Sheltering at Home

Tug, tug. These feel-good selections open your heart and let the sun shine in. You’ll be pulling your beloveds in tight and maybe even blinking away a tear or two. Feel the love. Ages 4 – 8.

Loneliness is such a big feeling, for all of us, but especially difficult for our little ones. Here are five great books we’ve found that address loneliness, some for older children and some for young ones. There are some real treasures in this collection, good to read any time. Ages 4 – 8.

Stories of people making a difference in the world are so important, and just as important to see how a small act from one person can have a big impact. From giving a village access to hospitals, to children having warm mittens in winter, we sometimes can’t see the eventual ripple effects when we choose to do our part. Ages 3 — 10+, a variety of age ranges included here.

What better way to support the idea of mindfulness and meditation as a daily practice than to have it included on our children’s bookshelf? These fun books bring relaxation and meditation exercises to young children in a practical and engaging way. Ages 4 — 8.

Just breathe. Expose your child to the concepts associated with mindfulness and meditation with this unique curation. Kids relate well to being in the moment and will soon be using the techniques here to reduce stress and center themselves amidst the busy-ness which is modern childhood. Best for Ages 8 – 10 but appropriate for younger children who are developmentally ready.

Missing someone can be overwhelming at times, whether it is because a loved one lives far away and we don’t see them often, because of our current environment and sheltering in place guidelines, or because there has been a death. These five books explore the feelings that can come up when we miss someone, and offer some creative ways of dealing with them together. Ages 4 – 8.

Sometimes we are afraid. Of the unknown. Of doing something that makes us nervous. These books are about facing those fears head on, and not looking back. We look to these for inspiration and a reminder of what it means to be participants, not bystanders, in this tight rope walk we call life. Ages 4 — 8.

Children are often more scared and confused when they experience things going on around them that they don’t have words for, or things that aren’t named by adults. These books about being sick can help children visualize what may be happening when they hear of someone who is sick, or help calm their fears if they are sick themselves. Hopefully these stories can also open up dialogue when that’s needed. Ages 4 — 10.

Books are such great tools to help us form connections with our children, especially important when things seem out of control and we’d like to give them more support. These five books have been chosen to acknowledge and help ease the uncomfortable feeling of uncertainty. Alone in the Forest  illustrates the feeling we have when we don’t know exactly what is going on, and we feel very unsettled. Make Way for Ducklings, a classic, takes on fresh meaning when looked at through the lens of uncertainty. Ages 4 — 8.

Rumination nation. Children have more reasons than ever in our modern times to worry — about standardized testing, their performance in academics and sports in comparison to their peers, the unstable nature of parents’ work during this time of crisis, and the future of their planet. With so much on their emotional plates, kids can easily become awash in anxiety. These picks may help them to unwind some of that anxiety and put it in its proper place. Ages 4 — 8.

So vacations have been postponed, and there’s not a lot of traveling for pleasure going on right now. It’s a good thing we know how to go anywhere in the world using our imaginations! Enjoy these five picks — as sweet little travel guides, as part of a lesson or just for fun. In this curation, we travel with our littles to England, Africa, Japan and Australia. At the Same Moment, Around the World, shows people doing things at the same time everywhere, and helps children understand the idea of time zones. Ages 4 — 8.

Sometimes when we have had a lot to carry or a lot on our minds, it is helpful to just get quiet and enjoy a story that sets a quiet mood. We include here Fox’s Garden, with its wordless beauty and gorgeous paper cutouts, and Over and Under the Pond, which allows us to listen in on a contemplative conversation between a mother and son as they watch fish underwater from their boat. Enjoy these book equivalents of a warm bubble bath. Ages 4 — 8.

Buckle up! We don’t need an airplane to explore new lands right now. We’ve found five  wonderful books that take us to Peru, France, Hawaii, Iran and India. All of these are fun stories to read on their own but also include more information in afterwords to help children learn about the place they’ve just “visited.” Ages 4 — 8.

These books show — through characters we can all relate to — what it looks like when our feelings bubble up, and it just puts us in a mood. It’s fun to watch as others deal with that prickly feeling instead of us. Ages 4 — 8.