Are you looking for thoughtful and practical PSHE picture books for primary schools?
Picture books can help children explore emotions, relationships and difficult situations in a way that feels accessible and safe. A child may find it difficult to explain their own worry, anger, embarrassment or confusion, but they may be able to recognise those feelings in a character.
In this episode of The Muddy Puddle Teacher® Podcast, Sarah speaks with author and experienced educator Molly Potter about using picture books to support Personal, Social, Health and Economic education.
Molly’s books help children and adults begin honest conversations about feelings, friendships, self-esteem, differences, families, bodies, relationships and growing up. Her direct and reassuring style gives children useful information without making complicated topics feel frightening or overwhelming.
This conversation is particularly useful for primary teachers, Early Years practitioners, PSHE leads, teaching assistants, SENDCos, nurture staff, school leaders, childminders and parents.
Embed “Let’s Chat About PSHE Picture Books with Molly Potter” here
Why Use Picture Books to Teach PSHE?
PSHE often involves subjects that children need to understand but may find difficult to discuss directly.
Children may need help talking about worries, friendships, conflict, difference, grief, family relationships, self-esteem, consent, bodies or changes as they grow.
Starting with a character can make the conversation feel less personal.
Instead of asking a child to explain their own experience immediately, an adult can ask what they notice in the story.
You might explore what the character is feeling, why they responded in a certain way or what could help them next.
This creates emotional distance.
Children can participate without being expected to share private information in front of a class.
Picture books also make abstract ideas more concrete. Concepts such as respect, fairness, empathy, resilience and belonging become easier to understand when children see them within a recognisable situation.
Molly describes her Let’s Talk picture-book series as covering a range of wellbeing topics. The books are intended for children to share with an adult, where they can prompt meaningful conversations, or to explore independently. (mollypotter.com)
Explore our Outdoor Learning Specialism: Behaviour and SEMH and Early Years Outdoor Learning Guide for further support.
What Makes a Good PSHE Picture Book?
A useful PSHE picture book should be honest without becoming alarming.
It should use language children can understand while avoiding messages that oversimplify difficult emotions or situations.
Children need reassurance, but reassurance should not dismiss their feelings.
A story should not suggest that sadness disappears immediately, that every friendship can be repaired or that children can overcome every difficulty by simply trying harder.
Good PSHE books acknowledge that some situations are complicated.
They give children language, information and practical ways to understand what is happening.
They also show that children can seek help from trusted adults.
Molly’s published books began with materials for teachers focused on creative thinking, problem-solving and PSHE. She later moved into writing picture books designed to help younger children understand difficult emotions and situations.
Using Picture Books to Develop Emotional Literacy
Emotional literacy is the developing ability to recognise, name, understand and communicate emotions.
Young children may begin with familiar words such as happy, sad, worried, cross, calm and excited.
As their understanding develops, adults can introduce more precise language, including frustrated, disappointed, embarrassed, nervous, jealous, lonely, proud and overwhelmed.
Picture books help children connect these words to situations.
A character might feel disappointed when a plan changes, worried before trying something new or lonely when they feel excluded.
Adults can draw attention to facial expressions, body language, words and behaviour.
You might say:
“I wonder whether the character is feeling nervous.”
“Their face looks calm, but their hands are tightly closed.”
“They shouted, but perhaps there was another feeling underneath the anger.”
Children do not always need to answer a direct question.
They may respond through pointing, drawing, role play, movement or choosing an emotion card.
Molly’s picture book How Are You Feeling Today? was her first children’s picture book, originally published in 2014. She explains that its success showed how strongly children and adults connected with practical ways to recognise and respond to emotions.
Listen to more podcasts from award-winning children’s authors: How to become an author with Caryl Hart.
PSHE Books Should Begin Conversations, Not Tests
A PSHE picture book should not become another formal reading-comprehension exercise.
The purpose is not to test whether children remember every event in the story.
The purpose is to create opportunities for thought, discussion and emotional understanding.
Avoid asking a rapid sequence of questions after reading.
Children may need time to process the story before responding.
Adults can offer observations and wondering statements instead:
“I noticed that the character stopped talking when they became worried.”
“I wonder what might have helped them feel safer.”
“That character made a mistake, but it did not make them a bad person.”
Some children may join the conversation immediately.
Others may revisit the theme later through play, drawing or a quiet conversation with a trusted adult.
Silence does not necessarily mean the child has not understood.
Children should also never be pressured to disclose personal experiences during a whole-class discussion.
The story can remain focused on the characters unless a child chooses to make a personal connection.
PSHE Picture Books About Feelings and Wellbeing
Books about emotions can help children understand that all feelings are valid, but not every behaviour is safe or acceptable.
A child can feel angry without hurting somebody.
They can feel jealous without being unkind.
They can feel worried and still ask for help.
Stories give adults an opportunity to separate the feeling from the action.
Adults can validate the emotion while helping children find safer ways to respond.
A book might lead to discussions about what feelings look like in the body, what helps different people feel calm and who children can talk to when emotions become difficult.
Molly’s published collection includes picture books addressing emotional wellbeing and a wider range of personal and social topics. Her website describes the books as tools that can be shared with adults to support conversations or explored independently by children. (mollypotter.com)
Explore our Self-Regulation and Co-Regulation Training and Outdoor Nurture and Wellbeing Resources.
Using Picture Books to Talk About Difference
Children notice difference.
They notice skin colour, disability, family structure, language, religion, clothing, bodies, interests and the ways people behave.
Avoiding these conversations does not prevent children from forming ideas.
It simply means those ideas may develop without thoughtful adult guidance.
Picture books can help children explore both the ways people are different and the experiences people share.
Molly’s book The Same but Different explores some of the ways humans differ while also recognising what people have in common. Molly has explained that the book grew partly from her experience delivering PSHE and RSHE training about discussing difference with children. (mollypotter.com)
Adults can use such stories to move beyond vague messages that “everyone is the same”.
People are not all the same, and differences should not need to be ignored before someone is treated with respect.
A more helpful message is that people can be different, equal and equally deserving of kindness, safety and belonging.
Link to Inclusive Outdoor Learning for Primary Schools and Outdoor Learning for SEND.
Two Practical PSHE Activities Inspired by Picture Books
Create an Outdoor Feelings Trail
Choose several emotion words from the picture book and place them around the playground or outdoor area.
These might include excited, worried, frustrated, calm, proud and lonely.
At each point, invite children to consider how the emotion might look, feel or move.
They could create a facial expression, make a body shape, choose a colour or suggest something that might help a person experiencing that feeling.
Children should not be required to describe personal experiences.
They can respond through the fictional character or an imaginary situation.
This activity supports emotional vocabulary, communication and movement while keeping the discussion low-pressure.
Build a Friendship Problem-Solving Station
Use puppets, small-world figures, natural objects or simple character cards to create a friendship scenario outdoors.
One character may feel left out, two characters may want the same resource or somebody may have said something unkind.
Invite children to explore several possible responses.
Ask what each character may be feeling and which solution is safe, fair and realistic.
The aim is not to find one perfect answer.
It is to show that social problems can be considered from more than one perspective.
Discover more ideas through our Muddy Puddle Teacher YouTube Channel: Calming Videos for Primary Schools
How Can Outdoor Learning Extend a PSHE Story?
Outdoor learning gives children additional space to explore a story through movement, play and practical experience.
Children might create a feelings journey using chalk, build a safe place for a worried character or use loose parts to represent different relationships.
They could act out alternative endings, work together on a practical challenge or create a route that requires cooperation and communication.
These activities can be especially helpful for children who find long carpet discussions difficult.
A child may communicate more while walking beside an adult than when sitting face-to-face.
They may reveal their understanding through play before they are ready to explain it verbally.
Outdoor PSHE should still have a clear purpose.
Taking the book outside is not automatically meaningful. The outdoor experience should help children explore, apply or communicate the central theme.
Learn more through our Complete Guide to Teaching English Outdoors and Outdoor Learning for SEND Guide.
Using Picture Books Across the Primary Age Range
Picture books are sometimes treated as resources only for younger children.
However, carefully selected books can also support meaningful discussion in KS1 and KS2.
Older children may notice symbolism, conflicting perspectives and emotional detail that younger children interpret more simply.
A short picture book can provide a shared starting point without placing heavy reading demands on pupils.
This can make discussions more accessible for children with dyslexia, speech and language needs, English as an additional language or differing reading abilities.
Teachers can increase the level of challenge through the discussion rather than choosing a text with unnecessarily complex vocabulary.
KS2 pupils might consider whether a character’s decision was fair, how an illustrator communicates emotion or whether different readers would interpret the situation in the same way.
Picture books can therefore support PSHE, English, oracy, philosophy, art and drama.
Visit our KS1 Outdoor Learning Hub and KS2 Outdoor Learning Hub.
Using PSHE Books Within Everyday Provision
PSHE books are most effective when their themes become part of everyday practice.
The book should not disappear immediately after one lesson.
Place relevant books in the reading area, calm corner or outdoor provision.
Provide puppets, story objects or role-play materials that help children revisit the themes.
Adults can refer back to a familiar character during real situations:
“This feels like the problem the characters faced.”
“What helped them listen to each other?”
“The character made a mistake and then tried to repair it.”
This gives children a shared language for discussing situations without publicly blaming one individual.
However, adults should avoid using a book as a disguised lecture aimed at a particular child.
If everyone knows the story has been selected because of one pupil’s behaviour, that child may feel exposed or shamed.
PSHE texts should support the community rather than single somebody out.
Picture Books for Difficult Conversations
Some PSHE topics require particularly careful handling.
Books may be used to introduce bereavement, separation, family change, illness, bodies, puberty, consent or unsafe situations.
Adults should read the whole book before sharing it.
Consider whether the language, illustrations and message are appropriate for the children in front of you.
Think about what questions might arise and whether any child may be personally affected by the subject.
Schools should follow their safeguarding, PSHE and RSHE policies and use agreed language.
Teachers should not promise confidentiality if a child discloses something that raises a safeguarding concern.
A picture book can open an important conversation, but adults still need to respond within their professional responsibilities.
Molly’s background includes work as a county adviser in PSHE, with a particular focus on primary relationships and sex education. Her current training continues to cover practical PSHE, emotional intelligence and related areas for educators and families
Supporting Children Who Find Talking Difficult
Not every child can answer an open question about emotions.
Some children may need symbols, objects, short phrases or choices.
Instead of asking, “How does the character feel?”, an adult might show two or three emotion cards.
Children could point, match, move an object or copy an expression.
Others may need time to hear the story repeatedly before contributing.
Children who are non-speaking can still demonstrate emotional understanding.
They may select an image, use a communication aid, move a character or respond physically.
Participation should not be judged only through spoken answers.
Accessible storytelling helps children encounter the same emotional ideas through different routes.
Visit our Speech, Language and Non-Speaking Learners Outdoor Learning Specialism.
Get to Know the Guest
Who Is Molly Potter?
Molly Potter began her professional life as a scientist.
She soon realised that the part of work that interested her most was connecting with people, something she did not find enough of within chemistry. She changed direction, trained as a primary school teacher and went on to work with children and within education in a variety of roles.
Her first published books focused on creative thinking, problem-solving and PSHE and were written for teachers. She later moved into picture books that help younger children explore difficult emotions, relationships and situations.
Molly describes her approach as honest, open and down-to-earth. Her books aim to leave children feeling informed and reassured rather than confused or frightened.
Alongside writing, Molly has extensive experience in teaching and professional development. She has worked as a county PSHE adviser and offers training designed to be creative, practical and immediately useful to educators.
Her published books include teacher resources and the Let’s Talk picture-book series, which covers a variety of wellbeing themes and encourages conversations between children and trusted adults.
Visit Molly Potter Online
Visit Molly Potter’s website
Discover more about Molly, her published books, training, school work and current projects.
Read Molly Potter’s blog
Molly’s blog contains reflections, practical ideas and resources connected to children’s emotions, relationships, PSHE, books and education. Her site includes activities such as an emotion scavenger hunt, along with articles about her picture books and classroom work. (mollypotter.com)
Explore Molly Potter’s published books
Browse Molly’s picture books, teacher resources and the wellbeing themes covered in her work.
Follow Molly Potter Books on Facebook
Molly Potter’s Free Ideas and Resources
Molly’s blog is a useful next step for teachers who want practical ideas after listening to the podcast.
The blog includes articles about emotional intelligence, feelings, books and activities for schools. Her emotion scavenger hunt, for example, encourages children to notice examples of emotions within books, toys and the world around them.
Molly’s current projects also include cross-curricular materials for schools. Her website describes an 80-page teaching resource accompanying Wise Eyes and the Wild Things, including PSHE, English, geography, science, art, drama and spoken-language activities.
What Can Teachers Learn from Molly Potter?
Molly’s work demonstrates that PSHE does not need to rely on abstract worksheets or forced personal disclosures.
A picture book can establish a shared situation that allows children to think, question and talk.
Her approach also shows the importance of clarity.
Children deserve honest information expressed in language they can understand.
Avoiding a subject entirely can allow confusion, worry or misinformation to grow.
At the same time, honesty should be developmentally appropriate and reassuring.
Molly’s combination of classroom experience, advisory work and children’s writing gives her a practical understanding of what teachers need from PSHE resources.
The most effective books are not simply attractive stories.
They give adults a meaningful starting point and help children leave the conversation with greater understanding.
Listen to Molly Potter
In this episode, Sarah and Molly discuss picture books, PSHE and the ways stories can help children approach difficult emotions and situations.
The episode is particularly useful for teachers building a PSHE book collection, planning emotional-literacy provision or looking for more natural ways to begin important conversations.
Listen to “Let’s Chat About PSHE Picture Books with Molly Potter”
Continue Your PSHE and Wellbeing Professional Development
The Muddy Puddle Teacher® helps educators use stories, outdoor learning, movement and play to support children’s personal, social and emotional development.
Start with the Free Level 1 Outdoor Learning Course.
Use a 60-Day Free Trial of Silver Membership to explore outdoor learning resources for Nursery, EYFS, KS1, KS2 and SEND.
Choose Gold Membership for flexible online professional-development courses.
Choose Ultimate Membership for the complete training collection and accredited outdoor learning pathway.
Subscribe to the Free Muddy Puddle Teacher® Magazine for weekly practical ideas, CPD and outdoor learning inspiration.
PSHE Picture Books FAQs
What are PSHE picture books?
PSHE picture books are stories or information books that help children explore personal, social, health and economic themes. These may include feelings, friendships, families, difference, self-esteem, relationships, bodies, safety and growing up.
How can picture books support PSHE lessons?
Picture books give children shared characters and situations to discuss. This can make abstract or sensitive themes easier to understand and allows children to participate without being required to disclose personal experiences.
Are picture books suitable for KS2 PSHE?
Yes. KS2 pupils can explore perspective, fairness, symbolism, relationships and complex emotions through carefully selected picture books. The depth comes from the questioning and discussion, not simply the length of the text.
Can PSHE books support children with SEND?
Yes. Picture books can be adapted using visual symbols, objects, repeated language, sensory materials, communication aids and alternative ways for children to respond.
Should children share personal experiences during PSHE stories?
Children may choose to make personal connections, but they should not be pressured to disclose private experiences. Adults should follow safeguarding procedures if a child shares information that raises a concern.
Can PSHE picture books be used outdoors?
Yes. Stories can be extended through outdoor role play, feelings trails, practical friendship challenges, chalk drawing, puppets, storytelling and loose-parts activities.
Which Molly Potter books are useful for wellbeing?
Molly’s published collection includes the Let’s Talk series and books exploring emotions, difference and other wellbeing themes. Her official published-books page provides the most complete overview of her current titles. (mollypotter.com)
Author
Written by Sarah Seaman BSc, PGCE, MA
Founder of The Muddy Puddle Teacher®, experienced teacher, Bloomsbury author, educational consultant and trainer supporting educators to develop practical, inclusive and sustainable outdoor learning.
