100 Books About Social and Emotional Learning

Source: one tough job

Big emotions, little people! Kids can't get everything right the first time, they often need help managing their emotions and maintaining positive relationships. This list has been compiled to include books that can help your child acquire social and emotional skills that can be used for the rest of their life.

infants & toddlers (0 - 2 years)

Are You My Mother? by P. D. Eastman

Baby Happy Baby Sad by Leslie Patricelli

Big Dog…Little Dog by P. D. Eastman

Feet Are Not For Kicking by Elizabeth Verdick

Goodnight Moon by Margaret Wise Brown and Clement Hurd

Grumpy Bird by Jeremy Tankard

Hands Are Not For Hitting by Martine Agassi

Hug by Jez Alborough

Hug Time by Patrick McDonnell

I Am a Big Brother by Caroline Jayne Church

I Can Do It Too! by Karen Baicker

I Love You, Too! by Eve Bunting

Little Gorilla by Ruth Bornstein

Little Monkey Calms Down by Michael Dahl

Mean Soup by Betsy Everitt

Mommies Say Shh! by Patricia Polacco

My Heart is Like a Zoo by Michael Hall

One Love by Cedella Marley

Owl Babies by Martin Waddell

Peekaboo Morning by Rachel Isadora

Teeth Are Not For Biting by Elizabeth Verdick

The Color Monster: A Pop-up Book of Feelings by Anna Llenas

The Moon Sees You & Me by Caleb Buroughs

The Runaway Bunny by Margaret Wise Brown

The Very Lonely Butterfly by Eric Carle

What's Wrong, Little Pookie? by Sandra Boynton

Whose Mouse are You? by Robert Kraus

You Are My Cupcake by Joyce Wan

You Are My I Love You by Maryann Cusimano Love

preschool (3 - 4 years)

A Visitor for Bear by Bonny Becker

Archie Snufflekins Oliver Valentine Cupcake Tiberius Cat by Katie Harnett

Aren't You Lucky! by Laurence Anholt

Bunny Cakes (Max and Ruby) by Rosemary Wells

Chopsticks by Amy Krouse Rosenthal

Daddy Hug by Tim Warnes

David Gets In Trouble by David Shannon

Do You Want To Be My Friend? by Eric Carle

Does a Kangaroo Have a Mother Too? by Eric Carle

Gaston by Kelly DiPucchio

Glad Monster, Sad Monster by Ed Emberley and Anne Miranda

Goodnight, I Love You by Caroline Jayne Church

Guess How Much I Love You by Sam McBratney

Horrible Bear! by Ame Dyckman

Hug You, Kiss You, Love You by Joyce Wan

I Love You All Day Long by Francesca Rusackas

I Love You Like Crazy Cakes by Rose A. Lewis

In Grandma's Arms by Jayne C. Shelton

Is A Worry Worrying You? by Ferida Wolff and Harriet May Savitz

Just Grandma and Me by Mercer Mayer

Just Grandpa and Me by Mercer Mayer

Just Me and My Dad by Mercer Mayer

Little Bot and Sparrow by Jake Parker

Lola at the Library by Anna McQuinn

Love Is by Diane Adams

Love Is Everywhere by Jim Benton

Maisy Makes Lemonade by Lucy Cousins

Mighty Dads by Joan Holub

Nelly Gnu and Daddy Too by Anna Dewdney

Noisy Nora by Rosemary Wells

Otis by Loren Long

Pax and Blue by Lori Richmond

Peter's Chair by Ezra Jack Keats

Shy by Deborah Freedman

So Much! by Trish Cooke

Swimmy by Leo Lionni

The Granddaughter Necklace by Sharon Dennis Wyeth

The Grouchy Ladybug by Eric Carle

The Little Red Hen (Makes a Pizza) by Philomen Sturges

The Pigeon Has Feelings, Too! by Mo Willems

The Pout-Pout Fish by Deborah Diesen

The Sandwich Shop by Queen Rania of Jordan Al Abdullah and Kelly DiPucchio

The Very Best Daddy of All by Marion Dane Bauer

Two Bad Ants by Chris Van Allsburg

Wemberly Worried by Kevin Henkes


early school (5 - 6 years)

A Chair for My Mother by Vera B. Williams

A Sick Day for Amos McGee by Philip C. Stead

Alexander and the Terrible, Horrible, No Good, Very Bad Day by Judith Viorst

All Too Much for Oliver by Leila Boukarim

Be A Friend by Salina Yoon

Everyone Can Learn to Ride a Bicycle by Chris Raschka

I Can Do That: A Book on Self-Regulation by Kayla J. W. Marnach

I Love My New Toy! by Mo Willems

I'm a Big Sister by Joanna Cole

In My Heart: A Book of Feelings by Jo Witek

It's Hard to Be Five: Learning How to Work My Control Panel by Jamie Lee Curtis

Leonardo, the Terrible Monster by Mo Willems

Mama Cat Has Three Kittens by Denise Fleming

Mama Don't Allow by Thacher Hurd

Mike Mulligan and His Steam Shovel by Virginia Lee Burton

The Friend Ship by Kat Yeh

The Hello, Goodbye Window by Norton Juster

The Invisible String by Patrice Karst

The Way I Feel by Janan Cain

There Are No Animals in This Book (Only Feelings) by Chani Sanchez

Weekends with Max and His Dad by Linda Urban

When Andy Met Sandy by Tomie DePaola and Jim Lewis

When Sophie Gets Angry - Really Really Angry… by Molly Bang

Where Are You Going? To See My Friend! by Kazuo Iwamura

Wherever You Are My Love Will Find You by Nancy Tillman

You Belong Here by M. H. Clark


Want to read more? Check out our next category of 100 books all about the arts. And make sure to share your journey to 1,000 on social media and tag us! #1000Books


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