Every teacher knows the potential of a good picture book as a bridge to explore challenging topics and encourage open and honest questions. And when we’re on a rollercoaster of global humanitarian crises, children, piecing together half-stories overheard from adults and the media with imaginative playground chat, have lots of questions (and misconceptions).
“Readalouds” provide a safe, reassuring space to explore themes such as war and conflict as well as for children to reflect on their own experiences and share their worries. Crucially, they afford the opportunity to foster empathy and global citizenship, and to reimagine the world as safe and inclusive.
I read these five books with Primary 1 (which children start aged 4 or 5) but they could easily be adapted to upper levels, perhaps by looking closely at whose voices we hear in the text and rewriting from a different perspective, or by taking a closer look at the visuals and exploring how the illustrator has used colour and angle to evoke a reaction from the reader. All can be considered through the lens of the UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).
1. Notes from Planet Earth by Oliver Jeffers
A humbling picture book that encourages the reader to step back to look at planet earth and the solidarity of its people who “come in many shapes, sizes and colours…but don’t be fooled, we are all people”. We considered what advice we would give to a younger child on how to care for the planet and looked at a globe and found the places they had heard in the news, from Russia to Rwanda.
2. Elephant Island by Leo Timmers
Translated from Dutch by James Brown, when an exuberant elephant sinks his and everybody else’s boat, he reuses the rubble to build an imaginative island where “there is always room for one more”. With limitless technological opportunities, this picture book has at its core a lesson in being welcoming and creative ways to make space for everyone.
3. The Suitcase by Chris Naylor-Ballesteros
A weary and mysterious traveller arrives after a long journey and is viewed with suspicion. My class gasped in horror when the animals opened the suitcase and broke its contents. A simple but powerful picture book about being kind and welcoming, as well as the importance of trying to make amends.
4. Lubna and Pebble by Wendy Meddour and Daniel Egnéus
Set in a “world of tents”, young children may not fully grasp the concept of a refugee camp, but they will understand the friendship and sacrifice between the two young refugees who don’t have a home of their own. In class, we drew faces on pebbles and shared them with our friends. We talked about loneliness and having someone (or something) to share our worries with.
5. The Journey by Francesca Sanna
A captivating read with evocative illustrations. A mother and her two young children flee in the night after war reaches their country, avoiding the border guard and sleeping outside. The words are simple but powerful and its themes are more suited to slightly older children. We took our time with each page, with the children wondering what they would take if they had to leave suddenly and how they would feel.
Emma McGilp is a primary teacher in the Scottish Borders
