Best Books about Safety for Preschoolers
Teaching preschoolers about safety is up there on the list of priorities for every parent. However, the topic of safety is wide-reaching, and finding ways to introduce your child to complex themes can feel overwhelming.
This guide shares the best children’s books to help initiate important family conversations, establish personal boundaries, and ensure your child is equipped with the skills to develop a trusted safety network as they enter school.
How do you explain what Safe Means to a Child?
From understanding body safety to knowing how to identify stranger danger, there’s a wide range of important lessons about safety that preschoolers and toddlers should begin to absorb from a young age.
After all, as they enter their journey into preschool and beyond, it’s vital that your little one develops an understanding of why keeping safe is important, how to keep themselves safe, and how to respect others along the way.
How do you Teach Preschoolers about Safety?
While teaching kids safety sounds like a no-brainer, putting it into practice can be tricky. There are complex themes surrounding safety, and making these topics age-appropriate and digestible for young minds is no easy feat.
Luckily, there is an abundance of resources out there to help you. Below, our 5-star Preschool in Greenville has compiled a list of our all-time favorite books aimed at preschoolers and toddlers about safety to help you along the way.
Books to Help Teach Body Safety to Children
Protecting children from all forms of childhood sexual abuse is paramount. It is vital for children to recognize safe and unsafe touch, and there are many children’s books out there to help establish this and introduce the topic of sex education. Our book recommendations below all use thoughtful storytelling to help children know what unsafe touch is and the importance of telling a trusted adult.
- Some Secrets Should Never Be Kept by Jayneen Sanders
Some Secrets Should Never Be Kept by Jayneen Sanders sensitively approaches the topic of inappropriate touch and body safety through a beautifully illustrated story. Suitable for children aged 3 to 12 years, this book is an invaluable tool for parents and teachers alike.
This wonderful book keeps the broad and complex theme of sexual abuse in the realms of non-frightening and non-threatening storytelling. By clearly establishing types of safe and unsafe touch, this book is the perfect way to broach an important topic with your little one.
- My Body Belongs to Me by Jill Starishevsky
Teaching children about body boundaries lays the foundations for them to recognize when abuse is happening. My Body Belongs to Me by Jill Starishevsky is a great book to teach this important lesson. Using gentle rhymes and friendly illustrations, this book sensitively broaches the topic of sexual abuse and body safety, helping little ones to understand that their private parts belong to them.
The Best Books about Grief, Death, and Loss for Children
Losing somebody brings about overwhelming emotions for adults—let alone children. Loss can happen through death but can also be felt through upsetting processes like divorce. These children’s books offer support and help make children feel safe during these unsettling times in life.
- A Place in my Heart — Understanding Bereavement by Annette Aubrey
Next on our list of top books to help children deal with bereavement is A Place in my Heart by Annette Aubrey. This touching storybook uses catchy rhymes to help young readers feel reassured that emotions associated with grief are normal.
- Badger’s Parting Gifts by Susan Varley
Loss can be overwhelming and confusing for a little person. Susan Varley’s book Badger’s Parting Gifts makes this topic easier through its gentle characters and dialogue. It illustrates how loss can be made easier through treasured memories and remembering.
- Dinosaurs Divorce by Laurie Krasny Brown
The concept of divorce is complicated for children. Dinosaurs Divorce by Laurie Krasny Brown is colorful and informative and helps to simplify the overwhelming topic of separation and relationship breakdown through a gentle and cautionary tale. Its immersive dinosaur tale helps little ones understand what divorce is, why parents divorce, and how to cope with it if they are faced with it.
Books about Mental Health for Children
Teaching kids how to cope with their feelings is important to keep them safe as they grow older. Alongside dealing with their own mental health, many children come from homes with parents who experience mental illnesses such as depression and anxiety. This book helps them with the skills to cope with feelings associated with mental health from a young age.
- How Are You Feeling Today Baby Bear? by Jane Evans
For children who witness violence at home, there are a lot of big feelings to deal with. How Are You Feeling Today Baby Bear by Jane Evans uses the gentle tale of Baby Bear to help little ones recognize what it can feel like when you live in a ‘stormy home.’ As Baby Bear tackles his gray and rainy feelings, children can begin to explore and name their feelings.
Best Books about Health and Well-being for Children
Health and well-being make up a part of important family conversations, ensuring that your child knows all about the everyday routines of diet, exercise, and hygiene. We think these books are great tools in making health and well-being fun for little ones.
- Eating the Alphabet by Lois Ehlert
Teaching preschoolers the importance of healthy eating from the offset is crucial to establishing good routines and eating habits. Eating the Alphabet by Lois Ehlert is a great place to start. With eye-catching colors and words spanning across the alphabet, this book provides a vibrant overview of the different types of fruits and vegetables out there to try.
- Brush, Flush, Wash by Scarlett Wing
This fun and interactive book by Scarlett Wing focuses on the basics of bath, bed, and potty time. Children can help tell the story with the delightful lift-a-flap design, helping them to understand why it’s important to use the bathroom to stay squeaky clean.
Books about Stranger Danger for Children
Ensuring to protect your child from risks associated with strangers is an important part of education and parenting. We’ve got some great suggestions of creative books that tackle this subject, teaching little ones to recognize danger.
- Once Upon a Dragon: Stranger Safety for Kids (and Dragons) by Jean E. Pendziwol
Once Upon a Dragon is the perfect place to start teaching preschoolers about stranger danger. Through the immersive adventure of a little girl and her dragon, this book explores the theme of strangers, teaching children to be careful around strangers through rhymes and checklists. This book is a great place to start generating discussions about stranger safety.
- The Berenstain Bears Learn About Strangers by Jan and Stan Berenstain
The Berenstain Bears by Jan and Stan Berenstain offers a comforting family tale to teach children some important rules about safety. This book specifically targeted at preschoolers focuses on the importance of being wary of strangers and looks at some of the potential tricks that might be used by adults to trick children into dangerous situations. It even includes some handy safety tips at the end which are a great springboard for discussion.
Final Thoughts
When tackling the complex topics involved with child safety, it’s all about making it fun, creative, and simple for little ones. With this list of book recommendations, teaching preschoolers about safety just got a whole lot easier. Books with lots of colors, characters, and interactivity are great for engaging young minds and leave them remembering those all-important messages and lessons about safety.
Discover Our Greenville, NC 5-Star Preschool Program
At Children’s Campus of Greenville, we are dedicated to providing a nurturing environment where preschoolers can develop a solid understanding of important topics like body safety, road safety, health and safety, and stranger safety. At our school, we encourage social, emotional, and cognitive development through 5-star-rated childcare. If you are interested in enrolling your child, please reach out to schedule a tour today.
