Are you looking for books that can help your little learners explore social and emotional development? Look no further! In this blog post, I have compiled a list of 11 must-read social emotional preschool books that are perfect for encouraging preschoolers to engage in beautiful discussions around different social-emotional skills.
Whether you are a parent, teacher, or caregiver, these books are a valuable tool for starting conversations with children about their emotions and building important social skills. By incorporating these books into your reading routine, you can help them navigate the complex world of emotions and develop positive relationships with others.
So, let’s dive into these 11 social emotional preschool books that will spark curiosity and promote social and emotional development in your young learners!
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The Importance of social-emotional development in Preschoolers
If you are reading this blog post, you know that social-emotional development is a crucial aspect of early childhood education. In addition, you know that it significantly impacts a child’s overall growth and learning.
During the preschool years, our preschoolers are just beginning to navigate their emotions and learn how to interact with others in a positive manner. This stage is marked by the development of essential skills such as empathy, friendship skills, self-regulation, and social awareness, which are vital for building positive relationships.
Preschoolers are often in the process of discovering their identities and forming their self-concepts. Social-emotional development helps them to understand who they are in relation to others, fostering a sense of belonging and community. This understanding not only helps them navigate friendships but also encourages them to cooperate, share, and engage in group activities. By nurturing these skills early on, we can help our students develop a strong emotional foundation that will serve them throughout their lives.
Social-Emotional Learning is, “The process through which we learn to recognize and manage emotions, care about others, make good decisions, behave ethically and responsibly, develop positive relationships, and avoid negative behaviors.”
Benefits of using books to promote social-emotional development
When it comes to social-emotional learning for preschool, I turn to picture books to help get us talking. Books serve as powerful tools for enhancing social-emotional development in preschoolers.
They offer relatable characters and scenarios that allow children to explore complex emotions and social situations in a safe and engaging way. Through stories, children can see their own experiences reflected and gain insights into the feelings and behaviors of others.
Reading together also provides an opportunity for open dialogue. Through discussion about the characters’ feelings and choices, we can support our students in articulating their own emotions and developing problem-solving skills. By using literature to address social-emotional themes, we can help children navigate their feelings and understand the feelings of others.
How to choose the right social emotional preschool books
Selecting the appropriate social-emotional preschool books involves considering several factors to ensure that the stories resonate with young children.
1. It is essential to look for books with relatable characters and situations that reflect the experiences of preschoolers. Children are more likely to engage with stories that mirror their own lives and emotions. Check out these 50 Social Emotional Learning Picture Books if you get stuck.
2. Another important consideration is the age-appropriateness of the content. Preschoolers benefit from stories that present social-emotional themes in a way that is accessible and understandable for their developmental level. Look for books that use simple language, engaging illustrations, and clear narratives to convey emotional concepts.
3. Consider the overall message and themes of the book. Choose stories that promote positive values such as kindness, empathy, cooperation, and resilience. Books that present characters overcoming challenges or learning to express their emotions can provide valuable lessons for young readers.
Here are 11 Favourite Social emotional Preschool Books to Support Social- Emotional Learning:
1. The Huge Bag of Worries by Virginia Ironside & Frank Rodgers:
This funny reassuring story is for those children who worry. It helps put worrying into perspective for Jenny, the main character.
For our preschoolers:It gives us the opportunity to discuss different types of worries. It helps us understand what to do with them.
2. Ordinary Mary’s Positively Extraordinary Day by Emily Pearson and Fumi Kosaka:
Can one child change the world? Can you choose a good day? Ordinary Mary starts off a chain reaction by being kind to a girl on the bus. That action spreads courage, kindness and happiness throughout the day to others.
For our preschoolers: This story encourages discussions around kindness, good deeds and caring for others. How one positive act can spread and create a ripple of positivity in the world.
3. Pass it On by Sophy Henn
A gorgeous book sharing the message that when we see, experience or feel positivity, we must pass it on!
For our preschoolers: This simple message will get children thinking about how to find positivity in their day. It will provide examples of how to pass that positivity on.
4. Ordinary Mary’s Extraordinary Deed by Emily Pearson:
Ordinary Mary is such an inspiring character. With one kind deed, this story takes us on a journey where kindness multiplies. The illustrations and story perfectly show us the impact one person can make to change the world.
For our preschoolers: This story will provide us with an opportunity to think about what act of kindness we could do. It explains how that can change the world. A social-emotional learning activity would be to challenge your preschoolers to think about one act of kindness they may perform.
5. I’m a Girl! By Yasmin Ismail:
This loud energetic celebration of being proud of who we are is such a brilliant theme for our preschoolers! It does not have to be pink for girls and blue for boys! Our girl in the story is who she is – loud, strong, fast, smart, strong and always getting mistaken for a boy. In the end, she stands tall and proud of who she is! Gotta love her!
For our preschoolers: This book explores gender stereotypes. Discuss what it means to be a girl/boy. Is pink for girls and blue for boys? A great social-emotional learning activity to involve sorting toys. Invite the children to work in a small group to sort all different types of toys. Which ones are for boys? Which ones for girls? This will be a catalyst for some great discussion!
Here are a few more social emotional learning picture books
6. Marisol McDonald Doesn’t Match by Monica Brown and Sara Palacios:
I LOVE this picture book! Marisol McDonald is from a multicultural home and just doesn’t match! People don’t seem to think things about her match. But that’s okay with her. She is comfortable in her own skin and proud to be who she is.
For our preschoolers: Our classrooms are a melting pot of children from mixed cultures and country of origins. Let this picture book inspire us to share our heritage, cultures and backgrounds!
7. Grumpy Monkey by Suzanna Lang & Max Lang:
This cute picture book is all about feeling grumpy for no good reason. No one understands why he’s feeling grumpy on such a beautiful day. Everyone gives Monkey ideas on how to feel better, however, he just wants to feel what he feels!
For our preschoolers: This picture book will allow us to discuss how sometimes we feel a certain way but we don’t know why. Sometimes we just need to feel those feelings.
8. Jabari Jumps by Gaia Cornwall:
This beautifully illustrated story is a simple one. This is a story of a little boy who says he’s ready to jump off the diving board, except he’s actually a little afraid. Jabari needs some gentle support. He needs encouragement from dad to find the courage in himself to jump.
For our preschoolers: This book is a realistic look at fear and bravery and how they often go hand in hand. This is perfect for our preschoolers who would be learning and perfecting new skills. By Jabari sharing his fear and bravery, it will allow our preschoolers to do the same.
9. The Book of Mistakes by Corinna Luyken:
What starts out as a mistake takes on inspiration and beauty. This picture book helps the reader see that mistakes can become something else. Something beautiful even.
For our preschoolers: We could have an activity where we take discarded drawings or paintings out of the recycling bin. Invite the children to use it as inspiration to create something different.
10. The Way I Feel by Janan Cain:
This book perfectly illustrates different types of emotions like disappointed, angry, frustrated, jealous and other feelings children may experience. It gives examples of what each emotion looks like and examples of what might happen to make you feel that way.
For our preschoolers: This book would complement your lessons on identifying emotions. Take photos of the children acting out each emotion. Create a classroom poster showing different types of emotions.
11. Be Kind by Pat Zietlow Miller & Jen Hill:
This picture book has a different perspective when it comes to kindness, it explores the idea that it can be difficult to be kind sometimes. It shares with us the idea that you might want to help someone who is sad or in need, but sometimes, you just can’t figure out what it is they need.
For our preschoolers: We can use this picture book to discuss what we can do to be kind when things are a bit tricky or difficult.
Including Social Emotional Preschool Books
“I do believe something magical can happen when you read a book”
J.K Rowling
I am a lover of picture books! My home library is bursting at the seams with the most amazing picture books. I love the colourful covers, the quirky characters and the messages they impart to the reader! Picture books naturally inspire social-emotional learning for preschoolers. They can open up deep conversations with children. Conversations that you would not know where to even start. I hope you find my favourite social emotional preschool books to support your student’s social-emotional learning helpful.
