If you’re homeschooling, picture books can be one of the most powerful tools in your toolbox. You likely already know the power of reading aloud to your children, but with so many fantastic books out there—where to start?

We offer a literature-based ancient history curriculum that makes ancient history come to life for you and your elementary students. Here are some of the best picture books you’ll find on our booklist.

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Let’s dive right into the list of best ancient history picture books, shall we?

This is the first book in Ludmila Zeman’s Gilgamesh trilogy, making the Epic of Gilgamesh accessible and engaging for young learners. Unless you’re already an expert in ancient Mesopotamian texts, it’s likely that reading this picture book will help even you as the teacher to understand the storyline of this ancient Epic better than ever before.

Duncan Tonatiuh’s Feathered Serpent and the Five Suns give us a glimpse into the mythology of ancient Mesoamerica. What we have in this tale is a classic epic quest where we are introduced to Quetzalcóatl. This myth gives us an insight into the storytelling traditions of ancient Mexico and surrounding cultures.

Demi’s picture book biography of Confucius gives us a thorough yet accessible introduction to the philosopher whose teachings have shaped Chinese culture for millennia.

This is a lively, graphic-novel style introduction to life in Ancient Greece. A wide variety of topics are introduced as a couple of time-traveling children attempt a visit to the ancient Olympics games.

Here we have an introduction to Eratosthenes, with a fascinating look into the ingenious deductions he made about the shape of the Earth and the method by which he calculated the circumference of the Earth.

The Secrets of Tutankhamun is an in-depth telling of what we know about King Tut and the discovery of the young king’s tomb. It is longer book with many illustrations that gives incredible insight into Ancient Egyptian royalty.

Diane Stanley’s biography of the Egyptian queen gives students a good look into the complexities of Egyptian and Roman politics at the time when Cleopatra lived.

This historical fiction picture book brings the reader into the tale of a tsunami as it hits the island of Rapa Nui.

Filled with lavish illustrations, this book introduces readers to the ancient King Ashoka the Great of the Mauryan Empire.

In this book, the reader journeys alongside the protagonist, visiting each of the Seven Wonders of the Ancient World.

Each of these books is featured in Ancient World: History, which includes a Parent Guide filled with teaching notes, activity suggestions, as well as coordinating activity pages in the Student Activity Book. This literature-based ancient history curriculum is designed to make story-based learning easy and delightful to implement, leading to a rich, developmentally-appropriate year of teaching elementary ancient history at home. Don’t forget to check out the FREE SAMPLE or the FAQs page if you’re interested in learning more!