6 Picture Books to Help Newcomer Students Build a Sense of Belonging

In recent years, a significant number of people across the globe have crossed borders from many different countries and for many different reasons. Because of that, classrooms around the U.S. and Canada are growing more and more diverse as children bring their unique cultural and linguistic identities to school every day.

For some of these children, it can be difficult to develop a sense of belonging in a new place. Picture books offer a great opportunity to support them in building their sense of belonging by opening the door to important conversations and allowing children to see themselves—and their identity, language, and culture—reflected.

While there are many picture books that teachers can use to foster a sense of belonging, I have read and reflected on the following six books and seen how they’ve allowed children to build community and empathy. These books helped me to understand and support the sense of belonging of newcomer children who participated in my research. In addition, for me as an early-childhood postsecondary instructor, picture books such as these have offered my students strategies and inspired them to welcome and honor newcomer children’s languages and culture.

6 Picture Books to Foster Newcomer Children’s Sense of Belonging

1. Where Are You From? by Yamile Saied Méndez, illustrated by Jaime Kim. This book is centered around Mia, whose friends keep asking her where she is really from. With that question in mind, Mia embarks on a journey with her abuelo (grandfather) to understand her family roots as well as her sense of belonging in this world. Mia’s journey to discover more about her heritage illustrates the importance of embracing children’s unique identity and belonging.

When children are reading this book, educators can invite them to think about their own sense of belonging and how they feel connected to where they are from. You can ask children to talk about themselves, their parents, or other family members and how they show that the places where they grew up are important to them.

2. We Laugh Alike/Juntos Nos Reímos, by Carmen T. Bernier-Grand, illustrated by Alyssa Bermudez. In this book, two groups of children who speak different languages—English and Spanish—bond around play and laugh. While this book is a bilingual book featuring English and Spanish words, it emphasizes peer relationships and how kids feel welcome and a sense of belonging through play and laughter.

When teaching this book, I focused on the plurality of children and communities. Educators can invite children to display photos, objects, books, songs, drawings, or flags that represent their heritage and/or help them feel they belong to a certain place. When labeling children’s materials to display for others, educators can also include all languages that each child speaks. This reinforces the value of the multiple languages that exist in the classroom.

3. My Favorite Memories, by Sepideh Sarihi, illustrated by Julie Völk. This book explores memory and belonging through a young girl’s eyes. To navigate her migrant journey, the girl wishes to pack her favorite things in a suitcase: a wooden chair, a pear tree, an aquarium, and her best friend. The child recounts memories from her home country, which later support her to embrace her new experiences in a foreign country. For the girl, memories provide comfort and support her sense of belonging in this new environment.

When teaching this book, I focused on the question, what memories from their home country and migrant journey do children carry with them? For newcomer children, this story reinforces the idea that memories and traditions are integral to their identity, helping them feel proud as they develop their sense of belonging to a new culture. By sharing and integrating these memories into the classrooms and activities, educators can support children in finding their sense of belonging that honors both their home and new countries.

4. Mina Belongs Here, by Sandra Niebuhr-Siebert, illustrated by Lars Baus. Mina is a newcomer who struggles to feel at home in a new country. With the support of her friends, she discovers that belonging is about making connections with others and building relationships.

When teaching this book, educators can invite students to talk about their friends and loved ones and how they are important for them. Mina’s journey shares how friendships inspire newcomer children to build their sense of belonging in their new home while maintaining their cultural identities.

5. Tomatoes in My Lunchbox, by Costantia Manoli, illustrated by Magdalena Mora. A child who arrives in a new country feels out of place on her first day of school. Unlike the way she’s used to hearing her name, this one doesn’t sound the same. Besides, she feels lonely when eating lunch—a tomato. But when a friend joins her class, a sense of belonging immediately comes over her, making her feel like part of a community.

When teaching this book, you can encourage children to share about their favorite thing to do/eat in their home country as well as in the new country. This allows them to feel pride for their experiences in a different country and make connections with other children as they share what they love to do/eat here.

6. My America, by Karen Katz. This book celebrates immigration in the United States. From all around the world, children share their stories about where they’re from and where they live now. Their descriptions of foods, languages, sports, and more show the similarities and differences that connect us all.

When teaching this book, you can ask children to share about the traditions, foods, music, and customs of their home countries. This can promote a sense of belonging as students learn to value each other’s heritage. By including a diverse set of children’s literature in your classroom, you can help students acknowledge and respect both their own background and those of their peers. It is in these diverse stories that students can build empathy, appreciation for other cultures, and understanding of differences, all of which help foster a sense of belonging.