Friendships
Friendships
Alexander and the terrible, horrible, no good, very bad day
Topics: resilience, emotions, feelings, jealousy, anger, hate, isolation, injustice, siblings, friendship.
Fiction
Alexander knew it was going to be a terrible day when he woke up with gum in his hair. His best friend deserted him. There was no dessert in his lunch bag. And, on top of all that, there were lima beans for dinner and kissing on TV!
Age: 6 to 9 years.
YouTube reading - 4min 33sec (external link)Because it's my body!
Topics: protective behaviours, child abuse prevention, bodily autonomy, safety, art.
Fiction
Focusing on empowerment and prevention, this approachable book gives young children a way to reject unwanted, possibly harmful physical contact by adults and other kids.
Age: 4 to 7 years.
Chicken Soup for the Kid's Soul
A collection of short stories, anecdotes, poems and cartoons which present a positive outlook on life (8 to 12 years). Topics: courage, hope, laughter.
Don't let the pigeon drive the bus
Topics: peer pressure, emotional literacy, positive coping strategies.
Fiction
When a bus driver takes a break from his route, a very unlikely volunteer springs up to take his place - a pigeon! The pigeon pleads and begs his way through the book offering lots of opportunity for audience participation.
Age: 2 to 6 years.
Girls like that and other plays for teenagers
Fiction
'Girls Like That' explores the pressures caused by technology when a schoolgirls naked photograph goes viral.
'Banana Boys' is about the challenge of being on the school football team and being secretly gay.
'Holloway Jones' is a about with growing up with a parent in prison.
'Pronoun' is about two childhood sweethearts dealing with the fact that one of them, Isabella, has come out as transgender.
Horton hears a who!
Topics: friendships, kindness, trustworthiness, emotional literacy, perseverance, resilience.
Fiction
Horton, the loveable elephant, represents kindness, trustworthiness, and perseverance in his quest to protect tiny creatures on a speck of dust.
Ages 4 to 8.
How to be a friend: A guide to making friends and keeping them
Topics: friendships, conflict resolution, emotional literacy.
Fiction
This picture book contains many examples of how to be a friend and offers kids practical suggestions about resolving arguments, getting over being shy, handling bossy children and bullies, and more.
Agers 4 to 8 years.
How to take the grrr out of anger
Topics: emotional literacy, anger, coping strategies.
Non-fiction
This book combines information, jokes and funny cartoons to help children understand that anger is normal and can be expressed in many ways—some healthy, some not. It teaches them how to recognise anger in themselves and others, how to handle situations and emotions (loneliness, guilt, frustration, fear) that lead to anger, and how to deal with the anger they feel.
Ages: 8 to 11 years.
Just like Molly
A 24 page illustrated book about starting school, saying goodbye to an imaginary friend and making new friends. Covers friendships, imagination, anxiety and courage.
King of the playground
Topics: friendship, bullying, emotional literacy.
Fiction
Kevin loves to go to the playground, but not when Sammy is there. Sammy, who boasts that he is King of the Playground, is there most of the time. If he catches Kevin on the swings or the slide or the monkey bars, Sammy says, he will do awful, terrible things to him. A book about friendship and bullying.
Ages: 4 to 8 years.
No more teasing!
Topics: friendships, families, teasing, emotional literacy
Fiction
Mimi loves her cousin Momo but he teases her all the time and she doesn't like it. Grandma helps to make a cunning plan so that Momo soon realises that teasing isn't such a good idea.
Age: 4+ years.
Puberty Boy
Puberty Boy explains the transitions that boys need to go through to become healthy young men in a unique, colourful and commonsense way.
Puberty Girl
A practical guide for teenage girls on understanding the physical and emotional changes associated with puberty.
Relationships, sex and other stuff
A WA Department of Health booklet for teenagers addressing friends and relationships, sex and pregnancy.
Talk Soon. Talk Often: a guide for parents talking to their kids about sex
A WA Department of Health booklet developed to support parents to initiate regular and relaxed conversations with their children about relationships and sexuality. Age and stage appropriate information for parents with children birth to teens. First published 2011, updated in 2019.
The growing up book for boys
Topics: puberty, Autism.
Non-fiction
What boys on the Autistic Spectrum need to know about puberty. Covers topics: changes during puberty, shaving, erections, wet dreams, crushes, friendships, internet safety, body safety, emotions.
Ages: Parents and teachers.
The growing up guide for girls
Topics: puberty, special needs, Autism
Non-fiction
What girls on the Autistic Spectrum need to know about puberty. Covers changes during puberty, menstruation, emotions, crushes, appropriate behaviours, friends, staying safe online.
Age: Parents and teachers.
The Paper Bag Baby
Fiction. 240 page novel. Edward, the school wheeler-dealer with dreams of becoming a millionaire by the time he's twenty, who finds a baby wrapped in a paper bag in the park. Winner of the Guardian Children's Fiction Award. (12+ years)
The Puberty Book: A Guide for Children and Teenagers (4th Ed.)
A humorous guide for children and teenagers about the changes that happen at puberty.