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Resource Books for Young Children
This list features age-appropriate storybooks and guides that parents, caregivers, or educators can use with young children. The books are designed to help kids understand personal safety, body autonomy, and how to talk to trusted adults when something doesn’t feel right.
The book list in this category was compiled by Natalia Tukhareli MLIS, PhD, the Founder and Executive Director of the Read to Connect organization.
Bobby and Mandee’s Don’t Hide Abuse: Children’s Safety Book
Future Horizons, 2011. Kahn, Robert. In this moral-driven tale, Bobby explains to Mandee that some secrets should not be kept, especially those that threaten a friend’s safety. Bobby explains to Mandee the concept of “abuse” and then tells a very sad story of a boy who did not tell a trusted adult about his friend’s abuse and what happened as a result. Mandee replies with a story of her own, about a girlfriend at school. Together, Bobby and Mandee decide to go to Dad and ask for his advice on how to help Mandee’s friend. Click on the image to buy from Amazon.ca .
Bobby and Mandee’s Good Touch/Bad Touch: Children’s Safety Book
Future Horizons, 2011. Kahn, Robert. In this engaging and straightforward guide, Mandee and Bobby explain what “good touches” and “bad touches” are, how to recognize each kind, the differences between them, and how to respond. A quiz at the back of the book helps the reader remember what to do, and there’s a place to write the phone numbers of “safe grown-ups” to call. Click on the image to buy from Amazon.ca
I Said No! A Kid-to-Kid Guide to Keeping Your Private Parts Private
Boulden Publishing, 2008. King, Zack and Kimberly King.. Helping kids set healthy boundaries for their private parts can be a daunting and awkward task for parents, counsellors and educators. Written from a kid s point of view, I Said No! makes this task a lot easier. To help Zack cope with a real-life experience he had with a friend, he and his mom wrote a book to help prepare other kids to deal with a range of problematic situations. The book employs kid-friendly language and illustrations to help parents and concerned adults provide guidance that kids can understand, practice, and use. Reading level: Ages 9-12. Click on the image to buy from Amazon.ca
The Right Touch: A Read-Aloud Story to Help Prevent Child Sexual Abuse
East York, ON: Hushion House, 1998. Kleven, Sandy. This beautifully illustrated read-aloud story teaches children how to prevent sexual abuse. Reading level: Preschool Grade 3. Click on the image to buy from Amazon.ca
Please Tell! A Child’s Story About Sexual Abuse
Deerfield Beach, Florida: HCI books, 1991. Ottenweller, Jessie. Written and illustrated by a young girl who a family member sexually molested, this book reaches out to other children in a way that no adult can. Jessie’s words carry the message, “It’s o.k. to tell; help can come when you tell.” This book is an excellent tool for therapists, counsellors, child protection workers, teachers, and parents dealing with children affected by sexual abuse. Jessie’s story adds a sense of hope for what should be, and the knowledge that the child protection system can work for children. “Please Tell! is a beautifully simple book with a profoundly important message for children who have been sexually abused: the abuse wasn’t their fault. Written and illustrated by Jessie, herself a pre-teen survivor of sexual abuse, it tells kids just what to do to get the help they need” (Kristin A. Kunzman, abuse therapist and author of The Healing Way: Adult Recovery from Childhood Sexual Abuse). Reading level: Ages 4 and up. Click on the image to buy from Amazon.ca
Not in Room 204
Albert Whiteman and Company, 2007. Shannon, Riggs. Quiet Regina feels comfortable in her classroom, where Mrs. Salvador runs a tight ship and insists on hard work and fair play. When the teacher starts the annual Stranger Danger unit, she departs from the usual script by saying that most often an adult who touches a child inappropriately is not a stranger but someone known to the child. Mrs. Salvador assures her students that “If someone told me this happened to them, I know exactly what to do to help.” The next morning, Regina arrives early at Room 204 to confide her secret, which involves her father. The story ends on a hopeful note…. This helpful picture book will raise children’s awareness of sexual abuse without raising anxiety (Carolyn Phelan, Booklist). Click on the image to buy from Amazon.ca
Your Body Belongs to You
Albert Whiteman and Company, 1997. Spelman, Cornelia M. In simple, reassuring language, the author explains that a child’s body is his or her own; that it is all right for kids to decline a friendly hug or kiss, even from someone they love; and that you can still be friends even if you don’t want a hug now. Reading level: Preschool Grade 2. Click on the image to buy from Amazon.ca