Back-to-School 2023
Here are 8 Canadian kids’ books to help ease your kids back into school, as seen on CTV Your Morning August 8th, 2023.
Picture Books, Ages 3-7
The First Night of Howlergarten is a gentle, affirming story that deals with first day of school anxieties, fitting in, and being a good friend, with a light supernatural twist. The nerves and emotions the little werewolves feel on their first day are very relatable but the supernatural twist provides some space for kids to reflect on their own feelings. The Kindest Red centres around another big day at school- picture day! All day long, Faizah has been helping people out in order to make the world a kinder place. But when a picture day dilemma comes up, Faizah finds herself on the receiving end of an act of kindness.
Chapter Books, Ages 5-9
Marshmallow Martians: Earth School is a sweet and silly graphic novel for early readers about a group of adorable aliens who spend a day in school. Readers will enjoy seeing the school experience through the eyes of the aliens, to whom everything is new and exciting. Salma Makes a Home is the first book in a new chapter book series about a girl who has recently immigrated to Canada from Syria. When the book begins, Salma and her mother have been living in Canada for a year and her father is just about to arrive. The story has great discussions about identity, family, and what makes a home.
Middle Grade, Ages 9-12
So Long Stress is an accessible, comprehensive guide to everything kids need to know about what stress is, why it happens, and how to manage it. There are explanations for why we feel stressed, different breathing techniques, suggestions about movement, creative things you can do to manage stress, and a list of further resources. This is a great guide that kids and parents can refer to time and time again. The Bellwoods Game is an appealing spooky story about a school with an unusual tradition. On Halloween night, the sixth graders of Beckett Elementary play the The Bellwoods Game, in which three students must go into a potentially haunted wood and ring a bell...or suffer the consequences. Also in the spooky vein, Eerie Tales from the School of Screams is a collection of five of short, scary stories told in graphic novel format. At this school, instead of show and tell, students must impress their teacher (and each other) with an eerie tale-reminiscent of the classic TV show Are You Afraid of the Dark?
Teens, 13+
Perhaps the only thing more stressful than the first day of kindergarten is the first day of high school, especially for fifteen year old Palestinian-Canadian Jessie, who has recently been diagnosed with autism and doesn’t want anyone in her new school to know. Jessie has always struggled to fit in but vows that this year, her first year at a new high school, is going to be different. Something More features a charming narrator and her love of all things 90s is very on trend with teens (and nostalgic Millennial readers).