There are so many fantastic books available now for children of all ages that address anxiety, resilience, confidence, self-esteem, happiness, mindfulness, etc. I’ve made a list of my top 5 favourites that may also be yours (if they aren’t already).
Have You filled a bucket Today by Carol McCloud is a gorgeous little book that takes the notion that we all have an invisible bucket that needs to be filled every day to feel happy. It teaches children about the importance of self- care, kindness and empathy. Children learn they also have the ability to fill other people’s buckets and make them happy too by being kind and loving.
Hey Warrior by Karen Young was written for children to understand what is happening to them when they have that anxious feeling in their body. It describes the amygdala as the warrior whose job it is to protect you from harm because you are so special and unique, there’s no one like you. This is a very informative book and knowledge is power, once a child understands what is happening to them, it gives the child the power to choose something different (once they’ve been given tools of course).
The invisible string by Patrice Karst. The first time I saw this book was on my daughters first day of school sitting up the front of the classroom. It teaches children about connection to those we love, even if we can’t physically see them which of course is important to little ones who may be spending their first day away from mum and dad. It is also a wonderful book to read to children who are grieving the loss of a family member, whether it’s a person or beloved pet.
Giraffes can’t dance by Giles Andrese & Guy Parker – Rees. This is my favourite and have read it often to my girls, although they now exclaim…”Mum, not again!” but I just love it. Poor Gerald the giraffe is bullied and teased about his dancing at the jungled disco and leaves feeling humiliated until he starts to move to the sounds of nature. He discovers everyone has rhythm if they find the right song! Gerald proves he has resilience and confidence, being unique is a wonderful thing to be!
The Huge bag of worries by Virginia Ironside. This is a funny book about a little girl who has a big blue bag of worries that follow her everywhere… even to the toilet! More importantly it also gives strategies and useful tips about how to deal with those annoying worries.
These books can be found on Book depository, Amazon and you can get kids stories free on Audible. I recommend having the physical book as the illustrations really make the story as they are very clever and funny also you will want to read them again and again.