Mother’s Day is a wonderful holiday to celebrate! However, in the classroom, we need to remember that families come in all different shapes and sizes. I’ve pulled together some Mother’s Day books that honor a variety of family structures. Some of these books have single moms, moms who are incarcerated, and families with two moms.
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Mother’s Day Books
Dreams for a Daughter by Carole Boston Weatherford
Dreams for a Daughter is a stunning and empowering picture book celebrates a Black mother’s hopes and dreams for her daughter. It is a love letter from mother to daughter that inspires young girls to follow their dreams, no matter what challenges life might bring. The gorgeous illustrations are a perfect match to this inspiring tribute from a mother.
A Chair for My Mother by Vera B. Williams
A Chair for My Mother is a powerful story about how hard a single mother works for her family. She is determined to restore their lives back to normal after a fire burns all their possessions. It teaches readers a lesson in hard work, empathy and appreciation throughout the story.
Mommy’s Khimar by Jamilah Thompkins-Bigelow
Mommy’s Khimar is a beautiful, whimsical story that show a young Muslim girl’s imagination and reality of wearing one of her mother’s khimars. It follows a little girl as she tries on her mother’s headscarves. When she’s wearing it, she envisions herself as a queen, a shooting star, and even a superhero.
Readers can see how much love the child has for her mother and what the khimar means to her. And many children will be able to relate to using an article of grown-ups’ clothing to spark their imagination.
Dreamers by Yuyi Morales
In 1994, Yuyi Morales left her home in Mexico and came to the US with her infant son. She left behind nearly everything she owned, but she didn’t come empty-handed. She brought her strength, her work, her passion, her hopes and her dreams. Dreamers is the story of mother and son, of love, of finding your place in an unfamiliar country, and the power of books.
Milo Imagines the World by Matt de la Pena
In Milo Imagines the World, he is on a long subway ride with his sister. Milo is very nervous about the destination in which he is going. To pass the time, he observes the people around him and draws stories that he imagines their lives to be.
At the end of the story, the reader discovers that Milo is going to visit his mother, who is incarcerated. And he imagines her being home again, with him and his sister.
In Our Mothers’ House by Patricia Polacco
Marmee, Meema, and the kids are just like any other family on the block. In their beautiful house, they cook dinner together, they laugh together, and they dance together. But some of the other families don’t accept them. How can a family have two moms and no dad? But Marmee and Meema’s house is full of love. And they teach their children that different doesn’t mean wrong.
In the back of the book, Polacco reveals that she wrote In Our Mothers’ House specifically for children from untraditional families because she saw such a need for a book such as this.
What are your favorite Mother’s Day books to read aloud? Stay tuned, because I’ll be sharing books about families and Father’s Day books soon!
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