Any child who has ever been accused of running wild (wrongly or rightly) will be tickled by the spunky little girl in If I Were a Lion
Tag Archives: good behaviour
Never Tickle a Tiger by Pamela Butchart and Marc Boutavant
If you tell a restless child specifically not to do something, chances are, he/she will try to do exactly that. So guess what happens when Izzy’s class goes on a trip to the zoo and her teacher warns her NEVER to tickle a tiger. Yup, she tickles the tiger.
The Grouchy Ladybug by Eric Carle
No one does stepped pages like Eric Carle, whose iconic The Very Hungry Caterpillar
Mustache Baby by Bridget Heos and Joy Ang
A preposterous mustasche is the plot device used in this humorous re-imagining of the baby/toddler years.
Billy Twitters and His Blue Whale Problem by Mac Barnett and Adam Rex
Kids know an empty threat when they hear one. So when his exasperated mom threatens to buy him a blue whale if he doesn’t start to listen, Billy Twitters doesn’t take her seriously. That is, until the said whale arrives at his front door the next morning — delivered overnight by FedUp (a witty play on FedEx).
Petit, the Monster by Isol
The opening line of this book is an intriguing question: “Do you know Petit?” This sets the tone for the rest of this quirky story by Argentine author and illustrator Isol, which attempts to make sense of some of the confounding dichotomies of life from a little boy’s point of view — the most pertinent question being whether it is possible to be both good and bad at the same time.
My No, No, No Day! (aka My Big Shouting Day!) by Rebecca Patterson
Life with kids is never short for drama, especially when they’re little and still learning how to manage their emotions and communicate effectively. After all, it’s not for nothing that people came up with the term ‘terrible twos’, since, speaking from personal experience, 2-year-olds seem to be most prone to throwing dramatic tantrums. (Of course, this is not to say that they don’t have angelic days, or that older kids don’t act out from time to time.) Thus, My No No No Day
Little Dinos series by Michael Dahl and Adam Record
This is a great board-book series that helps to reinforce positive behaviour and good manners in the little ones. The brightly coloured cartoons are appealing, while the sparse, humorous text in large fonts make it easy even for the youngest readers to understand and memorise the words in no time.
Llama Llama Red Pajama by Anna Dewdney
It’s a rare children’s book that not only manages to put a trying situation into perspective for both children as well as parents, leaving everyone nodding in recognition and giving them something to take away from it, but that is also written so well that both camps enjoy reading it. But that’s exactly what you’ll get from the Llama Llama series by Anna Dewdney.
Brief Thief by Michael Escoffier and Kris Di Giacomo
Whether people abide by the laws and rules of society and/or religion says more about their ability to obey than their integrity since they are probably compelled to do so because, a) they are afraid of being caught; and b) they don’t want to face the (perceived or real) consequences. Often, it’s through what people choose to do when there are no laws or rules, and little to no possibility of them being discovered, that you can see their true colours. Thus, while children generally have an innate sense of right and wrong, it’s also important for the adults around them to cultivate and reinforce their moral values so that they will hopefully grow up choosing to do what’s right even when — as is often the case — it’s difficult or less convenient, and no one is around to tell them to do so.
