Books that Build Character

Teaching values to children is such an important task for teachers, counselors, pastors, parents and people in general. Many times, values are taught through experiences and teachable moments, but sometimes it's nice to have a teaching tool. Visiting our library last week, I just stumbled upon a great book series to help teach character. The "Way to Be" series includes these titles:

Being a Good Citizen: A Book About Citizenship
Being Brave
Being Considerate
Being Cooperative
Being Courageous
Being Fair: A Book About Fairness
Being Honest
Being Respectful: A Book About Respectfulness
Being Responsible: A Book About Responsibility
Being Tolerant
Being Trustworthy: A Book About Trustworthiness
Caring: A Book About Caring

The books have simple bright illustrations, clear & simple text, and they are easy to read aloud. We've read 3 so far, and I'll be going back to the library for more. They take concepts like citizenship, and make it very easy for children to understand - and apply to their everyday lives.

You can supplement these topical character books with other classic books that promote values - you can see a list of almost 100 books for k-3 in our new book, Building Character from the Start: 201 Activities to Foster Creativity, Literacy and Play in K-3.

Do you have favorite books for teaching character? We'd love to hear about them!