Three gifted poets team up with a collection of poems dealing with worries and anxieties and find ways to develop empathy and mindfulness.
Read about the Land of Blue, where it’s OK to feel sad, find ideas for what to do with worries or how to slow down when your head is full of hurry. Give yourself time to chill out, find quiet voices in noisy places and discover kindness in yourself and others. Then maybe your own special thought machine will tell you, ‘This is going well. You’re doing great. You’ve got this!’ And you have! This important and unique anthology of 45 poems by three leading poets, well known for their empathy and perception, speaks to the heart of what children think and care about, offering understanding, support and encouragement.
Shortlisted for the CLiPPA Poetry Award 2022.
“A must-have for junior classrooms (as well as the staffroom). The three poets combine to provide readers young and old with a reading experience of the highest quality which nourishes the soul. A classic to savour and return to regularly.” – Just Imagine
“Concern for the child and quality of the word is absolutely at the forefront here: these well-crafted poems articulate with skill and care a wide breadth of complex emotions and situations that may well be familiar to children, but they may not yet have the language to describe. This timely collection strikes a balance between difficult issues and hope, without the latter ever feeling forced or patronising. Articulate, empathetic, and invites profound connection between poet and reader.” Centre for Literacy in Primary Education
“So often books with a ‘message’ are contrived or over-earnest but this is absolutely not the case for ‘Being Me’ with its authentic voices & compassionate clarity… With a background in psychology [Laura’s] poems brim with understanding of children’s concerns. This is surely a book for our times.” – Reading Zone, 5 Star Review
“The message is clear throughout the collection: talk about feelings; name them and give ourselves permission to feel what we need to feel… Such a useful anthology to have in class to spark discussion and raise awareness of the lived experiences of others as well as support children’s development of emotional literacy and empathy.” – Literacy Tree
“Forty-five new poems confront anxieties and worries, helping with ways to develop empathy and mindfulness.” – The Bookseller
“This is a truly stunning collection of poignant, powerful poems by three outstanding poets… Invaluable for both home and school, this should be in every classroom. Every poem deserves to be discussed in detail… I cannot recommend this collection highly enough.” North Somerset Teachers’ Book Award
“A wonderful collection of poems on such an important theme for children. Young people can enjoy the poems and illustrations in this anthology but much more than that, they are excellent for opening up a discussion about topics such as our identity, our thoughts and our worries.” – Katie Thistleton, BBC Radio 1