Welcome to CPL’s Let’s Talk! Here you can find more information about our Let’s Talk book discussion kits, as well as other useful resources designed to support talking with your children about big, potentially complicated ideas.
At some point, most young children will have questions, worries and misconceptions when it comes to other people and how they experience the world. This is especially true when it has to do with fairness, justice and equality. For example, they might want to know why some people experience race and racism, or war and violence.
These are conversations that don’t have easy or simple answers, even for grown-ups. Sometimes it can be tempting for adults to avoid the topic or wait until their child is older to try and talk about it, especially when we don’t know exactly what to say. Luckily, at the library, we know that sharing books and stories together is one of the most powerful ways to learn and grow, and that’s what inspired our Let’s Talk kits. There’s no right or wrong way to use these kits! We encourage you to let your conversation flow naturally, let your child ask questions, and demonstrate curiosity and an open mind.
Each Let’s Talk kit contains a set of 3 or 4 picture books that focus on a similar topic. They also include a laminated tip sheet and set of open-ended discussion questions for those books that grown-ups and children can talk through together. There are two versions of each kit, with different books and questions: one that is best for kids 4 to 7 years old, and one that is best for kids 8 to 11 years old.
The discussion questions are divided into three categories:
- Story: Reflecting on what happened in the story itself, including how it made you feel or what might happen next.
- Self: Reflecting on how the story relates to your life, including what similarities and differences there are.
- World: Applying the ideas in the story to our world more broadly.
These categories are designed to help you and your child transition naturally from talking about more concrete ideas, like what happened in the book, to more abstract, broad ideas about the world in general.
Need more assistance? Check out the following resources:
Kits coming in February 2025:
- Welcoming Communities and Immigration (Ages 4 to 7)
- Welcoming Communities and Immigration (Ages 8 to 11)
Upcoming kits in late 2025:
- Black Identity and Joy (Ages 4 to 7)
- Black Identity and Joy (Ages 8 to 11)
