Resources for Kids/Teens
Books for kids:
Gentle Willow by Joyce C Mills
Gentle Willow: A Story for Children about Dying by Joyce C. Mills is a children's book that uses the story of a dying tree and its forest friends to help children cope with death, addressing feelings like sadness, anger, and disbelief, and offering a way to understand loss and say goodbye.
Glad Monster, Sad Monster by Ed Emberley and Anne Miranda
Glad Monster, Sad Monster is a children's book by Ed Emberley and Anne Miranda that uses die-cut pages and colorful illustrations to help kids identify and understand different emotions like glad, sad, silly, and mad. The interactive format features monsters acting out feelings, with gatefold pages revealing masks that children can use to "try on" and explore emotions, making it a tool for emotional intelligence and discussion
Today I Feel Silly by Jamie Lee Curtis
Today I Feel Silly: And Other Moods That Make My Day is a children's book by Jamie Lee Curtis, illustrated by Laura Cornell, that helps kids understand and have fun with their changing emotions like silly, cranky, excited, or sad. Published in 1998, the book uses playful rhymes and whimsical illustrations to make feelings relatable, and it includes a "mood wheel" for children to identify their own feelings
My Body Sends A Signal by Natalia Maguire
This book is an excellent educational source that has is all. The book includes a cute story that kids can relate to, beautiful illustrations that capture children's attention, calming-down activities for kids, instructions to adults on the follow-up activities, emotions cards, feelings cards, coloring pages and related short stories to teach kids empathy.
A Terrible Thing Happened by Margaret M Holmes
A Terrible Thing Happened is a children's book by Margaret M. Holmes that helps young readers process trauma and violence. The story follows Sherman, a raccoon who witnesses a traumatic event and experiences anxiety, anger, and other difficult emotions. With the help of a counselor, Sherman learns to talk about his feelings, which helps him begin to heal. The book is designed for children ages 4-8 and is a valuable resource for parents, caregivers, and educators
Once I Was Very Very Scared by Chandra Ghosh Ippen
Once I Was Very Very Scared by Chandra Ghosh Ippen is a children's book that helps kids and adults talk about trauma and stress through the story of animals sharing their scary experiences and learning coping mechanisms with the help of a wise porcupine. It normalizes different reactions to fear (like hiding, barking, or clinging) and teaches that it's okay to feel upset, offering ways to find comfort and safety, such as talking to a trusted adult or using deep breaths.
When My Parents Forgot How To Be Friends by Jennifer Moore-Mallinos
When My Parents Forgot How to Be Friends is a trusted resource for families, teachers, and counselors guiding children ages 4–7 through divorce, separation, or major changes at home. With clear, compassionate language and expressive illustrations, it helps children put their feelings into words, eases guilt and confusion, and opens the door for healing conversations.
When Mom and Dad Separate by Marge Heegaard
When Mom and Dad Separate: Children Can Learn to Cope with Grief from Divorce by Marge Eaton Heegaard is a workbook designed to help children process the difficult emotions of their parents' separation through creative activities, primarily drawing. It explains basic concepts of marriage and divorce and provides a structured, art-based approach for children to express and sort through feelings of grief, loss, and change, making it a resource for parents, educators, and counselors
Dinosaurs Divorce by Laurie and Marc Brown
Dinosaurs Divorce: A Guide for Changing Families by Laurie Krasny Brown and Marc Brown is a classic, age-appropriate children's book that uses dinosaur characters to help kids understand and cope with their parents' divorce. It covers common topics like why parents divorce, having two homes, holidays, meeting new people, and adjusting to stepparents, using simple text and illustrations to address children's feelings and questions in a sensitive way
Maybe Days by Jennifer Wilgocki and Marcia Kahn Wright
A Book for Children in Foster Care by Jennifer Wilgocki and Marcia Kahn Wright is a straightforward, reassuring book that helps children understand the uncertainties of foster care, explains the roles of adults in the system (like social workers, judges, and foster parents), and emphasizes that a child's main job is simply to be a kid. It addresses common questions and feelings, with an afterword for adults to help guide conversations and support children through the "maybe days"
Giraffes Can't Dance by Giles Andrae and Guy Parker-Rees
Giraffes Can't Dance, by Giles Andreae and illustrated by Guy Parker-Rees, is a beloved children's book about Gerald the giraffe, who is clumsy and feels he can't dance, but learns to find his own rhythm with encouragement from a wise cricket, teaching a lesson about self-acceptance and being true to oneself. The book is known for its rhyming text, vibrant illustrations, and its message that everyone can find their own unique way to shine, even if they're different from others
Books for teens:
Don't Let Emotions Run Your Life for Teens by Sheri Van Dijk
Don't Let Your Emotions Run Your Life for Teens by Sheri Van Dijk is a Dialectical Behavior Therapy (DBT) workbook that teaches teens skills to manage intense emotions, control anger, and improve relationships through practical exercises. It uses DBT principles to help with mood swings, emotional outbursts, and getting along with others, offering strategies for self-awareness, communication, and mindfulness.
The PTSD Workbook for Teens by Libbi Palmer
The PTSD Workbook for Teens: Simple, Effective Skills for Healing Trauma by Libbi Palmer is a user-friendly, Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT)-based workbook designed to help adolescents cope with trauma. It provides practical tools, worksheets, and activities to help teens manage symptoms like flashbacks and sleep issues, regain a sense of safety and control, and build self-esteem after traumatic experiences.
Mindfulness for Teen Anxiety by Christopher Willard
A workbook that provides teens with practical, mindfulness-based techniques to manage anxiety in various situations like school, social events, and home life. The book, now in its second edition, includes updated activities for modern challenges like social media and offers exercises for specific stressors such as public speaking, test-taking, and social anxiety, using breathing and visualization to help teens stay calm and in control
The Stress Reduction Workbook for Teens by Gina Biegel
The Stress Reduction Workbook for Teens by Gina M. Biegel is a mindfulness-based self-help book that teaches adolescents practical skills to manage stress, anxiety, and difficult emotions through simple, accessible exercises. It helps teens build resilience and cope with pressures from school, friends, and family by focusing on present-moment awareness, moving from feeling powerless to empowered.
The Anxiety Workbook for Teens by Lisa Schab
The Anxiety Workbook for Teens by Lisa M. Schab is a popular, evidence-based guide for adolescents to manage anxiety using techniques from Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT) and other methods like breathwork, mindfulness, and problem-solving. The book provides worksheets, exercises, and relatable stories to help teens understand and control anxiety related to school, social media, and other pressures, empowering them to build coping skills for life
Mindfulness for Teen Depression by Mitch Abblett and Christopher Willard
Mindfulness helps teens with depression by anchoring them in the present, reducing rumination, and improving emotional regulation through practices like deep breathing (box breathing), gratitude journaling, mindful walking, and pause-before-reacting techniques, acting as a grounding anchor against overwhelming negative thoughts and building self-awareness for a more balanced perspective
Stopping The Pain by Lawrence Shapiro
The exercises in Stopping the Pain will help you explore why you self-injure and give you lots of ideas how you can stop. The book will help you learn new skills for dealing with issues in your life, reduce your stress, and reach out to others when you need to. Work through the book, or just check out the sections that speak to you the most. This is your own personal and private road map to regaining control of your life.