Growing
our
Social-Emotional
Awareness
By José Chacón
WE ARE CONSTANTLY LEARNING ABOUT OUR EMOTIONS AND OF OTHERS, SO CHECK OUT THIS MONTH’S BOOK CLUB TO FIND OUT OUR RECOMMENDATIONS ON GREAT READS FOR ALL AGE GROUPS.
In our issue on empathy for others, Dr. Ruth Speidel highlighted how children can benefit from reading, even more beneficial when reading is guided by parents and caregivers. Her words took me on a trip down memory lane. When I started learning how to read, my parents used to select small articles from our hometown newspaper, so I could read them aloud. My mother, being an elementary school teacher, thought this was a cool exercise to improve vocabulary and comprehension. After I finished reading, she would ask me two questions: “What did you learn from the reading?” and “What was the central idea of the reading?”
Although the love for books can start at any age, books have different audiences. With that in mind, we have these fantastic reads for young children, teens, and adults.
We hope these books help foster a conversation that will spark reflection and contribute to enriching your knowledge on social-emotional development. Remember to check our previous issues for more great book recommendations.
Happy reading!
My Heart Fills with Happiness
Written by Monique Gray Smith
Illustrated by Julie Flett
My Heart Fills with Happiness is a book that teaches children and adults the joy of love and kindness by cherishing every moment we experience in life. As one reviewer in good reads put it, “this book is cozy and warm.”
How to Talk So Teens Will Listen and Listen So Teens Will Talk
By Adele Faber and Elaine Mazlish
Parenting is a long developmental journey. Sometimes each stage, according to your children’s age, will require different skills. For example, it is not the same to exercise persuasion on a 3-year-old child compared to a 13-year-old one, and this is what motivated Adele Faber and Elaine Mazlish to write How to Talk So Teens Will Listen and Listen So Teens Will Talk, a follow up to their popular parenting book How to Talk So Kids Will Listen. The authors provide a great insight into the teenage years by drawing from personal experience and advice from experts. As they both shared with The Guardian newspaper, "These are not techniques to manipulate behaviour," the authors stress, "they are skills to create a positive emotional environment."
Anxiety Relief for Teens: Essential CBT Skills & Mindfulness Practices to Overcome Anxiety & Stress
By Regine Galanti
Teenage years can be tough. It’s a time in our lives when we are discovering ourselves, building our self-identities and experiencing a whirlwind of emotions. Everything moves so fast and quickly that anxiety might kick in. Dr. Regina Galanti wrote Anxiety Relief for Teens: Essential CBT Skills & Mindfulness Practices to Overcome Anxiety & Stress, a book based on Cognitive Behaviour Therapy (CBT) to help teenagers change their thoughts and promote emotional regulation.
