Books
This is our carefully curated list of favorite books for parents and educators.
by Jennifer S. Miller, MEd.
How do we raise a happy, confident kid? Our confidence develops from understanding and having a mastery over our emotions—and helping our children do the same. Like learning to play a musical instrument, we can fine-tune our ability to skillfully react to those crazy, wonderful, big feelings that naturally arise from our child’s constant growth and changes, moving from chaos to harmony. We want our children to trust that they can conquer any challenge with hard work and persistence; that they can love boundlessly; that they will find their unique sense of purpose; and they will act wisely in a complex world. This book shows you how.
The Emotional Lives of Teenagers; Raising Connected, Capable, and Compassionate Adolescents
by Lisa Damour, PhD
In teenagers, powerful emotions come with the territory. With clear, research-informed explanations alongside illuminating, real-life examples, The Emotional Lives of Teenagers gives parents the concrete, practical information they need to steady their teens through the bumpy yet transformational journey into adulthood.
Educators, this one is for you…
Teaching with the Heart in Mind
by Lorea Martinez Perez, PhD
In Teaching with the HEART in Mind, Dr. Lorea Martínez Pérez provides a comprehensive roadmap to understanding the psychology of emotions, relationships, and adversity in learning, while equipping you to teach SEL skills and develop your own social and emotional intelligence. Full of practical techniques for educators of all subjects, this is your guide for transforming your classroom through essential SEL principles.
Making Grateful Kids: A Scientific Approach to Help Youth Thrive
by Jeffrey Froh, Giacomo Bono
Jeffrey J. Froh and Giacomo Bono introduce their most compelling research, announce groundbreaking findings and share real-life stories from adults and youth to show parents, teachers, mentors and kids how to achieve greater life satisfaction through gratitude. They offer many simple strategies for building habits of gratitude into day to day life and provide compelling evidence for its importance.
Brainstorm: The Power and Purpose of the Teenage Brain: An Inside-Out Guide to the Emerging Adolescent Mind, Ages 12-24
by Daniel J. Siegel (Goodreads Author)
Dr. Siegel is a leading expert in brain science. This book sheds light on the often misunderstood yet critical time in a child’s life in which they straddle childhood and adulthood but don’t fit squarely in either phase. Siegel characterizes the teen years as the most powerful life phase for activating courage, purpose and creativity. He creates empathy for the teenage experience and helps parents understand how to work with and support the teens in their lives.
Parenting Without Power Struggles: Raising Joyful, Resilient Kids While Staying Cool, Calm and Connected
by Susan Stiffelman
Stiffelman shows you how to awake your child’s natural instincts to cooperate by being the confident parent your child needs, teaching you how to parent from a place of strong, durable connection and helping your child navigate the challenging moments of growing up. This is an excellent resource for any parents but particularly for those who find themselves in power struggles with their children.
by Susan K. Greenland
This book offers a step-by-step process of mental training with tools. It shows parents how to teach their children to better respond to stressful life circumstances and guides them to become more thoughtful, resilient and empathetic.
Parenting From the Inside Out
by Daniel J. Siegel (Goodreads Author), Mary Hartzell
Drawing upon research findings in neurobiology and attachment research, Siegel and Hartzell explain how interpersonal relationships directly impact the development of the brain, and offer parents a step-by-step approach to forming a deeper understanding of their own life stories, which will help them raise compassionate and resilient children. This book addresses the patterns that we all form from our own childhood – understanding what they are and how they impact the parents we are today.
Emotionally Intelligent Parenting: How to Raise a Self-Disciplined, Responsible, Socially Skilled Child
by Maurice J. Elias, Steven E. Tobias, Brian S. Friedlander, Daniel Goleman (Goodreads Author) (Foreword)
Parents will learn how to communicate with children on a deeper, more gratifying level. I love the 24 Karat Golden Rule: “Do unto your children as you would have other people do unto your children.” The book offers exercises and guidance on how to raise your own self-awareness and bring emotional intelligence into your family life.
Positive Discipline
by Jane Nelsen
An easy to read guide, Jane Nelsen coaches parents and teachers to be firm and kind, so that any child from toddler to teenager can learn creative cooperation and self-discipline with no loss of dignity.
Positive Discipline A-Z: 1001 Solutions to Everyday Parenting Problems
by Jane Nelsen, H. Stephen Glenn, Lynn Lott
Written as a quick reference guide, this book will teach you methods for raising a child who is responsible, respectful and resourceful by finding practical solutions to parenting challenges such as bedtime hassles, school problems, whining and so much more.
Yardsticks: Children in the Classroom Ages 4-14
by Chip Wood
This comprehensive, user-friendly reference helps those who work with and love children use the knowledge of child development to shape classrooms and schools where all children can succeed, by giving charts on development traits, physical, social, language and cognitive growth patterns and suggestions for curricular areas. Though the text is geared for educators, it remains an exceptional resource for parents who want to understand each age and stage of development.
Transitions: Making Sense of Life’s Changes
by William Bridges
William Bridges spent his life working to understand changes. Whether you are going through the birth of a new baby, a move, a job change or the death of a loved one, this book explains in simple yet brilliant terms how any person can understand the emotions they are undergoing, help ease the transition and launch a new life.
Building Powerful Learning Environments from Schools to Communities
by Arina Bokas
Named a top pick for teacher professional development by the National Council of Teachers of English, Bokas makes a solid case for the kind of education required to prepare global citizens and develop children physically, socially, emotionally and academically. She uncovers beliefs and assumptions that are now outdated and do not serve our children but still remain drivers of policy and practice. And she offers practical suggestions for deepening trust between families, communities, and schools. Jennifer Miller of CPCK contributed to this book.
On the Same Team; Bringing Educators and Underrepresented Families Together
by Ari Gerzon-Kessler
Establish a sense of community and foundation of trust with parents and guardians. On the Same Team offers current research and real classroom examples to guide school and district leaders in building Families and Educators Together (FET) teams. Discover how the FET framework can help create strong family-school partnerships and foster a culture of inclusion and support for underrepresented groups.
Raising Emotionally Intelligent Teenagers shows parents how to use a balance of love, laughter, and limits to reach their goals. This book offers a clear guide to unlock teenagers’ untapped desire to belong to families and schools that make a difference and to contribute positively to them. Filled with real-life scenarios, practical strategies, and the answers to the questions parents ask most frequently, the authors’ draw from both professional and personal experiences with warmth and humor.
© Copyright, 2024, Jennifer Smith Miller. All rights reserved.
