School can be anxiety-inducing to kids, be it their first time or not. The following are four picture books that deal with common fears kids have about the start of a school year that you can use as jumping off points for talking about big feelings with your little one.
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Wemberly Worried by Kevin Henkes Wemberly worries about everything, but most of all she worries about going back to school. Will her new teacher be nice? Will she get along with her classmates? On the first day back, she meets a fellow anxious kiddo and realizes that school’s too much fun to waste time worrying about things. |
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The Pigeon HAS to Go to School! By Mo Willems Everyone’s favourite chaotic bird has to go to school and he’s not exactly happy about it. Through gentle humour (and perhaps a teensy tiny tantrum) the Pigeon comes to realize that maybe school’s not so scary as he first thought. |
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The Day You Begin by Jacqueline Woodson It’s not surprising (or uncommon) for Littles to fear that they won’t fit in at their new school or class. This book talks about how it’s okay and normal to have that fear, but if we’re very brave and give others a chance to meet us halfway, wonderful things can happen. |
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Planet Kindergarten by Sue Ganz-Schmitt Alright, brave explorers! Time to put on your space suit and visit the strange alien world of Planet Kindergarten!
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