Books & games

Books for helping children practise everyday life skills

Books work best here as conversation starters, not as something that fixes a behaviour on its own. Read one together, then use it as a doorway into a real conversation about what's going on for your child.

Best for naming feelings

Growing Wise pick

The Colour Monster (Anna Llenas)

Best for: Naming feelings
Age: 3–6
Why we chose it: It gives children a simple colour-for-emotion system, so pointing at a colour can stand in for a feeling they don't have the words for yet.
Try asking: "What colour do you think you feel like today?"
Who may enjoy it: Children who find it easier to point at something than to explain a feeling out loud.

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Best for sitting with difficult feelings

Growing Wise pick

The Rabbit Listened (Cori Doerrfeld)

Best for: Sitting with difficult feelings
Age: 4–8
Why we chose it: It shows that simply being there, without rushing to fix or explain, can be exactly what's needed after something upsetting happens.
Try asking: "What do you think would help the character feel better?"
Who may enjoy it: Children who tend to go quiet or withdraw when they're upset, and parents looking for an alternative to "cheer up" advice.

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Best for talking about change

Growing Wise pick

The Koala Who Could (Rachel Bright & Jim Field)

Best for: Talking about change
Age: 3+
Why we chose it: A bendy koala learning to loosen up gives a light, rhyming way into a conversation about change, without it feeling like a lecture.
Try asking: "What could the character try next?"
Who may enjoy it: Younger children who respond well to a playful story rather than a direct conversation about change.

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Best for talking about safer hands during conflict

Growing Wise pick

Hands Are Not for Hitting (Martine Agassi)

Best for: Talking about safer hands during conflict
Age: 4–8
Why we chose it: It talks directly and calmly about what hands can do instead of hitting, without shaming a child for the impulse.
Try asking: "What else could hands do here instead?"
Who may enjoy it: Children who are still learning impulse control during conflict with siblings or friends.

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Growing Wise workbook

Cover of Little Decision Makers: A Decision-Making Workbook for Kids (Ages 4-7) by Medha Khare

From Growing Wise

Little Decision Makers (Medha Khare)

Best for: Practising the "stop, think, choose" thinking away from a screen
Age: 4–8
Why we chose it: This is a Growing Wise product: a pencil-and-paper companion to the free Growing Wise 5-minute activity.
Try asking: "What would you choose to do first?"
Who may enjoy it: Children who enjoy pencil-and-paper activities alongside talking things through.

This is a Growing Wise product, not an independent pick: we're the ones who made it.

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