5 books to talk about mental health

Storytime with mom, dad, or another caring adult is a great way to strengthen the relationship with the child in your life.

The emotional closeness of snuggling up and sharing an adventure together is wonderful. You can also use stories to have conversations about feeling safe, connected, or confident in their everyday lives. Kids who feel safe, connected and confident are more resilient and able to cope with life’s curveballs.

Here are five books that deal with big life experiences, and how you can talk about emotions, both good and bad, with your child in each one.

Skippy Jon Jones
by Judy Schachner
Skippy Jon Jones is one of the most delightful children’s book characters of the last 20 years, and kids who are especially energetic and imaginative will relate to Skippyjon. If your child sometimes gets in trouble for her or his energy, you can ask, “What do you think would happen if you did something crazy like Skippyjon? Would I still love you? (Of course!)” You can also comment on the ways his imagination makes everything more exciting and wonderful. In this way, you’re building confidence by expressing confidence in how much you enjoy your child and her or his personality.

The Way I Feel
by Janan Cain
This book with bright pastel pencil drawings helps kids identify and describe their feelings. It’s more of a child’s poetry book than a story, but many kids will enjoy the rhyme and rhythm. Kids (and people!) often struggle to feel “safe to feel” all of their emotions. Learning how to name your feelings goes a long way toward that safety.

Swimmy
by Leo Lionni
The story of Swimmy the fish who bravely shows his friends how to come out of hiding. Leo Lionni is a classic children’s book writer, and this story can be a great jumping off point for a conversation with your children about anxiety, bravery, and how relationships make life better. You can use stories like this one to teach kids how connection with others can help us feel more confident.

I Like Myself
by Karen Beaumonet
This is a delightful celebration of everything that makes us human, even the messy hair and beaver breath. It’s a silly and serious way to build self-esteem in kids, and demonstrate that there are people who will always love us no matter what (even if it’s just our pet dog). Stories like this one can help children feel safe just to be themselves.

Ira Sleeps Over
by Bernard Waber
This book helps kids feel safe to separate. One of the most critical moments in any kid’s life is the first-time overnight sleepover — and the resulting anxiety from being away from mom and/or dad. Parents can use stories like this one to have a conversation about feeling safe to separate and reassure children that the things they love will always be waiting for them when they come back.

The most important part of reading together isn’t just reading a huge number of books, or checking off the homework list. The most important part is that you sit and enjoy something together. This practice is also a great foundation for literacy and lifetime school achievement — children who have positive experiences bonding with adults over books are more likely to enjoy reading as they grow older.

United Way is on a mission to help every child in our community feel safe, connected and confident. Twice a month in this space, we’ll be sharing ideas from local professionals, parents and friends about how you can do that for the kids in your life. In the meantime, find us at www.everydaystrong.org, or on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter.

Written by Michaelann Gardner, EveryDay Strong Director.

Originally published at https://www.heraldextra.com on July 11, 2020.