. Reading the pictures (who is cross, what just happened between two panels) is a skill that older readers lean on all the time.

Series with a few words a page and nothing scary

For each series on Peabody we wrote down what book 1 is like inside: how many words a page, how many panels, how it feels. These 4 seriess have a few words a page, and nothing scary or sad in book 1:

Each series page has the whole list in order, with a checklist to tick as you go.

Read together first

These start at 6 or younger too, but have more words, more panels or a scary or sad moment in book 1, so they are better read side by side at first:

Reading a comic with a child who can't read yet and reading a comic aloud have ways to share a page.

Helping without taking over

Let your child hold the book and turn the pages. Point to the first panel if they aren't sure where to start, then let them find the next. When a word stops them, say it and move on; a comic is not a test, and the next bubble will come round soon enough.

Ask about the pictures, not the words: what is that face saying? What happened between these two panels? A child who can answer is reading the comic, whether or not they could read every word.

Rereading is normal. Young readers often read the same comic five times, and each time they read more of the words themselves. That is how it is meant to go.

When the first series is done, What should I read next? picks three more in three taps, and the 6-year-olds' page has every series that starts there.

More guides

↑ All the guides · Book series in order

For grown-ups: Peabody has no ads, not one, and nothing to sell your child. The Kids Pick, an independent kids' directory, rates its games 90/100. See what other free kids' sites load · Grown-ups, sign in · Already have a profile?