Celebrations Book List

We’ve enjoyed putting together this list: so many glorious books about all-things celebratory! Each title reflects experiences and perspectives of different festivals, special occasions and life-events with the ultimate goals of sparking joy from within and allowing children to explore their sense of identity and acknowledge and celebrate themselves.

At this point in time, where reasons to celebrate might have seemed few and far between for some time now, we are slowly beginning to re-emerge from lockdown. For some, celebrations may have continued, albeit in a virtual sense or within family/household/support bubbles. The sense of needing to find joy and something - anything – to look forward to during the pandemic may have seen you having little celebrations, treats, ‘party-style’ activities for any reason going. Conversely, for others isolation, fear and any number of other sets of challenging circumstances that the pandemic has brought may have impacted upon children (and their families’) ability to feel joy and to find cause to celebrate.

So we wanted to revisit a booklist of ours that focuses on the theme of celebrations in the hope that each title may help spark some joy. Of course, ‘celebration’ in its whole sense needn’t be just about specific events on a calendar such as Eid or Shrove Tuesday; we also celebrate weddings and new babies. And so too must we encourage children to celebrate themselves; to consider what makes them them, something that is key in supporting children to reintegrate when – for some – shyness and anxiety may well have taken hold due to being apart from others for such large amounts of time.

These glorious books are great for book-corners; recommending to individual children (especially in the case of a child who is to have a new sibling arrive); to support your school’s RE syllabus and for assemblies.

Posted in: Book Lists