Kind Action

by Gabi Garcia

When Esperanza finds a heart-shaped rock, she sees it as a reminder to spread kindness and love in the world. But when the school play doesn’t go the way she’d imagined, will she remember to give it to herself?

by Jacqueline Woodson

Chloe and her friends won’t play with the new girl, Maya. Every time Maya tries to join Chloe and her friends, they reject her. Eventually Maya stops coming to school. When Chloe’s teacher gives a lesson about how even small acts of kindness can change the world, Chloe is stung by the lost opportunity for friendship, and thinks about how much better it could have been if she’d shown a little kindness.s.

by Pat Zietlow Miller

From asking the new girl to play to standing up for someone being bullied, this moving story explores what kindness is, and how any act, big or small, can make a difference―or at least help a friend.

by Kerascoët

This book tells the story of one girl who inspires a community to stand up to bullying. Inspired by real events, I Walk with Vanessa explores the feelings of helplessness and anger that arise in the wake of seeing a classmate treated badly, and shows how a single act of kindness can lead to an entire community joining in to help.

by Anne Sibley O’Brien

Three students are immigrants from Guatemala, Korea, and Somalia and have trouble speaking, writing, and sharing ideas in English in their new American elementary school. Through self-determination and with encouragement from their peers and teachers, the students learn to feel confident and comfortable in their new school without losing a sense of their home country, language, and identity.

by Anne Sibley O’Brien

In I’m New Here and Someone New, young readers explore the immigrant experience through both “windows” and “mirrors.” In I’m New Here, readers meet three recent immigrants trying to adjust to a new country and school. In Someone New, the same story is told from the perspective of the students who welcome the newcomers. An honest and heartwarming look at diversity, inclusion, and friendship.

by Todd Parr

The Peace Book delivers positive and hopeful messages of peace in an accessible, child-friendly format featuring Todd Parr’s trademark bold, bright colors and silly scenes. Perfect for the youngest readers, this book delivers a timely and timeless message about the importance of friendship, caring, and acceptance.

by Karen Kaufman Orloff

Baby smiles at Mommy, Mom keeps it for a while . . . and then passes it on. As the smile begins its joyful journey—moving from a first-grade class to a soccer team, from Gran to a garbage man, even to a puppy—it spreads happiness throughout the community, bringing everyone together.

by David J. Smith

This eye-opening book promotes “world-mindedness” by imagining the world’s population , all 6.8 billion of us, as a village of just 100 people. By exploring the lives of the 100 villagers, children will discover that life in other nations is often very different from their own. 

by Craig Kielburger

It was an ordinary morning like any other. Twelve-year-old Craig Kielburger woke to his alarm clock and hurried downstairs to wolf down a bowl of cereal over the newspaper’s comics before school. But what he discovered on the paper’s front page would change his life—and eventually affect over a million young people worldwide. It Takes a Child is a fun, colourful look back at Craig’s adventures in taking global actions.

by Pegi Deitz Shea

Leadership comes easily for Nadeem, but how can he lead the other child laborers to freedom after he’s been shamed and beaten for his first attempt?One day a former carpet boy named Iqbal Masih leads a parade in the village. New laws have abolished bonded labor! Iqbal urges Nadeem to fight for freedom and to lead the children to a new school in town. Can Nadeem summon the courage to try again?

by Trudy Ludwig

A story based on From a Name to a Number: A Holocaust Survivor’s Autobiography by This picture book tells one moving episode during Alter’s imprisonment, when an unexpected person demonstrates moral courage in repeated acts of kindness to young Alter during his imprisonment.

by Susan Verde

A hopeful meditation on all the great (and challenging) parts of being human, I Am Human shows that it’s okay to make mistakes while also emphasizing the power of good choices by offering a kind word or smile or by saying “I’m sorry.” This book is a celebration of empathy and compassion that lifts up the flawed fullness of humanity and encourages children to see themselves as part of one big imperfect family—millions strong.

by Anna Baccelliere

The UN Convention on the Rights of the Child states that every child in the world has the right to play. Unfortunately, that universal right is not always respected. I Like, I Don’t Like presents this reality to readers by showing how children in varying circumstances can see the same object very differently.I Like, I Don’t Like will inspire meaningful discussions about privilege and poverty.