It’s no secret children pick up on cues from the world around them. We must begin positively influencing children early; there’s no such thing as “too early.” An important question we need to ask ourselves is this: “how are we influencing our children?” What we say and do around them matters. What we teach them matters greatly. As we all work to better educate ourselves and become allies to the Black community, we need to be teaching our children the same.
A great way to start is by reading the books that are inclusive and teach them about diversity. Here’s our list of 7 children’s books to learn about race and diversity:
New York Times bestselling author Todd Parr is back with a new book and we love its message. With his classic style and humor, Todd reinforces being proud of who you are.
Happy In Our Skin by Fran Manushkin
This book celebrates who we are and you guessed it, the skin we’re in. It celebrates diverse families in all different ways: from differently-abled people to a wide variety of skin tones. We love how inclusive it is!
The Little Leader Books by Vashti Harrison
This series was created by Vashti Harrison to encourage your little ones to dream big. She beautifully uses the work of many inspirational leaders to not only represent diversity, but also inspire your children that their dreams are possible.
One Family will help your children feel like they belong - no matter what they look like. This book explores differences in families, but in the end, physical differences don’t change that you’re still one family.
Shaking Things Up: 14 Young Women Who Changed the World by Susan Hood
We want our children to grow up believing they can achieve their dreams. If you have a little girl, this book is perfect for showing her a diverse group of women who have changed the world. It gives them a great picture of role models!
Skin Like Mine by Latashia M. Perry
Skin Like Mine is an easy read for your children who are a bit older and are beginning to read. We love how this book so beautifully displays friendships with people who look both alike and different from us!
Whose Knees Are These by Jabari Asim
A fun read with beautiful art, this book is a great read for your young ones. The author uses very positive words to describe all the different knees we see throughout the book with fun illustrations.
