2020 Holiday Gift Guide-The SEL Book Guide

The last several months have been so eye-opening on so many levels but the most incredible thing to me is how resilient and wonderful the children have been. We have asked them to make so many changes to their lives and while some of them have been good and exciting for some of the kids, it's also been really challenging and has brought up a lot of feelings and emotions. In my social skills group, I have found that discussing some of these difficulties can be a challenge so have turned to reading them children's books. It's amazing what kind of conversations can come from a thoughtfully written book. Below, I share just a handful of my favorite books (some recommended by colleagues and other parents). I tried to focus on books that address some of the really big social emotional topics that have come out of the last several months: kindness, diversity, acceptance, flexibility, resilience, feelings, emotions and coping skills. 

The Little Ghost Who Was a Quilt-a beautiful book that teaches kids that it is okay to be different. This little ghost doesn't understand why he's a quilt when his parents and all of his friends are sheets. Ghosts are supposed to be sheets so they can whirl and twirl and float and soar but he can't do any of that and when he flies, he gets hot. Being different makes the little ghost feel sad and left out and he just doesn't understand why he can't keep up with them all. But that all changes one Halloween when he has an experience that no other ghost could have and it only happened because he is a quilt and it helps him realize that being different is okay. A beautiful story to share with children who may feel or look different than their friends to help them understand that it's okay to be different and that sometimes it can actually make you even more special because of being different. 

Not A Box-this is one of my favorite books and great for teaching kids about being flexible and thinking outside of the box. Inspired by a memory of sitting in a box on her driveway with her sister, Antoinette Portis, encourages kids to use their imagination. A box is more than just a box if you take the time to think about it. From mountain to rocket ship, a small rabbit shows that a box can be anything you want it to be. What I love about this book is that it is easy to come up with accompanying activities to do after reading the book. Be sure to save some of your cardboard boxes and see what your kids can turn them into. 

The World Needs Who You Were Made To Be-written by Joanna Gaines and illustrated by Julianna Swaney, this beautiful book celebrates how creativity and acceptance can come together to make a wonderful adventure. The book follows a group of children as they each create their own hot-air balloons. As they begin to work together, they realize that they each have their own special talents and skills. In a time when so many people are struggling, I think it is more important than ever to teach our kids that we should always be willing to lend a helping hand to those in need, especially when our skills or talents will help them. If you want to add a nice little hands-on craft activity, print out a picture of a hot-air balloon and have your kids decorate their own. I can't wait until we are back to in-person sessions for my social skills group, TMH Juniors, and we can incorporate this book and some really fun art projects into our routine. 

The Color Monster: A Pop-Up Book of Feelings-we spend a lot of time teaching children about concepts such as colors, numbers and letters, but not enough time teaching them about feelings and emotions. This interactive pop-up book helps kids learn about emotions by matching them with a color and helps to open up the conversation about what feelings look like. One of my favorite things about this book is that they talk about how it's okay to feel more than one feeling at a time. Teaching kids to identify and handle big emotions is a really important skill and one that I think needs more attention now than ever before. After you read it, you can make your own Color Monster Feelings Chart. I did a quick google search and there are so many brilliant ideas out there from teachers, therapists and parents. 

The Feels Book-I stumbled on this book during my research and fell in love with this book (I think it is the adorable Yeti). Another great resource for parents to support their children during this crazy and uncertain times where big feelings and confusion is at an all-time high for so many kids. Join Yeti on a journey as she meets each of her feelings and learns how to take care of each one. Included with the book is a digital parent resource guide that provides a variety of questions and activities to help children develop positive emotional well-being and appropriate coping skills. You can also get this adorable Yeti Snuggler which comes with a mindfulness activity that works on regulating emotions and reducing anxiety. 

Ruby Finds A Worry-Ruby is a happy, curious and imaginative girl until one day, something unexpected happens: she finds a Worry. It begins out small but with each day, that worry grows and grows until she can't think about anything else. It takes meeting another kid who also has worries that Ruby learns everybody has worries and that there are ways to get rid of them. Ruby Finds A Worry is a great book for right now because so many children are experiencing a variety of worries and struggling with how to deal with them when that happens. Teaching kids strategies to decrease their anxiety at a young age is so important, especially during these times of so much uncertainty. 

I'm Not Just A Scribble-if you are not familiar with the author Diane Alber, I highly recommend that you take a look at her SEL books. We have been reading some of her Little Spot books during our remote social skills groups and the kids really love them. During our lesson about inclusion and kindness, we read I'm Not Just A Scribble and the conversations that the group had with each other after was so wonderful. Scribble, the main character of this book, never thought he was different until he met his first drawing. After being left out for being different than everyone else, Scribble decides to teach the drawings how to accept each other for who they are. This book comes with 100 stickers for your children to make their own scribbles and a feelings chart that you can hang up. Another fun activity to do is to have kids scribble all over a piece of paper and then see what they can turn the scribble into. 

The Little Ghost Who Was a Quilt-a beautiful book that teaches kids that it is okay to be different. This little ghost doesn't understand why he's a quilt when his parents and all of his friends are sheets. Ghosts are supposed to be sheets so they can whirl and twirl and float and soar but he can't do any of that and when he flies, he gets hot. Being different makes the little ghost feel sad and left out and he just doesn't understand why he can't keep up with them all. But that all changes one Halloween when he has an experience that no other ghost could have and it only happened because he is a quilt and it helps him realize that being different is okay. A beautiful story to share with children who may feel or look different than their friends to help them understand that it's okay to be different and that sometimes it can actually make you even more special because of being different. 

Wish-this beautiful book by Chris Saunders teaches children about kindness, sharing and the magic of friendship. The story is about Rabbit who has never had a wish before. One day he gets three wishes but can't decide what to wish for so he asks his friends Mouse, Fox and Bear what they would wish for. Rabbit decides to grant all three wishes for his friends and they are so grateful that they share their wishes with him. Not only is this a beautiful story about being kind to other people, the illustrations are gorgeous. 

The Day You Begin-there are many reasons for children to feel different and this book by Jaqueline Woodson does a wonderful job talking about this topic. Maybe it's the way you look or talk, where you come from or maybe it is because you may have a harder time talking or walking. It's not easy to take the risks to join a group when nobody really knows you yet, but you know you have to do it. This book is a helpful reminder to children how we may all feel when you have to join a new group and that if you open up and share  some of your own stories, there just might be others that you can connect with. This is a story about being brave, especially when you feel like you might be alone. It also feels very important to share this story this year given the number of changes so many kids are experiencing during the pandemic. So many children I know have left their familiar school environment and may be starting new schools or doing remote learning and experiencing a lot of anxiety about being the new and different kid. 

After The Fall by Dan Santat-Everyone knows that when Humpty Dumpty sat on a wall, Humpty Dumpty had a great fall. But what happened after? Humpty Dumpty, an avid bird watcher whose favorite place to be is high up on the city wall―that is, until after his famous fall. Now terrified of heights, Humpty can longer do many of the things he loves most.

Will he summon the courage to face his fear?After the Fall (How Humpty Dumpty Got Back Up Again) is a masterful picture book that will remind readers of all ages that Life begins when you get back up.

Kindness Is My Superpower-I think one of the most important things I ever taught my own daughter is the importance of being kind to others. We never know what other people are going through and making sure children know this from a very young age. In this delightful book, kids learn about how kindness, sensitivity and generosity can make the world a better place. This book is chockfull of examples of kindness at home, school or in your community and how if we are all more understanding of others and accept them for who they are, the world will be a more empathetic place. There are also Acts of Kindness Cards included with the book that promote empathy and kindness. 

ish-in one of my favorite Peter H. Reyolds books, we meet Ramon who loved to draw. Anytime, anything and anywhere! Drawing is what Ramon does and what makes him feel good about himself. It is what makes him happy until his older brother makes a mean comment and he no longer can find the joy in drawing. Ramon can't draw without feeling sad and worried about what he is doing. Luckily for him, his younger sister the world differently and opens Ramon's eyes and makes him realize that things don't always have to be "just right". This is a great book for children who are always seeking perfection and need to know that "just right" is different for everyone and just because someone doesn't like care.

Tessie Tames Her Tongue-Tessie loves to talk but her constant talking gets her into trouble at home and at school. The more she talks, the louder she becomes. She talks with her mouth full of food. The problem with this is that she doesn't give others a chance to talk and her brother and classmates begin to ignore her. With the of her school counselor, Tessie learns the importance of listening and how to tame her talkative tongue. We never want to dampen a child's spirit or make them not want to share their stories, but when it means that other children/people don't have an opportunity to say what's on their mind, it can turn into a problem. 

Fair is Fair-"It's not fair!" This is something that parents and teachers hear all of the time when they think someone else, a sibling or classmate, is getting more than they are. Do special needs for one mean less love for another? This is the question explored in this short children's story of three zoo animals. They learn that being equally loved doesn't necessarily mean that they're treated the exact same. Rather, true love is expressed when each animal gets what they need. This is a perfect book for all families with siblings who think may think that things are never fair. 

All Are Welcome-after the events that unfolded this spring, I know that many parents are trying to find ways to teach their children about diversity and kindness and sometimes the best way to do this is through books. In this book, you follow a group of children in their school. They are all culturally different, celebrate different holidays and have different family traditions but that is embraced in this school. Kids learn about each other and different cultures and realize that everyone is welcome in their school and welcomed with open arms no matter what. 

While I linked all of these books to Amazon, I can't stress the importance of supporting your local bookstores during this crazy time. I have shared some of my local bookshops and encourage you all to share your favorite local bookstores in the comments below. 

Community Bookstore-Park Slope, Brooklyn
Greenlight Bookstore-Fort Greene, Brooklyn 
powerHouse on 8th-Park Slope, Brooklyn (there is also a second location in DUMBO)
Books Are Magic-Cobble Hill, Park Slope 
Bank Street Bookstore-multiple locations on the UWS of Manhattan
Books of Wonder-Union Square and UWS locations
Shakespeare and Co-UES and UWS locations