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For many people (myself included) the idea of failure can feel terrifying. The thought of trying and doing something wrong, and having others witness your mistake, is enough to stop folks of all ages from trying new activities.
As we help our kids prepare for the upcoming school year, I think we should look at failure in a whole new way. Rather than a stopping point, failure should be embraced as part of the learning process, as a natural step toward growing and trying something new. Failure can even lead to good things, including resilience, building self-esteem, learning new skills and critical thinking.
I’ve rounded up 15 books that take a look at failure as an inevitable part of life that leads to learning, rather than something scary. Read on, and get ready to feel brave!
Preschool and younger
“Beautiful Oops!” Barney Saltzberg (ages 2–6)
This beautifully illustrated, interactive book demonstrates how every mistake is an opportunity to make something beautiful. Flip through the pages and watch a stain, a rip, bent paper, ink drops and more transform into fun and creative art. Kids will see how failures and mistakes can sometimes be fortuitous and create something wonderful and unexpected.
“The Most Magnificent Thing” by Ashley Spires (ages 3–7)
A young girl who loves creating decides to make a truly magnificent thing. She makes drawings, collects materials and gets to work on the sidewalk. But, things don’t go as planned and soon her excitement and enthusiasm turn to frustration and anger. With the help of her trusty dog and a nice walk, she is able to calm down, reset and come up with a plan that just might work. This book demonstrates that the path to success is often paved with failure, challenges and big emotions, and the important thing is to not give up.
“Michael Jordan” by Mary Nhin (ages 3 and older)
We all know that Michael Jordan was an incredibly successful basketball player, many say one of the best. But did you know that even Michael Jordan experienced failure? He was cut from his high school basketball team! But, rather than give up, he used his experience with failure to motivate him to try hard and ultimately find success.
“The Struggle Bus” by Julie Koon (ages 4–6)
This book focuses on the concept of struggle rather than failure, but the message is the same. Sometimes things are hard or don’t go as planned; you feel bad or frustrated, which is ok; but it’s ultimately important to move forward and not get “stuck on the bus.” Written in rhyme, this book delivers a lighthearted story about facing challenges and the message that we can do hard things. The author uses her experience as an elementary school counselor to make this social-emotional concept accessible and relatable to young readers.
“The Empty Pot” by Demi (ages 4–7)
This beautiful picture book tells the story of an honest schoolboy, Ping, who loves flowers and is talented at growing them. The Emperor also loves flowers, and when he needs to choose an heir each child is given a seed. Whoever grows the best flower in a year will get the throne. Ping is excited, but no matter what he tries his seed will not grow and all he has to show is an empty pot. Ping discovers that through his honesty about his failure comes success in this popular story.
“Fail-a-Bration” by Brad Montaue and Kristi Montague (ages 4–8)
The sweet book written in rhyme by New York Times bestselling authors encouraging kids to celebrate and talk about their failures rather than get stuck in the disappointment and give up. Readers are encouraged to get together and throw a “fail-a-bration” and talk about all the things they tried and learned, even if the results were not what they hoped for.
“The School of Failure: A Story About Success” by Rosie J. Pova (ages 4–8)
Follow the story of three failed fairy tale characters: Wolfred, Zinderella and the Non-Evil Queen. After being rejected from classic fairy-tales, the trio heads to the School of Failure where they discover that patience, persistence and mistakes can lead to the discovery of your true self.
“After the Fall (How Humpty Dumpty Got Back Up Again)” by Dan Santat (ages 4–8)
After Humpty Dumpty’s great fall, he is afraid of heights and can no longer enjoy many of his favorite activities. While many books on this list talk about the fact that failures and mistakes will happen, this award-wining clever twist on the classic story will help kids think about what happens after a mistake or a failure. Will Humpty Dumpty find the courage to get back up on the wall and continue doing what he enjoys?
Elementary aged readers
“I Choose to Try Again” by Elizabeth Estrada (ages 5–7)
In this rhyming picture book about perseverance, Kiara learns how to keep going even when things are hard. As she reflects on her mistakes and failures, she realized that she can learn from them, and that mistakes help her grown. From basketball to learning the piano, Kiara continues to try and never gives up on her dreams.
“Ballots for Belva” by Sudipta Bardhan-Quallen (ages 5–7)
Belva Ann Bennett Lockwood was an amazing woman. She was a lawyer, politician, education, author, and ran for president in 1884 and 1888, a time when only men were allowed to vote. Her chances of winning were next to none, but despite the fact that most newspapers were opposed to her candidacy she managed to get over 4,000 votes! Belva’s story is an excellent example of a failure that was an important step in the progress for women’s rights.
“The Girl Who Never Made Mistakes” by Mark Pett (ages 5–8)
Aimed at young readers who struggle with perfectionism, this book tells the story of Beatrice Bottomwell, who has never made a mistake. In fact, the whole town even called her The Girl Who Never Makes Mistakes! But one day, Beatrice makes a big mistake in front of everyone. This book helps kids understand that failures and mistakes happen to everyone, and that life is more fun when you enjoy everything, mistakes included.
“A Kids Book About Failure” by Dr. Laymon Hicks (ages 5–9)
This is part of the “A Kids Book About” series which aims to facilitate challenging and important conversations between kids and adults. Using big, bold, simple text this book takes a head-on approach to talking about failure. It acknowledges that failures are inevitable and no fun, but they can lead to learning and you should not try and avoid failures at all costs. If you like this book, check out the others in the series, including “A Kids Book About Anxiety” and “A Kids Book About Belonging.”
“What to Do When Mistakes Make You Quake: A Kid’s Guide to Accepting Imperfection” by Claire A.B. Freeland (ages 5–10)
What do we do when we feel shaken by a mistake, or afraid of making another one? This book tackles those tricky questions through the eyes of explores investigating a place they have never been. They have trouble reading their map and they might make a wrong turn, but if they cannot accept their mistakes they might never discover anything new! This book helps kids learn how to deal with the feels of fear around failure and mistakes so they can embrace with confidence all the new things life has to offer.
“Yay! You Failed!” Shannon Anderson (ages 6–9)
This book is a guide (rather than a story) for kids to learn how to set goals, overcome challenges, build resilience and believe in themselves. It teaches kids about the importance of a growth mindset, how to celebrate mistakes, and to approach new challenges with an “I can” attitude. There is even a glossary of terms to help support your child’s vocabulary growth.
“Fantastic Failures: True Stories of People Who Changed the World by Falling Down First” by Luke Reynolds (ages 9–12)
It’s easy to think that famous and successful people achieve their goals immediately on the first try. Not true! This book tells readers the story of the mistakes and failures of some of history’s most famous people, including Albert Einstein, Nelson Mandela, Frida Kahlo and many more. Who knows, maybe one day your name will be on that list!
More books to read and love: |
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