my 5 favorite picture books for teaching kids about friendship

Friendship is a theme that you can find in a whole host of children’s books which is fortunate since it is a topic that often needs revisited with kids. Whether you have students finding it difficult to be a kind friend or your own children are experiencing friendship struggles at school, I’m sure you’ll find a book on the list below that could be helpful in talking to younger kids about the concept of friendship.

When Glitter Met Glue by Karen Kilpatrick

This wonderful picture book is all about what to do when one person in a friendship feels invisible. Find out how Glitter and Glue team up to help Glue shine like some of their other friends.

Peanut Butter and Cupcake by Terry Border

This witty picture book with awesome photo illustrations is a great one to turn to when kids are feeling lonely and struggling to find friends. Read to find out how Bread searches and searches for his perfect pairing.

The Circles All Around Us by Brad Montague

This is one of my absolute favorite picture books for so many reasons. There are so many wonderful themes that can be extracted from this book. If you’re looking for a book about friendship, kindness or inclusivity, this is the one!

This book is all about how the circles of people around us (our relationships) grow as we get older to include, not only family, but also friends, neighbors and other people from our community with whom we connect and feel safe. This book serves as a great springboard for a conversation on how we grow those circles through kindness and by being a good friend.

Dude! by Aaron Reynolds

If you have a child who feels excluded or students making snap judgments about another student, this book is for you!

This book is about platypus and beaver, friends who just want to go surfing. Unfortunately, they are afraid to surf because they share an ocean with shark. As he approaches and they get to know him, though, they find out that maybe there’s more to shark than what they originally thought.

You Will Be My Friend! by Peter Brown

This is the perfect book for those kiddos who just aren’t sure how to go about making friends.

In this story, we learn from Bear just how hard it is to make friends, how persistence is the key and how sometimes, we find the best friends in the most unlikely places.