RaisingMom.ca

Two friends reading, learning, laughing, and taking this adoptive mom gig one day at a time

  • Welcome
  • Reflections on Parenting
    • Parenting Styles/Beliefs
    • Parenting How-Tos
    • Adoption
      • Interracial Adoption
    • Spirituality in Parenting
    • Twins
    • Self-Care for Moms
    • Humor
  • Children’s Book Reviews
    • Starred Reviews
    • Board Books
    • Picture Books (Ages 2 – 6)
    • Picture Books for Older Kids (6+)
    • Canadian
    • Books about Adoption / Fostering
    • Books about Diversity
    • Books about Values
    • First Nations / Indigenous
    • Beginning Chapter Books
    • Chapter Books
    • Other Reviews
  • Contact Us
    • For Publishers, Authors, Illustrators, Publicists & Companies Seeking a Product or Service Review
  • Disclosures
  • Free Resources

What Makes Us Unique?: our first talk about diversity by Dr. Jillian Roberts – Book Review

Erin Leave a Comment

What Makes Us Unique? coverABOUT THE BOOK: What Makes Us Unique? *
Author: Dr. Jillian Roberts
Illustrator: Cindy Revell
Published by: Orca Book Publishers
Released: September 2016
Series: Just Enough: Difficult Topics Made Easy
Ages: 3 – 6
RaisingMom.ca Rating:  4 out of 5 stars
Order from Chapters/Indigo, Amazon.ca or Amazon.com*

From the Publisher:

When it comes to explaining physical, cultural and religious differences to children, it can be difficult to know where to begin.What Makes Us Unique?provides an accessible introduction to the concept of diversity, teaching children how to respect and celebrate people’s differences and that ultimately, we are all much more alike than we are different. Additional questions at the back of the book allow for further discussion.
Child psychologist Dr. Jillian Roberts designed the Just Enough series to empower parents/caregivers to start conversations with young ones about difficult or challenging subject matter. Other books in the series deal with birth, death, separation and divorce. For more information, visit www.justenoughseries.com.

Description:

Just like the other titles in the Just Enough series, this book is a tool to help parents, teachers, and other caregivers discuss a challenging subject with children ages 3-7. In this title, the topic of diversity (physical, cultural, and religious) is explored. Dr. Jillian Roberts is a child psychologist, so concepts are applied at a cognitively appropriate level. Differences within the human race are compared to the colours of the rainbow and differences on the outside and inside of people are explored. Emphasis is made on the positives, rather than the negatives.The colourful illustrations lend a storybook quality to the book.  Some of the language introduced will need explanation and repetition, so this would be best used a one-on-one read aloud or with a small group of children.  It would be a perfect “just in time” book after a distressing event such as experiencing a racial slur in the playground, or to help explain some of the negative stories from the news. 

My Experience:

Some of the language used was above my (mature-for-her-age) three-year old.  I had to do a lot of extra explaining, which wasn’t necessarily a bad thing.  The book is broken down into easy-to-follow chunks, allowing for discussion along the way.  My daughter responded well to the illustrations, which contain enough diversity to readily support the point of the text.  Anything I had trouble explaining at her level was helped by the pictures on the page.  The extra questions at the end were helpful, too.  This is a very important book to have to help explain and dissect an upsetting event that a child experiences, witnesses, or hears about on the news.  It helps make a difficult subject approachable for kids.

     Likes:

  • intended audience is kids – rare to find something like this!
  • author is a child psychologist, so points are developmentally and cognitively appropriate
  • illustrations are eye-catching and support the text – especially helpful for younger kids

     Dislikes:

  • a few sections got a bit wordy and confusing, but this is very minor

Why/How Use it with kids:

  • use it to help discuss an upsetting event or news event that involves diversity or racism
  • extend the book by asking children to relate their own experiences – good and bad
  • draw a picture of what acceptance looks like

About the Author/Illustrator:

Dr. Jillian Roberts is a Child and Adolescent psychologist who specializes in children’s development and well-being. She is also a professor of educational psychology at the University of Victoria. Her bestselling app Facts Of Life is designed to help children understand where babies come from in an interactive, wholesome and fun way. Jillian is a wife and mother of three children and lives in Victoria, British Columbia.
Cindy Revell –  Has a degree in environmental graphic design. She has done work for Disney, L.A. Times, Washington Post, Harvard Business Review, Better Homes and Gardens, Cornell University, Penguin Putnam, and Scholastic. In 2001 Cindy was nominated for a Governor General’s award for children’s book illustration. She lives in Edmonton, Alberta.
 ~Erin

Order from Chapters/Indigo, Amazon.ca or Amazon.com*

*Affiliate Links – see disclosure page
Preview copy provided by United Library Services 

Share this:

  • Click to share on Twitter (Opens in new window)
  • Click to share on Facebook (Opens in new window)
  • Click to share on Pinterest (Opens in new window)
  • More
  • Click to print (Opens in new window)

Related

Books about Diversity, Canadian, Children's Book Reviews, Other Reviews, Picture Books (Ages 2 - 6) culture, differences, diversity, physical differences, psychologist, race, racism, religion

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

You have to agree to the comment policy.

About Us

Meet Erin & Colleen

Meet Erin & Colleen

Follow Raising Mom on Social Media

  • Facebook
  • Instagram
  • Pinterest
  • Twitter

Subscribe HERE

* indicates required
RaisingMom.ca Newsletter/Notification Options
This error message is only visible to WordPress admins

Error: No connected account.

Please go to the Instagram Feed settings page to connect an account.

Latest Parenting Posts

  • Advocating for Your Child at School – Tips for building a strong relationship with your child’s teacher
    Advocating For Your Child at School
  • Parenting While Grieving… tips from a mom who keeps failing, and showing up anyway
    Parenting While Grieving
  • It’s Not About the Boots!! – Tips for dealing when our kids [seemingly] try to manipulate us
    It's Not About The Boots
...more

Latest Kids’ Book Reviews

  • On Our Street: Our First Talk About Poverty by Dr. Jillian Roberts and Jaime Casap – Book Review
    On Our Street Our First Talk About Poverty Homelessness mental illness
  • Wild One by Jane Whittingham & Illustrated by Noel Tuazon – Book Review
    Wild One Image
  • Bessie, Queen of the sky by Andrea Doshi & Jimena Duran – Book Review
    Bessie, Queen of the sky by Andrea Doshi & Jimena Duran - Book Review
...More

Upcoming ETC Training Opportunities

Stay tuned for upcoming opportunities!

Readers Love These Posts:

  • Parenting While Grieving Parenting While Grieving…... My Grief Experience After a 2.5 year cancer journey... under Parenting, Parenting How-Tos, Parenting Styles/Beliefs, Self-Care for Moms, Spirituality in Parenting
  • Braids Munsch Review Braids! by Robert Munsch Review of Braids! * by Robert Munsch Author: Robert Mu... under Books about Diversity, Canadian, Children's Book Reviews, Picture Books (Ages 2 - 6), Picture Books for Older Kids (6+)
  • Be heard without yelling Making Sure You’re Heard... Want Less Yelling and Better Communication?? Me too! D... under Adoption, Parenting, Parenting How-Tos, Parenting Styles/Beliefs, Spirituality in Parenting

Copyright © 2021 · Daily Dish Pro Theme on Genesis Framework · WordPress · Log in