Welcome to the 2026 PICTURE BOOK CLUB – WEEK TEN
How to participate in Picture Book Club …
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Get the suggested books from your library or bookstore (local or online). See 2026 PICTURE BOOK CLUB: COMPLETE LIST OF BOOKS for the list of books suggested for each week.
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Before reading each of the weekly books to your child, READ FIRST “Things to Think About.”
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Read one or both books to your child as many times through the week as your child wants to hear them and you have time to read.
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Consider doing whatever activities you think are appropriate for the age and maturity of your child from “Making the Story Come Alive.”
WE WELCOME FEEDBACK ABOUT YOUR PARTICIPATION. YOU CAN LEAVE A COMMENT BY USING THE “WHAT DO YOU THINK?” BUTTON AT THE BOTTOM OF THIS POST.
IT’S OK TO MAKE MISTAKES by Todd Parr
(a story about learning)
We all make mistakes—children and adults alike. We can each recover and go on to try again. That’s how we learn.
Things to Think About
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All people make mistakes. No one is perfect. “There are no mistakes, only lessons.” (Chinese Proverb)
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Children make mistakes because of poor decisions, accidents, and just plain not thinking and messing up. They are just learning how to follow rules, control their feelings, and think through their actions. Making mistakes is one of the ways they learn.
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Mistakes are sometimes the best teacher. Children can learn from their mistakes. It is much easier for children to deal with the frustration of mistakes when they know they won’t be criticized or punished for making them.
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If something doesn’t work right, give her a chance to try again – and again and again, if need be.
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If he can’t figure something out, don’t jump in with the answer. Let him struggle – that’s how he will learn things.
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When something turns out badly, ask what she thinks went wrong. Ask what she would do differently the next time to try to make it turn out better.
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If he spills food, be sure he knows how to clean it up. Help him as needed.
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It’s OK to make mistakes as long as you don’t give up on making it right. Think about a time you made a mistake recently. Think about what you did afterwards. You can learn about helping your children make up for mistakes: Making Children Feel Safe and Important, Part 2.
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Children don’t like to make mistakes. They don’t like the consequences. They don’t like how they feel about themselves. They don’t like how others feels about them. Children naturally want to make up for things they do wrong and get back into good graces when they mess up. It is very important that we give our children a chance to make up for mistakes and that we teach them how to go about making up for mistakes. Just saying they are sorry is not enough.
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Making amends can make the victims of a child’s mistake feel better, and it can make the child feel better as well. By making amends, a child can get back in the good graces of the people he cares about. He can repair his view of himself. He can see himself as good person again – one who will try not to make the same mistake again.
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Doing something to make amends is much better than just saying you are sorry. If the child hurts someone, he can get ice or a bandage for the injury or offer to play the person’s favorite game to make him feel better. If the child breaks something, she can help fix it, pay to have it fixed or offer the owner something nice to substitute for it. This is making amends and it can repair a person’s view of himself at the same time it is making the victim feel better. It is important even when the incident is an accident. It teaches the child that he deserves to be loved and can be loved even when he makes mistakes.
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Compliments about who you are (not things you do) help your children learn better because the trial and error of learning and the inevitable mistakes that are made in the learning process are less likely to be interpreted as criticism when your children are feeling good about themselves.
Making the Story Come Alive
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Share your own experiences about making mistakes and how you learned from them —both as a child and as an adult.
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Share a time when something you did or failed to do hurt another person – even if you didn’t mean to hurt that person. Tell your child that making it up to the person is important even if what happened wasn’t done on purpose. It still hurt the other person.
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How did it feel to hurt that person? What could have made that person feel better afterwards? Think of something more than just saying you were sorry. For example, if you trampled your neighbor’s plants – in addition to saying you are sorry – you could have given her some new plants or have done the work of planting some new seeds for her.
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Explain that when you find a way to make the person feel better you are not only caring for the person who was hurt, you are also caring for yourself by proving to yourself that you are a kind and caring person.
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If you want to help your children learn about making up for mistakes: Making Children Feel Safe and Important, Part 2.
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Talk with your child about a time he made a mistake recently.
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Ask him what he did after making the mistake.
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Cover up the mistake so no one would know?
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Walk away and give up?
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Feel bad for quite some time?
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Use the stars in the sky to explain “mess ups” to your children. Explain to your children that, to you, they are bright shiny stars like the ones in the sky. Explain that they will always be those stars – even if they make mistakes. The stars in the sky can seem to be gone in the daytime or on a cloudy night, but they are just hidden. On the next clear night, they will come out again and again. The “star” within people is like that, too. The star within them can also be hidden when they mess up and do something wrong. But, that star within them can shine again just like the ones in the sky because they can always do better and be better from one day to the next.
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Ask your child to imagine that there is this special world where everyone believes mistakes can help a person learn to do better.
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How does he think people in that special world react when they make a mistake?
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Does he think he could react that way the next time he makes a mistake?
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BACK TO SCHOOL TORTOISE by Merel Eyckerman
(a story about going back to school)
In BACK TO SCHOOL TORTOISE, Tortoise started off to school on the first day, but then “… he started thinking, what if ….” He thought about all sorts of things that might go wrong. “No, he decided. I can’t go in.” But then he again started thinking, what if …. He thought about all sorts of things that might go right. He mustered his bravery and went into school. The students all welcomed him and learned that even the adults at school were nervous on the first day.
Things to Think About
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All children, no matter what age or grade, are at the least worried about the first day of school, and some are very much afraid. Adults need to let children know that they understand they are worried and comfort them as best they can.
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School pulls your child toward being more grown up, which is hard to do. Growing up happens one step at a
time and often in a slow, zig-zag pattern with one step forward and one step backward.
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Even teenagers can be nervous about going back to school. They will not hold onto mom’s skirt or refuse to enter the building – that would be embarrassing. Their nerves will look more grown up. They might lollygag, be late getting ready, be obsessed with clothes and transportation, or generally be hard to get along with in the days leading up to and following the start of school.
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Fears about starting school may not be obvious right away. Some kids suck it up at first, let their excitement take over, and appear to have no problem starting school. Then, the fun wears off and the worries and pressures take over and resistance to going to school shows up.
Making the Story Come Alive
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Play a game of “What If ….” Take turns naming possible school fears (I fall down; kids are mean to me; I don’t know the answer to the teacher’s question). Then, take turns suggesting what could be done if any of the worrisome things happen. For example, don’t know the answer? Just say you don’t know.
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Tell your child that you notice and like how he is growing up.
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Plan some physical activity in the afternoon or evening of school days. Your child may sleep better and have more energy for school the next morning.
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Play “Asking for Help” with your child. Take turns thinking of different ways you can ask for help in different school situations (can’t find your way in the school – ask first adult you see; need a pencil – ask teacher for one). See how many ways you each can think of, write them down, and post them in an obvious place at home. Ask your child what ideas he likes the best.
Picture Book Parenting 