A Welcoming Place: Stories for Kids

The Day You Begin

These books highlight the little and big things that can make someone feel welcome in a new place — a smile, a kind word, or learning how to say someone's name. They also highlight and celebrate diversity in different places, including schools and neighborhoods.

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You can find more great titles in the following:

A World Together

Photographs of children from around the world
Age Level: 3-6, 6-9

Sonia Manzano, Sesame Street's beloved character Maria, brings warmth and wit to this timely picture book that looks across cultures and generations to celebrate what unites us, wherever we come from. Manzano's lyrical prose combined with stunning photography of people from dozens of countries around the world explores how all of our lives are enriched by our geographic and cultural diversity.

All Are Welcome

Diverse students walking with teacher
Illustrated by: Suzanne Kaufman
Age Level: 6-9

Discover a school where — no matter what — young children have a place, have a space, and are loved and appreciated. Follow a group of children through a day in their school, where everyone is welcomed with open arms. A school where students from all backgrounds learn from and celebrate each other's traditions. A school that shows the world as we will make it to be.

Amy Wu and the Warm Welcome

Diverse group of children around a scroll
By: Kat Zhang
Illustrated by: Charlene Chua
Age Level: 6-9

Amy’s class has a new student from China! Amy tries hard to make Lin feel included, but she can’t draw him out of his shell. Then she sees Lin chattering happily in Chinese with his family. The gears in her head start to turn, and a plan blossoms. Step one: invite Lin to her dumpling party…With a little help from her grandma and a shiny new banner, can Amy give Lin the warmest welcome?

Block Party (Confetti Kids)

Illustrated by: Shirley Ng-Benitez
Age Level: 3-6

The neighborhood is having a block party where everyone is responsible for bringing a food dish. Padma is excited about the party until she learns that her mother is planning to bring lentil soup. Padma thinks soup is so boring! Everyone else will bring fun things like pizza or hot dogs. Plus Padma worries that her friends won’t like the soup—but to her delight, she discovers that they not only like the soup, they want to learn how to make it.

Buddy Bench (Confetti Kids)

Five kids around a bench that is covered in colored hand prints.
Illustrated by: Shirley Ng-Benitez
Age Level: 6-9

Five friends from diverse backgrounds learn how to navigate common childhood challenges, new experiences, and the world around them in the realistic and kid-friendly Confetti Kids early chapter books. In this story, Padma is excited about meeting new people at school. Making friends comes easily to her, but she soon discovers that it can be hard for others. When she notices a boy sitting by himself every day, Padma enlists her friends to create a buddy bench, where kids can go if they need a friend.

Eyes That Kiss at the Corners

Illustration of young girl
By: Joanna Ho
Illustrated by: Dung Ho
Age Level: 3-6, 6-9

A young Asian girl notices that her eyes look different from her peers'. They have big, round eyes and long lashes. She realizes that her eyes are like her mother's, her grandmother's, and her little sister's. They have eyes that kiss in the corners and glow like warm tea, crinkle into crescent moons, and are filled with stories of the past and hope for the future. Drawing from the strength of these powerful women in her life, she recognizes her own beauty and discovers a path to self-love and empowerment.

I'm New Here

Pictures of three new immigrant students at school
Age Level: 6-9

Maria, Jin, and Fatimah are new to their American elementary school. The words that they hear around them and see on the page are confusing. They each long for the language that they understand and the friends who understand them back home. They feel as though they don’t fit in — they are alone, confused, and sad in their new school. After observing those around them, each new student slowly gains the confidence to interact with their new surroundings. They realize that their peers and teachers are very supportive, welcoming, and excited to learn what these new classmates have to share.

Maybe Something Beautiful: How Art Transformed a Neighborhood

Girl imagining drawing
Illustrated by: Rafael López
Age Level: 6-9
Language: Spanish

What good can a splash of color do in a town that is gray? As Mira and her neighbors discover, more than you might ever imagine! Based on the true story of the Urban Art Trail in San Diego, California, Maybe Something Beautiful reveals how art can inspire transformation—and how even the smallest artists can accomplish something big. Pick up a paintbrush and join the celebration! 

Mina Belongs Here

Young girl in front of other girls who are playing
Illustrated by: Lars Baus
Age Level: 3-6, 6-9

At Mina's kindergarten she listens to stories, songs and chatter in an unfamiliar language. She tries out sounds that roar in her throat and tickle her tongue until the new words feel like her own. Then one day, Mina realises that this language now belongs to her, and she belongs to this new world. Mina Belongs Here is a heartfelt and uplifting story of a migrant experience and discovering a sense of belonging through shared words.

Say My Name

Two students talking
By: Joanna Ho
Illustrated by: Khoa Le
Age Level: 6-9, 9-12
Language: Chinese, Diné (Navajo), Persian, Spanish

Six children connect with the reader and proudly celebrate their names and backgrounds: Hé Xiao-Guang, Ofa Kivaha Tupoumalohi, Bijan Hosseini, Nizhoni Yazzie, Xóchitl Luna, and Akosua Acheampong. These captivating kids of Chinese, Tongan, Persian, Navajo, Mexican, and Ghanaian descent also honor their ancestors and cultural histories. Joanna Ho’s lyrical story, with gorgeous illustrations by Khoa Le, explains how saying a person’s name is the only way we can truly know another.

Someone New

Three sets of students
Age Level: 6-9

In I'm New Here, readers meet three recent immigrants trying to adjust to a new country and school. In the companion book Someone New, the same story is told from the perspective of the students who welcome the newcomers. An honest and heartwarming look at diversity, inclusion, and friendship.

The Color Collector

A boy watches a young girl bending over to pick something up
Illustrated by: Renia Metallinou
Age Level: 6-9

When a boy notices the new girl at school picking up all manner of debris and litter on their walks home from school, he wants to know why. He soon learn that she is creating something that reminds her of the home she left behind and he starts helping her collecting new colors to add to her masterpiece.

Your Name Is a Song

Your Name Is a Song
Illustrated by: Luisa Uribe
Age Level: 6-9

Frustrated by a day full of teachers and classmates mispronouncing her beautiful name, a little girl tells her mother she never wants to come back to school. In response, the girl's mother teaches her about the musicality of African, Asian, Black-American, Latinx, and Middle Eastern names on their lyrical walk home through the city. Empowered by this newfound understanding, the young girl is ready to return the next day to share her knowledge with her class. Your Name is a Song is a celebration to remind all of us about the beauty, history, and magic behind names.