My favorite thing to do before bed or on a particularly stressful day is to transport myself into another world with a good book. So far, my kids love books as much as I do, and I’m trying my best to take this opportunity to teach them about worlds outside of their own.
Of course, books are just one way to teach them about diversity, but they are a great place to start. Research tells us that starting as young as 3 months old, babies start to show a preference for own-race faces over other-race faces. This is why it is so important to make sure kids see a diverse range of people reflected in their daily lives through activities, toys, books and TV shows.
With the holiday season here, below are 10 kids books celebrating diversity that make great stocking stuffers.
1. Let's Celebrate!: Special Days Around the World
Teach little ones about 13 special days around the world, such as the Spring Festival, Inti Raymi, Eid al-Fitr, Día de Muertos, and the New Yam Festival. Beautiful illustrations help bring to life the celebrations.
2. I Got the Christmas Spirit
This book explores the sights, sounds, and smells of the holiday season through the eyes of a mother and daughter duo.
3. December's Gift: An Interfaith Holiday Story
Clara celebrates the holidays in December with her two grandmothers by frying latkes with her Bubbe and baking cookies with her Grammy. They celebrate different holidays, and each grandmother shares their reason for the season as they recount memories and make holiday traditions.
4. My Family Celebrates Kwanzaa
As Kevin is getting ready for Kwanzaa with his family, he explains how his family prepares for the holiday, the history of it, and how the family celebrates.
5. We Are Grateful: Otsaliheliga
Cherokee people say otsaliheliga to express gratitude. Join a Cherokee family as they partake in activities and traditions to express gratitude and celebrate their culture, including stomp dancing at the Great New Moon Ceremony, basket weaving, making corn-husk dolls, and playing stickball.
6. Every Month Is a New Year: Celebrations Around the World
This poetry collection highlights sixteen New Year festivities around the world, where the New Year is not always on January 1.
7. The Story of Hanukkah
Introduce toddlers and preschoolers to Hanukkah with a board book that helps them learn about the Maccabean Revolt, the Holy Temple of Jerusalem, and the oil that burned for eight nights.
8. A Piñata in a Pine Tree: A Latino Twelve Days of Christmas
This book takes a Latino twist on "The Twelve Days of Christmas," with piñatas instead of partridges, burritos bailando (dancing donkeys), lunitas cantando (singing moons), and more.
9. The Nutcracker in Harlem
This jazz-inspired reinvention of "The Nutcracker" is set in New York City during the height of the Harlem Renaissance. Marie receives a nutcracker from her uncle and finds her voice as a musician.
10. A World of Cookies for Santa: Follow Santa's Tasty Trip Around the World
Visit places around the globe to learn about all the different treats for Santa, like puto seko cookies and ginger tea in the Philippines, honey-spice cookies in Russia, and sweet potato cookies in Malawi. Plus, make some of your own with recipes from around the world.
