Learning about our differences can be a powerful way for children to see from another person’s point of view. I encourage all parents to introduce some of these books or others like these to their children and use these stories as a reference when children bring up differences in school, particularly with special needs classmates. Because how great would it be if it were OUR child who can reach out like MacKenzie in The Friendship Puzzle?! The Friendship Puzzle and My Brother Charlie are a particularly powerful combination for anyone who has a sibling or classmate with autism and would be a great pair of books for any child starting kindergarten.
Tag: new books to read
Top 10: Children’s Art Books
For the first time it occurred to me that my fear of the blank page might be just that—a needless fear. So I began to read up on the teaching of drawing, and to experiment with my children. I discovered a lengthy list of worthy resources for parents and children alike.
24 Children’s Books about Disabilities
The Schneider Family Book Awards honor an author or illustrator for a book that embodies an artistic expression of the disability experience for child and adolescent audiences. I really like how these books let kids walk in the shoes of another and I find the themes of “trying to fit in versus accepting themselves and their family members” to be universal for all children.
10 Favorite Picture Books from a Bookstore Owner
Please welcome my guest author, Bola of SlimyBookworm.com, with her list of favorite children’s books for 2011. I am managing to make this into a short series of posts. I’ll continue with other guests’ favorite kid and young adult lit of 2011 until I run out of volunteers. Bola runs an online children’s bookstore so she is VERY qualified as both a bookseller and a mom. Please check out her eStore and her blog too!
17 Zen Picture Books about Mindfulness
There is something special about each of these books beyond an award winning author/illustrator or just an enjoyable story. Some of the books bid us to stop and smell the roses; others make us ask ourselves what really IS important in life? As my career coach often tells me when I am complaining, “Is there another way to view this? Can you see this thing that you are complaining about as a gift?!” Please enjoy these ten small gifts of stories. These are gifts that keep on giving.
5 Favorite Christmas Picture Books
I was combing the bookshelves to clean them out and ran across our little pile of Christmas books that I’ve save through the years. I read them last night to my youngest but my oldest, now 11, read her favorite, Auntie Claus, and returned it the pronouncement, “That is a good book.” This is a particularly good book for responsible older sisters, particularly the self sacrificing type, which might explain why she loved it when we read picture books exclusively. It will always be on our shelves at Christmas for her because that is the power and magic of picture books: You Never Out Grown Them!
20 Favorite Picture Books of 2011
Thank you to Tanya from the wonderful blog, Books4YourKids. She is my guest author with her favorite picture books of 2011.







