Week 1: Welcoming
- Have You Filled a Bucket Today? by Carol McCloud, illustrated by David Messing. This books helps set a positive tone for your classroom by giving children a visual way to think about kindness toward others.
- We All Sing with the Same Voice by J. Philip Miller Miller and Sheppard M. Greene, illustrated by Paul Meisel. The words to the welcoming song for the popular children’s television series, Sesame Street, are matched with illustrations in this lively book for children. It show children that even though they may come from different places, they are still basically the same.
- Froggy Goes to School by Jonathan London, illustrated by Frank Remkiewicz. It’s Froggy’s first day of school, and he’s nervous! The illustrations and simple words show children how Froggy successfully makes it through his first day.
- Howard B. Wigglebottom Learns to Listen by Howard Binkow, illustrated by Susan F. Cornelison. Promote children’s school readiness and encourage positive listening skills with this fun story about a bunny named Howard B. Wigglebottom.
- My Mouth is a Volcano by Julia Cook, illustrated by Carrie Hartman. Told from the child’s perspective, this entertaining book helps children understand the importance of respecting others by listening and waiting for their turn to speak.
- The Listening Walk by Paul Showers, illustrated by Aliki. As a father and child take a walk together, they listen and focus their attention on all the sounds that are around them. Read this story to children before taking children on their own “listening walk.”
- Listen and Learn by Cheri J. Meiners. This colorful book helps children understand what it looks like and means to listen and focus their attention.
- The Little Engine That Could by Watty Piper. This is a classic story of a little engine that uses positive self-talk to help him get to the top of a high mountain.
- Katy and the Big Snow by Virginia Lee Burton. Katy is a tractor that uses self-talk and determination to save the day in a small town that gets hit by a blizzard.
- From Head to Toe by Eric Carle. This book encourages children to repeat the movements of various animals in the story. After each movement, the animal asks, “Can you do it?” Children respond, “I can do it!” This is a good book for children to practice following directions and for getting your children moving.
- Strega Nona by Tomie dePaola. This engaging story based on an Italian Folktale describes what happens when Big Anthony, the main character, doesn’t follow one the directions.
- Simple Signs by Cindy Wheeler. This book gives easy directions and illustrations for your children to follow for how to sign simple words in American Sign Language.
- My Truck is Stuck by Kevin Lewis and Daniel Kirk. This fun, rhyming story tells how two dogs must continue to ask for help getting their truck unstuck.
- I Need a Little Help by Kathy Schultz. This repetitive, rhyming story shows how a young boy asks his mother for help throughout the day.
Week 7: Identifying Feelings
- Glad Monster Sad Monster by Ed Emberley and Anne Miranda. Fun, lovable monsters describe what makes them feel happy, sad, loving, worried, silly, and angry. Included are fold-out “feelings” masks for children to try out.
- Lots of Feelings by Shelley Rotner. This collection of close-up photographs of children shows how their faces express a variety of different feelings.
- The Way I Feel by Janan Cain. Simple rhymes that describe a range of feelings are matched with brightly colored illustrations.
- Sometimes I’m Scared by Jane Annunziata and Marc Nemiroff, illustrated by Bryan Langdo. This book addresses several common childhood fears. It then gives simple advice to children on how they can deal with those fears.
- Alexander and the Terrible, Horrible, No Good, Very Bad Day by Judith Viorst, illustrated by Ray Cruz. Alexander is having a bad day. Nothing seems to be going his way. Use this book to help children learn to focus on what is happening as a way to identify how someone feels.
- When Sophie Gets Angry—Really, Really Angry by Mollly Bang. This story describes in words and pictures how many children feel when they are really angry. (Caldecott Honor Book)
- When I Feel Angry by Cornelia Maude Spelman, illustrated by Nancy Cote. Bunny, the main character of this story, describes when she feels angry and what she does not to act in angry ways.
- Who Is the Beast? by Keith Baker. A young tiger does not understand why all the jungle animals flee the “beast” as he passes by. Could he be the beast? The tiger begins comparing himself to all the other animals in the jungle, and discovers that he is not so different after all.
- Whoever You Are by Mem Fox. This book explores what is different and the same about people all over the world.
- Note: The following books teach children how to say they are sorry. The Second Step early learning program materials avoid doing so, so that children are not taught to make empty apologies. If you wish, please change the text of these books as you read them to reflect your opinion in this matter.
- Benjamin Bear Says Sorry by Claire Freedman. Benjamin is full of energy—sometimes too much energy! In his excitement, Benjamin accidentally upsets his friends then learns how to say sorry.
- I’m Sorry (Blue’s Clues) by Justin Chanda, illustrated by David B. Levy. Green Puppy, from the popular educational television series Blue’s Clues, learns to say “I’m sorry” to his friend, Magenta, when he accidentally breaks her favorite crayon.
- When I Care About Others by Cornelia Maude Spelman. Colorful illustrations help tell the story of young bear cub that needs to be cared for, but later learns to care for others too.
- Somewhere Today: A Book of Peace by Shelley Moore Thomas, illustrated by Eric Futran. This book is full of color photographs of people from all over the world caring, helping, and being kind to one another.
Unit 3 Book List: Emotion Management
Week 13: We Feel Feelings in Our Bodies
- Is a Worry Worrying You? by Ferida Wolff and Harriet May Savitz, illustrated by Marie LeTourneau. This humorous book addresses many common and not-so-common childhood worries. It then provides practical solutions for dealing with these worries.
- Something Might Happen by Helen Lester, illustrated by Lynn Munsinger. Twitchly Fidget is afraid of almost everything. He is so afraid that he won’t go anywhere or do anything because something might happen. But after talking with his Aunt Bridget about his fears, he finds that he is not afraid anymore.
- The Worrywarts by Pamela Duncan Edwards, illustrated by Henry Cole. Wombat, Woodchuck, and Weasel are worrywarts. They worry about everything—with a capital W! Alliteration and silly illustrations are used to help children learn about managing worried feelings, as well as lots of new w-words!
- I’m Frustrated by Elizabeth Crary. The interactive format of this book allows the reader to choose one of several suggestions for dealing with frustration along with a page number. You then turn to that page to see the result of your choice, along with more choices.
- Emily’s Tiger by Miriam Latimer, illustrated by Leo Landry. Emily has a “tiger” living inside of her. Whenever she is frustrated or angry her tiger comes out and causes trouble. With her Granny’s help, Emily learns to control her frustration and anger so that her “tiger” won’t cause trouble anymore.
- Beautiful Oops by Barney Saltzberg. Frustration is a common feeling for young children while working on their fine motor skills. Instead of focusing on the frustration of making mistakes, this book has children celebrate their mistakes. It shows how mistakes are really opportunities to create something beautiful.
- On Monday When It Rained by Cherryl Kachenmeister, photographs by Tom Berthiaume. A young boy describes, through text and photographs of his facial expressions, the different emotions he feels each day. Before revealing the feeling to children, see if they can name the feeling using the physical clues in the photograph and the description of what is happening.
- When I Am/Cuando Estoy by Gladys Rosa-Mendoza, illustrated by Dana Regan. This book describes and names feelings that children have in everyday situations with pictures and words in both English and Spanish. It then suggests ways to deal with these feelings.
- When I Feel Sad by Cornelia Maude Spelman, illustrated by Kathy Parkinson. The main character of this story, a young guinea pig, goes through several situations that make her feel sad. Talking to an adult helps her understand that it is okay to feel sad and that she will be happy again.
- Sometimes You Get What You Want by Lisa Brown and Meredith Gary. A young brother and sister experience the joy of getting what they want and the disappointment of not getting what they want during a typical day. There are many places to discuss with children the disappointment you feel when you don’t get what you want and ways you can mange that disappointment.
- Smile! by Leigh Hodgkinson. Sunny is usually a happy girl, but not today. She is disappointed because her mom says she can’t have more cookies before dinner. Sunny has lost her smile. She searches for it everywhere. She finally finds it when she finds a way to overcome her disappointment.
- Fancy Nancy: Bonjour Butterfly by Jane O’Connor, illustrated by Robin Preiss Glasser. Fancy Nancy can’t go to her friend’s “butterfly” birthday party because she has to go grandparents’ anniversary party instead. She is more than disappointed. She’s furious! Nancy must deal with her disappointment so she can have a good time at her grandparents’ party.
- Angry Octopus: A Relaxation Story by Lory Lite, illustrated by Max Stasuyk. Octopus is ready to explode with anger because lobsters have wrecked is seashell garden. He soon meets a sea child who helps him calm down by showing him how to make his body relax, take deep breathes, and think happy thoughts.
- Mouse Was Mad by Linda Urban, illustrated by Henry Cole. Mouse is “hopping” mad. Then he finds out he is hopping all wrong. So he tries stomping, screaming, and other ways of being mad, but he just can’t do any of them right. Finally, he tries being quiet and still and discovers this way feels best of all.
- Sometimes I’m Bombaloo by Rachel Vail, illustrated by Yumi Heo. Katie turns into a Bombaloo when she is mad. A Bombaloo hits, screams, and does mean things. She gets control of her anger by spending some time alone to calm down. The Bombaloo is gone and she feels like Katie again!
- Wait Till the Moon Is Full by Margaret Wise Brown, illustrated by Garth Williams. A little raccoon learns patience as he waits until the moon is full so he can go outside and explore the night.
- Wait, Hoho, Wait! by Alison Inches. Hoho is having a hard time waiting to ride in a toy car. His friend Kai-Lan shows him that if you do something that you like while you are waiting, it is much easier to be patient.
- Let’s Talk About Being Patient by Joe Berry, illustrated by Maggie Smith. This book describes common situations in which children must wait. It explores how children feel when they have to wait, and what they can do to make waiting easier.
Unit 4 Book List: Friendship Skills and Problem Solving
Week 19: Fair Ways to Play
- Share and Take Turns by Cheri J. Meiners. In this colorful book, a young girl learns how share and take turns in a variety of situations.
- Emily’s Sharing and Caring Book by Cindy Post Senning and Peggy Post, illustrated by Leo Landry. Two young friends demonstrate different ways of sharing, taking turns, and being nice and polite to others.
- Mine! Mine! Mine! by Shelly Becker, illustrated by Hideko Takahashi. Claire comes over to Gail’s house to play. But if playing with Claire involves sharing, Gail doesn’t want to do it! Claire is not having fun, and neither is Gail. Gail’s mother then models how sharing and kindness is more fun than getting your own way.
- My Friend and I by Lisa Jahn-Clough. A young girl tells the story of how she and her new friend argue over sharing a toy and ultimately break it. They are angry and don’t want to play with each other anymore. But finally they decide that playing together fairly is much more fun than playing alone.
- Why Should I Share? by Claire Llewellyn, illustrated by Mike Gordon. Tim doesn’t like to share—especially with his little brother! But as he watches his twin neighbors next door playing together, he sees how sharing can make things much more fun.
- May I Bring a Friend? by Beatrice Schenk de Regniers, illustrated by Beni Montresor. A young boy receives an invitation each week from the King and Queen to join them for tea. He is so happy to be invited that he wants to share his happiness with others and always asks if he can bring a friend. The King and Queen always say yes, providing an excellent example of how to be inclusive.
- Would You Invite A Skunk to your Wedding? by Ginger Pate. Louie Phewie is skunk that has a problem controlling his spray when he gets nervous. His good friends are getting married and would like to invite Louie to be the ring bearer in their wedding. But can they risk the possible humiliation of Louie losing control of his spray? Children have fun finding out what true friendship really means!
- Will You Play With Us? by Margaret Yatsevitch Phinney, illustrated by Lynne Woodcock Cravath. This lyrical story is about inviting lots of others to play. See how big the fun gets as more and more boys are invited in!
- A Splendid Friend Indeed by Suzanne Bloom. Goose wants to be Bear’s friend. He just doesn’t know how to do it. After several failed attempts at joining Bear in his activities, Goose finally finds the right approach and they become splendid friends indeed!
- Join In and Play by Cheri J Meiners. A young girl shows how she joins others at play by talking and listening with respect, and by playing fairly.
- I Want to Play by Elizabeth Crary, illustrated by Marina Megale. Danny wants to join the other kids in their play. In this interactive story, the reader helps Danny decide what to do.
- I Have a Little Problem, Said the Bear by Heinz Janisch and Silke Leffler. Bear has a problem and everyone he meets has solutions! However, nobody listens to Bear long enough to hear him say what is really the problem. This story stresses the importance of clearly saying the problem before coming up with solutions.
- Talk and Work It Out by Cheri J Meiners. The children in this book demonstrate calming down when you have strong feelings before solving problems. They then use words to say the problem, before they think of solutions.
- I Want It by Elizabeth Crary, illustrated by Marina Megale. Megan and Amy have a problem: they want to play with the same truck. In this interactive story, the reader helps Megan and Amy think of solutions and explore the consequences of those solutions.
- Ladybug Girl and Bumblebee Boy by Jacky Davis and David Soman. Lulu and Jack want to play together, but they cannot agree on what to do. Children will enjoy helping Lulu and Jack, and their other friends that join them, think of safe things that everyone will have fun playing.
- Ready to Play!: A Tale of Toys and Friends, and Barely Any Bickering by Stacey R. Kaye, illustrated by Elizabeth O. Dulemba. Emma and Ryan are having typical preschool-aged problems as they are learning how to play together. The adult in this book helps the children use appropriate words to say how they are feeling, say the problem, think of safe solutions, and play fairly.
- What About Bear? by Suzanne Bloom. Goose and Bear return with their new friend, Little Fox, in this sequel to A Splendid Friend Indeed. But they have a problem. Little Fox is not nice to Bear and is always trying to leave him out. Goose assertively tells Little Fox that if he wants to play, he has to learn to play with Bear too.
- Little Lost Owl by Chris Haughton. Little Owl has a problem. He fell from his nest, and now he can’t find his mom! The story follows Little Owl as he assertively asks various forest creatures for help finding his mom.
- Welcome to Kindergarten by Anne Rockwell. Tim is nervous about his first day of kindergarten. It seems so big and scary! Tim and his mother then visit his new classroom and meet his new teacher, where they find out about all the new things and ways that kindergarteners learn. Tim decides that kindergarten is not so big and scary after all. He can’t wait to start school!
- Kindergarten Rocks! by Katie Davis. Dexter is about to start kindergarten. He’s not scared, but his stuffed dog Rufus is very worried. Rufus is worried about riding the bus, getting lunch, making friends, that his teacher will be mean, and many other things. Dexter’s older sister, Jessie, suggests that Dexter give Rufus a hug when he feels worried. She then tells him, “But don’t worry, kindergarten rocks!” Soon Dexter and Rufus find out that kindergarten really does “rock!”
- Let’s Get Ready For Kindergarten! by Stacey Kannenberg. This practical, interactive book is designed to engage children while focusing on the basic skills required for kindergarten. It not only covers the academic expectations such as knowing the alphabet, counting, shapes, and colors, but it also covers the social expectations such as knowing how to share, take turns, listen, and wait patiently.
- I’m Your Bus by Marilyn Singer, illustrated by Evan Polenghi. This friendly rhyming story helps ease young children’s fears about riding a school bus for the first time. Children learn all about the day of school bus along with some important safety rules.
- Staying Safe On the School Bus by Joanne Mattern. Clear, color photos and simple text show children what to expect when riding a school bus for the first time, and teach them how to ride the school bus safely.
- Hello School Bus! by Marjorie Blain Parker, illustrated by Bob Kolar. This simple, rhyming text describes the experience of a riding a school bus. The book is for beginning-readers, but also appropriate to read aloud to children.
- Meet the Barkers: Morgan & Moffat Go to School by Tomie dePaola. Moffie and Morgie are twins. They are just starting kindergarten. Moffie is determined to be the best in the class, while Moffie is quietly making friends. Moffie and Morgie soon learn from each other the importance of doing well in school as well as making and keeping friends.
- Sumi’s First Day of School Ever by Soyung Pak, illustrated by Joung Un Kim. Sumi is a young Korean child that doesn’t speak English. She is nervous about her first day of school in America. Sumi feels lonely and afraid. But soon a kind teacher and friendly classmate reach out to Sumi, giving her a sense of belonging. This book is good not only for easing the fears of English-language learners starting school in a new country, but also for conveying the importance of being inclusive, kind, and making new friends to all children.
- Will I Have a Friend? by Miriam Cohen, illustrated by Ronald Himler. This recently updated (2009) classic tale addresses many children’s fears about making new friends in kindergarten. The boy in this story enters his new school anxious about whether or not he will have a friend. He spends the day listening, watching, waiting, and then finally finds a friend by sharing.