Nothing’s Wrong!
Author: Jory John
Illustrator: Erin Kraan
Summary: Anders and Jeff have a spectacular day for their picnic. But Jeff knows that something is off with Anders, even though he insists that nothing is wrong. What is the best way Jeff can help his friend when Anders won't tell him why he is feeling blue?
Recommended Ages: 4-8 yeears
Themes, Skills, & Concepts: What happens when the perfect day you had planned goes all wrong? How do you deal with the disappointment? And how does it feel when you try to hide your emotions from your friends? What can friends do to help each other out when they can sense you are feeling down or dejected? These are some of the questions that can spring a great discussion about helping each other out through moods we may be having.
The Whatifs
Author: Emily Kilgore
Illustrator: Zoe Persico
Summary: Cora worries about EVERYTHING and she is always assuming the worst possible things will happen. The Whatifs are always clinging to her, making her anxiety worse. When Cora meets a new friend, she learns that reframing her questions can help send the Whatifs away!
Recommended Ages: 4-8 years
Themes, Skills, & Concepts: All kids worry, but sometimes that worry can become out of control. Kids may not have the maturity to know how to overcome that anxiety. This book gives beautiful visuals to worry and a great way to reframe those questions that cause that anxiety.
Extension Activities: The blog below has many great activities on how to help kids deal with anxiety they may experience. Click here!
Millie Fleur's Poison Garden
Author: Christy Mandin
Illustrator: Christy Mandin
Summary: Millie and her mom move into an old home in a neighborhood where everything is the same. Mille's mom gives her seeds to plant a special, spectacular garden, but what happens when the new plants don't fit into the neighborhood sameness?
Recommended Ages: 4-8 yeears
Themes, Skills, & Concepts: The first thing Millie notices about her new neighborhood is that everything is the same. So she plants her unusual garden. The first thing the adults notice about her unusual garden is that the plants are horrible and terrible. But the lesson for kids to learn and remember is summed up by Millie's mom "Some people are scared of things that are different." It is an important thing for all of us!
Extension Activities: Kids love weird and unusual things and the plants that are shown in the link below will not disappoint them! Have the kids pick one of the weird plants or choose one of their own and do a little research to learn about the plant's uses or oddities! Millie labels each of her plants. Have the kids look the plant up to see if it is an actual plant or just from the author's imagination...a fun little research practice! Click here!
Don't Touch That Flower!
Author: Alice Hemming
Illustrator: Nicola Slater
Summary: Spring has finally arrived! Squirrel is so excited to see a lovely flower blooming, but worries that something might harm it! When he becomes too overprotective of the little flower, Bird shows him the right way to care for the little blossom!
Recommended Ages: 2-7 years
Themes, Skills, & Concepts: Bird and Squirrel are teamed up again in this fun book about the first signs of spring! Squirrel is not quite sure about the care and feeding of wildflowers and his friend Bird helps him learn the proper way to care for plants.
Extension Activities: There are so many fun activities that you can do to enrich the learning in this book! Plant lima beans in a plastic bag with a wet paper towel and hang up in a bright window to watch the roots grow and the stem to pop up! The alliteration in the book is fun to read. Have your students brainstorm other alliterative word pairings that describe animals moving, weather sounds or other noises in nature. Click here!
Tricky Chopsticks
Author: Sylvia Chen
Illustrator: Fanny Liem
Summary: Jenny Chow cannot get the hang of using chopsticks and it is so embarrassing for her to fumble in front of her family and friends. Even worse, there is a Chopsticks Challenge at Victor's birthday party! Can there be an easy way for Jenny to learn how to use them in time?
Recommended Ages: 5-7 years
Themes, Skills, & Concepts: Learning new things can be frustrating and time consuming! Like riding a bike, learning to roller skate or even learning how to eat with chopsticks. Jenny shows kids that persistence and some smart thinking can always pay off!
Extension Activities: Take a look at the website for the book "Tricky Chopsticks". You can find all kinds of tips and secrets about the book, how to use chopsticks, reading and learning the Chinese vocabulary and onomatopoeia used to throughout the book. The endpages tell how Jenny made her practice chopsticks using origami and other materials. Give teams of kids chopsticks and whatever materials you may have to come up with their own inventions to make learning to use chopsticks easier. Click here!
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