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Inside: These four books are perfect to help you prepare your child for kindergarten! By approaching topics as safety, good choices, and separation anxiety, these children’s books are great for teaching kids important things they need to know before they start school!
What I love most about children’s books is the magic effect they have on children. They not only develop their brains, but they also help kids open up about their worries, help calm their fears, teach them powerful lessons, and can make any topic easier to approach with the little ones.
When my son first started preschool, one of the things that helped him get ready for this milestone was reading some lovely children’s books about preschool. So now, as he is preparing for his first day of school, I wanted to use the power of books to talk to him about the topics that are important to address before starting kindergarten.
So I started looking for the best books to read about safety, good choices, and separation anxiety. At my son’s age, I think it’s essential to teach him how to stay safe, how to make the right choices when we are not around, and how to overcome any anxiety that might overwhelm him at the start of school.
⭐ Luckily, I discovered 3 amazing books that are exactly what I needed to approach these topics with him! And today, I want to share them with you because I’m sure that your kids would benefit from reading them as well!
How to prepare your child for kindergarten: Talking about separation anxiety
The start of school is a big change for every child, and it can bring many worries and concerns for the little ones. One of the challenges that many children face on their first day of school is separation anxiety. The idea of entering into a new classroom on their own and interacting with teachers and kids they don’t know can be scary!
⭐ One of the best books for addressing this fear with kids who start school is “The Kissing Hand” by Audrey Penn. We discovered this book two years ago, and it was perfect for helping our son adapt to two new preschools.
The book tells the story of a raccoon who is nervous about going to school because he knows that he will miss his mom. To make the separation easier, the raccoon mom offers him a kiss on his hand to accompany him while he is at school.
The book includes a set of heart stickers for parents to use with their kids, and little ones love them! Sticking the heart on your child’s hand (or clothes) is a wonderful goodbye ritual for the first days of school, and will make separation easier to handle.
How to prepare your child for kindergarten: Talking about body safety and respect
The start of school comes with more independence and responsibility for the kids, but also with new challenges they need to face. This is why it’s very important to talk with them about safety before they start school!
Besides the basic safety rules about interactions with strangers or traffic dangers, addressing body safety and respectful interactions is essential at this age when kids start interacting with more kids and adults without parent’s supervision.
I was surprised to see that there are not so many books that address this topic, at least not in a way that felt right for me. So I was very glad when I finally found not only one but two books that were exactly what I needed.
⭐ The first book is called “I Said No! A Kid-to-kid Guide to Keeping Private Parts Private“, and it’s focused only on body safety. The book is written from the perspective of a 5-year-old boy who shares helpful tips about body safety with other kids. The fact that my son is the same age as the main character of the book makes the story even more relatable and interesting for him.
The idea of the book appeared after the author’s son went through a frightening experience at this age, and reading about their story is eye-opening for every parent with young kids.
I like the simple and direct style of the book because it offers many opportunities to start conversations about body safety and the rules that every child needs to know.
⭐ If you prefer a book that is less focused on body safety and covers more topics, here is a great book to read to your kids: “Let’s Talk About Body Boundaries, Consent and Respect: Teach children about body ownership, respect, feelings, choices and recognizing bullying behaviors“.
The book presents different scenarios and teaches kids about the importance of personal boundaries (both theirs and others), the respect for other people’s choices, and the right to have their choices respected as well.
I like that the book addresses all these topics in a way that is appropriate for young kids. Also, it offers plenty of opportunities to start more in-depth conversations about these topics and encourage kids to ask questions and tell their opinions.
How to prepare your child for kindergarten: Talking about good choices
The start of school faces kids with many new situations they need to handle on their own, so teaching them to make good choices is very important!
⭐ The perfect book to approach this topic with your child is What Should Danny Do? School Day by Garnit and Adir Levy. The book is part of the “Power to choose” series, and is designed as an interactive book with 8 possible ends.
The book talks about different situations Danny (the main character) faces at school. After the situation is presented, the reader has the power to choose between two possible reactions. Depending on the choices, the reader makes the story continues in a different way and comes to one of the 8 possible endings.
My son loved the book from the start and asked us to read it over and over again!
The fact that the kids have the chance to choose what Danny should do in a particular situation helps them understand better the consequences of their choices. The book is great for building social skills and teaching kids how to be kind to others, stand up for their friends, and keep trying even when things get hard.
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Here are the links to all the books I mentioned here in case you want to have them at hand:
1 – What Should Danny Do? School Day
2 – “I Said No! A Kid-to-kid Guide to Keeping Private Parts Private“
3 – “Let’s Talk About Body Boundaries, Consent and Respect“
4 – The Kissing Hand.
I hope that this post inspired you to add these great books to your child’s reading list!
They are perfect for addressing important topics before your child starts school, and helping them get ready for all the new experiences and challenges they will face!
More tips for moms
⭐ How to help kids deal with separation anxiety
⭐ This is what is missing on the kindergarten readiness checklist
>> Want to remember this? Save these ideas to your favorite Pinterest board!
preview photo from depositphotos.com
