Books like Some Secrets Should Never Be Kept
By Jayneen Sanders
Some Secrets Should Never Be Kept gives you the exact words for a hard talk, without ever scaring your kid. It walks through safe and unsafe touch so plainly that telling a trusted adult, and telling again if needed, feels like the obvious next step. Here are more books for opening that same conversation.
Same author, same calm approach, but My Body! What I Say Goes! by Jayneen Sanders hands your kid the actual words to say when a touch feels wrong.
A gentle rhyming book teaches young children that their private parts belong to them alone, and that if anyone touches them there, they should tell a safe adult.
Don't Touch My Hair! by Sharee Miller takes the same asking-first idea and turns it into a chase across jungles and space, funny instead of solemn.
A gentle guide walks children through the difference between fun surprises and secrets that feel scary or confusing, helping them learn when it's time to tell a trusted grown-up.
A gentle guide explains that children get to decide who touches their body, even a loving relative asking for a hug, and that it's always right to tell if someone touches their private parts.
A princess who has no interest in marrying gives her royal suitors impossible tasks to scare them off, until one persistent prince manages to pass every test.
On his 6th birthday, a boy gets pinched, noogied, hugged too tight, and tickled by loving family members until he finally speaks up and declares himself the boss of his own body.
A long-legged girl who dreams of ballet worries her too-big feet and outspoken mouth will hold her back, so she takes bold, attention-grabbing risks when a famous director visits her class.
A child gets an idea — strange, exciting, and a little scary — and has to decide whether to protect it, ignore it, or give it room to grow.
A board book walks young readers through ten common feelings, pairing each one with a simple body movement and a spoken affirmation like 'I Am Brave!' to help kids meet big emotions with confidence.
A girl who sings to the sun, the moon, and the birds outside her window says yes to a solo in her school's Spring Sing — then has to face the butterflies of stage fright with her grandmother's help.
Confidence again, but for a brain that works differently rather than a body that needs protecting. Wish in a Tree by Lynda Mullaly Hunt widens what self-respect can mean.
