Dealing With Big Emotions: Helpful Books for Grade 3s & 4s
September 30 2022
People often forget that being a kid is hard. And one of the hardest things about being a kid is probably feeling big feelings and not knowing how to handle or express them. If recognizing and controlling your emotions can be tricky enough as a grownup imagine how much harder it must be when you're little!
So we've gathered two books from our collection (and two books that are too good to not mention) that our young patrons in Grade 3 to 4 (and perhaps Grade 5) may find useful for picking up some strategies and skills regarding emotional literacy.
In Our Collection:
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The Worry (Less) Book: Feel Strong, Find Calm, and Tame Your Anxiety! By Rachel Brian A comic-style book that offers a simple explanation about worry and anxiety. The accessible text defines these feelings and then provides a few strategies for overcoming harmful anxiety. Recommended by the School Library Journal. |
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My Mixed Emotions by DK Divided into happiness, fear, anger, and sadness, this book of feelings explores the four main emotions, the reasons why we feel them, and the science behind each one. (Pretty much anything by DK is guaranteed to be fantastic). |
Too Good to Not Mention
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Happy From Head to Toe by Fearne Cotton A book that helps teach kids about how our mental and physical well-being are strongly connected (e.g. anxiety can cause tummy aches, lack of sleep can cause headaches and affects our mood, etc). The book features kid-accessible interviews with doctors, nutritionists and fitness experts, among others, and provides tips and strategies for how kids can take control of their own feelings and mental health. Read an interview with the author regarding her book here. |
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Be Your Own Superhero: Unlock Your Powers. Unleash Your Awesome. by Dr. Laura Meek The author, a child psychiatrist, provides practical tips to help kids learn to control their superpowers (feelings). From developing their telepathic powers (empathy and listening skills), to controlling fire (anger) and water (anxiety), the book takes children through a series of activities designed to help them feel in control of their lives and emotions. |
How to access the books that aren't in our collection:
Have you ever heard of the ME Card? It's a (free!) library card that gives you access to any* of the materials in over 300 public libraries across Alberta. All you have to do to sign up is to ask your friendly local librarian to sign you up the next time you're at Bon Accord Public Library or to go to this website and sign up for it yourself. You can then search for items and put holds on them just like you would with us and they'll send us what you asked for.
* Hardcopy materials only. Alas, virtual library resources aren't shareable because publishers won't let us do it.
By Alice Flecha (Volunteer Blogger)
