Kindness.

Each book on this shelf shows a character noticing what someone needs and then doing something about it. That second step is the part young children can copy, so it’s worth pointing out as you read. In A Sick Day for Amos McGee, a zookeeper spends time with each animal friend in the way that suits it, and when he gets sick they come and look after him the same way. Sophia, in A Hat for Mrs. Goldman, realizes that the neighbor who knits hats for everyone needs one herself.

In The Lion and the Mouse and Amos and Boris, a small animal helps a big one who once helped it. For older children, Each Kindness and Maddi’s Fridge make the idea harder: one is about a missed chance to be kind, the other about a problem too big to solve without a grown-up. While you read, try asking “What did she notice?” and then “What did she do?”