Dear Grown-Ups

The 5-6 year olds Abby works with in Bellingham, Washington wrote this wonderful letter:

Dear Grown-Ups,

Kids need you to know:

We can jump off tiny waterfalls.

We can use shovels and real tools.

We can help you

We can do hard things

We can make breakfast in the morning

You can trust us more than you think

We need time to play

We need playdates

We need time to slow down

Please stop hydrating us all the time

Please stop talking so much sometimes

We can hear you

Our ideas matter

We have cool ideas

We deserve to make some of our own decisions

Please listen when we say no

Please treat us properly not just boss us

Sometimes we don't want help

Sometimes we want to picture it ourselves

We can touch thorns without getting spiked

We can find a way to reach things high up

Magic is real

We love you

And also:

Say yes more!

Love,

The Kids

******

Books have a way of transforming us unlike any other media out there. Be it fiction or non-fiction, a books has the power to fully immerse us into a world in way that makes us come out the other side a changed -- and better -- person. I've put together this list of 16 books that have done that for me. They are intentionally not early childhood books, although each one has, in one way or another, profoundly transformed my work with young children. Maybe you'll find a few new ones here that will do the same for you. To download the list, click here.

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