Career Development through Children's Literature

Compiled by Megan Schliesman
© 2003 Cooperative Children's Book Center

Career education is most typically thought of in conjunction with upper elementary, middle and high school curriculum and less often within the scope of early elementary and even Pre-K classrooms. Yet critical components of career education--self-knowledge, and awareness of the larger community and world in which one lives--are emphasized in many ways to younger children in their classrooms. The goal of this bibliography is to connect these components of the Pre-K and elementary education curriculum to the concept of career education through children's literature.

The bibliography was designed around selected components of the National Career Development Competencies and Indicators that emphasize self-affirmation and self-knowledge, the roles of an individual in the family and the larger community, and career exploration. It was developed for the Center for Education and Work of the School of Education, University of Wisconsin - Madison, for their publication Making the Connections: Linking Children's Literature to Support Career Development.

The bibliography is divided into three main sections:

Who I Am: Developing Self-Awareness

Books that focus on esteem-building.

Where I Belong: Connecting to Community

Books that underscore how lives are enriched by sconnections to family and commnity; and books that highlight an individual's varied roles in family and community.

What I Want To Be: Exploring Careers

Books that show people at work, and books that profile various types of work.

Three additional biliographies that will expand on the topics explored here are 40 Books about the Arts, 40 Books about Labor and 40 Books about Science and Scientists.

Books were placed in the thematic section for which they seemed most relevant, although A number of the books might have easily been placed in more than one section and have multiple uses.

Most of the books on this bibliography were selected from annual editions of CCBC Choices and were originally published between 1995 and 2003. Through the annual Choices publication, the CCBC seeks to brings a wide range of high-quality literature to the attention of teachers, librarians, and others who have the responsibility of selecting books for use with children and young adults.

Click on underlined book titles to see the CCBC review of the book, and/or the cover image.

Who I Am: Developing Self Awareness -- Picture Books

Bang, Molly. When Sophie Gets Angry -- Really, Really Angry.... Blue Sky/Scholastic, 1999. Ages 2 - 7

Cooper, Susan. Frog. Illustrated by Jane Browne. Margaret K. McElderry, 2002. Ages 4 - 7

Ehlert, Lois. Hands. Harcourt, Brace, 1997. Ages 4 - 8

Falwell, Cathryn. David's Drawings. Lee & Low, 2001. Ages 4 - 7

Grimes, Nikki. It's Raining Laughter. Photographed by Myles C. Pinkney. Dial, 1997. Ages 4 - 8

Grimes, Nikki. Talkin' About Bessie: Story of Aviator Elizabeth Coleman. Illustrated by E. B. Lewis. Orchard/Scholastic, 2002. Ages 8 - 12

McDonald, Megan. Insects Are My Life. Illustrated by Paul Brett Johnson. Orchard, 1995. Ages 4 - 7

Muth, Jon J. and Based on a story by Leo Tolstoy . The Three Questions. Scholastic Press, 2002. Ages 6 - 10

Perkins, Lynne Rae. Clouds for Dinner. Greenwillow, 1997. Ages 4 - 8

Pinkney, Sandra L.. Shades of Black: A Celebration of Our Children. Illustrated by Myles Pinkney. Scholastic, 2000. Ages 3 - 11

Polacco, Patricia. Thank You, Mr. Falker. Philomel, 1998. Ages 6 - 10

Rotner, Shelley. What Can You Do? A Book about Discovering What You Do Well. Millbrook Press, 2001. Pre-K to K

Winter, Jeanette. My Name Is Georgia: A Portrait. Silver Whistle/Harcourt Brace, 1998. Ages 5 - 8

Young, Ed. What About Me?. Philomel, 2002. Ages 4 - 7

Who I Am: Developing Self-Awareness -- Fiction

Banks, Kate. Dillon Dillon. Frances Foster Books / Farrar, Straus, Giroux, 2002. Ages 8 - 11

Creech, Sharon. Bloomability. Joanna Cotler Books / HarperCollins, 1998. Ages 9 - 14

Creech, Sharon. Love That Dog: A Novel. Joanna Cotler Books/HarperCollins, 2001. Ages 8 - 12

Cushman, Karen. Matilda Bone. Clarion, 2000. Ages 8 - 13

Cushman, Karen. The Midwife's Apprentice. Clarion, 1995. Ages 9 - 14

DeGross, Monalisa. Donovan's Word Jar. Illustrated by Cheryl Hanna. HarperCollins, 1994. Ages 7 - 10

Gantos, Jack. What Would Joey Do?. Farrar, Straus, Giroux, 2002. Ages 10 - 14

Henkes, Kevin. The Birthday Room. Greenwillow, 1999. Ages 9 - 13

Hesse, Karen. Just Juice. Illustrated by Robert Andrew Parker. Scholastic Press, 1998. Ages 8 -11

Hill, Kirkpatrick. The Year of Miss Agnes. Margaret K. McElderry, 2000. Ages 8 - 11

Joseph, Lynn. The Color of My Words. Joanna Cotler Books/HarperCollins, 2000. Ages 10 - 14

Park, Linda Sue. A Single Shard. Clarion, 2001. Ages 9 - 12

Ryan, Pam Munoz. Esperanza Rising. Scholastic, 2000. Ages 10 - 14

Where I Belong: Connecting to Community -- Picture Books

Banks, Kate. The Night Worker. Illustrated by Georg Hallensleben. Frances Foster Books/Farrar, Straus and Giroux, 2000. Ages 2 - 5

Best, Cari. Three Cheers for Catherine the Great. Illustrated by Giselle Potter. A Melanie Kroupa Book/DK Ink, 1999. Ages 4 - 8

Cheng, Andrea. Grandfather Counts. Illustrated by Ange Zhang. Lee & Low, 2000. Ages 4 - 8

Hearne, Betsy. Seven Brave Women. Illustrated by Bethanne Anderson. Greenwillow, 1997. Ages 5 - 11

Herrera, Juan Felipe. Grandma and Me at the Flea/Los Meros Meros Remateros. Illustrated by Anita DeLucio-Brock. Children's Book Press, 2002. Ages 7 - 10

Herrera, Juan Felipe. The Upside Down Boy/El Nino de Cabeza. Illustrated by Elizabeth Gomez. Children's Book Press, 2000. Ages 7 - 10

LaMarche, Jim. The Raft. HarperCollins, 2000. Ages 5 - 9

McKissack, Patricia C. . Goin' Someplace Special. Illustrated by Jerry Pinkney. Atheneum, 2001. Ages 5 - 9

Mora, Pat. Tomas and the Library Lady. Illustrated by Raul Colon. Alfred A. Knopf, 1997. Ages 4 - 7

Perez, Amada Irma. My Very Own Room = Mi propio cuartito. Illustrated by Maya Christina Gonzalez. Children's Book Press, 2000. Ages 5- 8

Perkins, Lynne Rae. Home Lovely. Greenwillow, 1995. Ages 4 - 7

Smith, Cynthia Leitich. Jingle Dancer. Illustrated by Cornelius Van Wright and Ying-Hwa Hu. Morrow/HarperCollins, 2000. Ages 5 - 8

Westerhout, Lynn. Business in Bangkok. Illustrated by Chum McLeod. U.S. edition: Second Story Press, 2002. Ages 2 - 6

Where I Belong: Connecting to Community -- Fiction

Fleischman, Paul. Seedfolks. Joanna Cotler Books/HarperCollins, 1997. Ages 9 - 13

Giff, Patricia Reilly. Pictures of Hollis Woods. Wendy Lamb Books/Random House, 2002. Ages 10 - 14

Williams, Vera B. . Scooter. Greenwillow, 1993. Ages 4 - 11

What I Want to Be: Exploring Careers -- Picture Books

Carling, Amelia Lau. Mama and Papa Have a Store. Dial, 1998. Ages 4 - 8

Casely, Judith. On the Town. Greenwillow, 2002. Pre-K to Grade 1

Cooper, Elisha. Ballpark. Greenwillow, 1998. Ages 4 - 7

Cooper, Elisha. Building. Greenwillow, 1999. Grades K - 3

Cooper, Elisha. Dance!. Greenwillow, 2001. Ages 6 - 11

Garland, Sherry. My Father's Boat. Scholastic, 1998. Ages 4 - 8

Gershator, David and Phillis. Bread Is for Eating. Illustrated by Emma Shaw Smith. Henry Holt, 1995. Ages 4 - 8

Henkes, Kevin. Good-bye, Curtis. Illustrated by Marisabina Russo. Greenwillow, 1995. Ages 3 - 6

Kalman, Maira. Chicken Soup Boots. Viking, 1993. Ages 4 - 8

Macaulay, David . Angelo. Houghton Mifflin, 2002. Ages 6 - 10

Pilkey, Dav. The Paperboy. Orchard, 1996. Ages 3 - 7

Spinelli, Eileen. Night Shift Daddy. Hyperion, 2000. Ages 3 - 5

What I Want to Be: Exploring Careers -- Books of Information

Bourgeois, Paulette. Fire Fighters. Illustrated by Kim LaFave. U.S. edition: Kids Can Press, 1998. Ages 3 - 6

Bourgeois, Paulette. Garbage Collectors. U.S. edition: Kids Can Press, 1998. Ages 3 - 6

Bourgeois, Paulette. Police Officers. Illustrated by Kim LaFave. U.S. edition: Kids Can Press, 1999. Ages 4 - 8

Bourgeois, Paulette. Postal Workers. Illustrated by Kim LaFave. U.S. edition: Kids Can Press, 1999. Ages 4 - 8

Bruchac, Joseph. Seeing the Circle. Photographed by John Christopher Fine. Richard K. Owen, 1999. Ages 7 - 10

Christelow, Eileen. What Do Authors Do?. Clarion, 1995. Ages 6 - 11

Christelow, Eileen. What Do Illustrators Do?. Clarion, 1999. Ages 6 - 10

Cummings, Pat, editor. Talking with Artists: Volume One. Macmillan, 1992. Ages 6 - 14

Cummings, Pat, editor. Talking with Artists: Volume Two. Simon & Schuster, 1995. Ages 6 - 14

Cummings, Pat, editor. Talking with Artists: Volume Three. Clarion, 1999. Ages 6 - 14

Demarest, Chris L.. Firefighters A to Z. Margaret K. McElderry, 2000. Ages 3 - 5

Geisert, Arthur. The Etcher's Studio. Walter Lorraine/Houghton Mifflin, 1997. Ages 5 - 9

Greenberg, Jan and Sandra Jordan . The American Eye: Eleven Artists of the Twentieth Century. Delacorte, 1995. Ages 10 - 18

Greenberg, Jan and Sandra Jordan . Chuck Close Up Close. DK Ink, 1998. Ages 10 - 14

Halperin, Wendy Anderson. Once Upon a Company: A True Story. Orchard, 1998. Ages 8 - 11

Hewett, Joan. Public Defender: Lawyer for the People. Photographed by Richard Hewett. Lodestar, 1991. Ages 6 - 13

Hewett, Joan. Tunnels, Tracks and Trains: Building a Subway. Photographed by Richard Hewett. Lodestar, 1995. Ages 7 - 10

Karnes, Frances and Suzanne M. Bean . Girls and Young Women Inventing: Twenty True Stories about Inventors Plus How You Can Be One Yourself. Free Spirit, 1997. Ages 10 - 14

Kunstadter, Maria A.. Women Working A to Z. Photographed by Shari Stanberry. Highsmith Press, 1994. Ages 5 - 8

Marcus, Leonard. Author Talk. Simon & Schuster, 2000. Ages 10 - 14

Rendon, Marcie R. and Cheryl Walsh Bellville . Farmer's Market: Families Working Together. Photographed by Cheryl Walsh Bellville. Carolrhoda, 2001. Ages 7 - 11

St. George, Judith. So You Want to Be President?. Illustrated by David Small. Philomel, 2000. Ages 7 - 12

Williams, Neva. Patrick Desjarlait: Conversations with a Native American Artist. Revised edition: Runestone, 1995. Ages 8 - 14

This list may be reproduced and distributed by educational and/or nonprofit organizations so long as credit is given to the Cooperative Children's Book Center, School of Education, University of Wisconsin-Madison.

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	CCBC Bibliographies & Booklists Charlotte Zolotow Award Book of the Week CCBC Specialized Information CCBC Book Discussions CCBC - Net Awards & Best-of-the-Year Lists Review Journals Career Development through Children's Literature Compiled by Megan Schliesman © 2003 Cooperative Children's Book Center Career education is most typically thought of in conjunction with upper elementary, middle and high school curriculum and less often within the scope of early elementary and even Pre-K classrooms. Yet critical components of career education--self-knowledge, and awareness of the larger community and world in which one lives--are emphasized in many ways to younger children in their classrooms. The goal of this bibliography is to connect these components of the Pre-K and elementary education curriculum to the concept of career education through children's literature. The bibliography was designed around selected components of the National Career Development Competencies and Indicators that emphasize self-affirmation and self-knowledge, the roles of an individual in the family and the larger community, and career exploration. It was developed for the Center for Education and Work of the School of Education, University of Wisconsin - Madison, for their publication Making the Connections: Linking Children's Literature to Support Career Development. The bibliography is divided into three main sections: Who I Am: Developing Self-Awareness Books that focus on esteem-building. Where I Belong: Connecting to Community Books that underscore how lives are enriched by sconnections to family and commnity; and books that highlight an individual's varied roles in family and community. What I Want To Be: Exploring Careers Books that show people at work, and books that profile various types of work. Three additional biliographies that will expand on the topics explored here are 40 Books about the Arts, 40 Books about Labor and 40 Books about Science and Scientists. Books were placed in the thematic section for which they seemed most relevant, although A number of the books might have easily been placed in more than one section and have multiple uses. Most of the books on this bibliography were selected from annual editions of CCBC Choices and were originally published between 1995 and 2003. Through the annual Choices publication, the CCBC seeks to brings a wide range of high-quality literature to the attention of teachers, librarians, and others who have the responsibility of selecting books for use with children and young adults. Click on underlined book titles to see the CCBC review of the book, and/or the cover image. Who I Am: Developing Self Awareness -- Picture Books Bang, Molly. When Sophie Gets Angry -- Really, Really Angry.... Blue Sky/Scholastic, 1999. Ages 2 - 7 Cooper, Susan. Frog. Illustrated by Jane Browne. Margaret K. McElderry, 2002. Ages 4 - 7 Ehlert, Lois. Hands. Harcourt, Brace, 1997. Ages 4 - 8 Falwell, Cathryn. David's Drawings. Lee & Low, 2001. Ages 4 - 7 Grimes, Nikki. It's Raining Laughter. Photographed by Myles C. Pinkney. Dial, 1997. Ages 4 - 8 Grimes, Nikki. Talkin' About Bessie: Story of Aviator Elizabeth Coleman. Illustrated by E. B. Lewis. Orchard/Scholastic, 2002. Ages 8 - 12 McDonald, Megan. Insects Are My Life. Illustrated by Paul Brett Johnson. Orchard, 1995. Ages 4 - 7 Muth, Jon J. and Based on a story by Leo Tolstoy . The Three Questions. Scholastic Press, 2002. Ages 6 - 10 Perkins, Lynne Rae. Clouds for Dinner. Greenwillow, 1997. Ages 4 - 8 Pinkney, Sandra L.. Shades of Black: A Celebration of Our Children. Illustrated by Myles Pinkney. Scholastic, 2000. Ages 3 - 11 Polacco, Patricia. Thank You, Mr. Falker. Philomel, 1998. Ages 6 - 10 Rotner, Shelley. What Can You Do? A Book about Discovering What You Do Well. Millbrook Press, 2001. Pre-K to K Winter, Jeanette. My Name Is Georgia: A Portrait. Silver Whistle/Harcourt Brace, 1998. Ages 5 - 8 Young, Ed. What About Me?. Philomel, 2002. Ages 4 - 7 Who I Am: Developing Self-Awareness -- Fiction Banks, Kate. Dillon Dillon. Frances Foster Books / Farrar, Straus, Giroux, 2002. Ages 8 - 11 Creech, Sharon. Bloomability. Joanna Cotler Books / HarperCollins, 1998. Ages 9 - 14 Creech, Sharon. Love That Dog: A Novel. Joanna Cotler Books/HarperCollins, 2001. Ages 8 - 12 Cushman, Karen. Matilda Bone. Clarion, 2000. Ages 8 - 13 Cushman, Karen. The Midwife's Apprentice. Clarion, 1995. Ages 9 - 14 DeGross, Monalisa. Donovan's Word Jar. Illustrated by Cheryl Hanna. HarperCollins, 1994. Ages 7 - 10 Gantos, Jack. What Would Joey Do?. Farrar, Straus, Giroux, 2002. Ages 10 - 14 Henkes, Kevin. The Birthday Room. Greenwillow, 1999. Ages 9 - 13 Hesse, Karen. Just Juice. Illustrated by Robert Andrew Parker. Scholastic Press, 1998. Ages 8 -11 Hill, Kirkpatrick. The Year of Miss Agnes. Margaret K. McElderry, 2000. Ages 8 - 11 Joseph, Lynn. The Color of My Words. Joanna Cotler Books/HarperCollins, 2000. Ages 10 - 14 Park, Linda Sue. A Single Shard. Clarion, 2001. Ages 9 - 12 Ryan, Pam Munoz. Esperanza Rising. Scholastic, 2000. Ages 10 - 14 Where I Belong: Connecting to Community -- Picture Books Banks, Kate. The Night Worker. Illustrated by Georg Hallensleben. Frances Foster Books/Farrar, Straus and Giroux, 2000. Ages 2 - 5 Best, Cari. Three Cheers for Catherine the Great. Illustrated by Giselle Potter. A Melanie Kroupa Book/DK Ink, 1999. Ages 4 - 8 Cheng, Andrea. Grandfather Counts. Illustrated by Ange Zhang. Lee & Low, 2000. Ages 4 - 8 Hearne, Betsy. Seven Brave Women. Illustrated by Bethanne Anderson. Greenwillow, 1997. Ages 5 - 11 Herrera, Juan Felipe. Grandma and Me at the Flea/Los Meros Meros Remateros. Illustrated by Anita DeLucio-Brock. Children's Book Press, 2002. Ages 7 - 10 Herrera, Juan Felipe. The Upside Down Boy/El Nino de Cabeza. Illustrated by Elizabeth Gomez. Children's Book Press, 2000. Ages 7 - 10 LaMarche, Jim. The Raft. HarperCollins, 2000. Ages 5 - 9 McKissack, Patricia C. . Goin' Someplace Special. Illustrated by Jerry Pinkney. Atheneum, 2001. Ages 5 - 9 Mora, Pat. Tomas and the Library Lady. Illustrated by Raul Colon. Alfred A. Knopf, 1997. Ages 4 - 7 Perez, Amada Irma. My Very Own Room = Mi propio cuartito. Illustrated by Maya Christina Gonzalez. Children's Book Press, 2000. Ages 5- 8 Perkins, Lynne Rae. Home Lovely. Greenwillow, 1995. Ages 4 - 7 Smith, Cynthia Leitich. Jingle Dancer. Illustrated by Cornelius Van Wright and Ying-Hwa Hu. Morrow/HarperCollins, 2000. Ages 5 - 8 Westerhout, Lynn. Business in Bangkok. Illustrated by Chum McLeod. U.S. edition: Second Story Press, 2002. Ages 2 - 6 Where I Belong: Connecting to Community -- Fiction Fleischman, Paul. Seedfolks. Joanna Cotler Books/HarperCollins, 1997. Ages 9 - 13 Giff, Patricia Reilly. Pictures of Hollis Woods. Wendy Lamb Books/Random House, 2002. Ages 10 - 14 Williams, Vera B. . Scooter. Greenwillow, 1993. Ages 4 - 11 What I Want to Be: Exploring Careers -- Picture Books Carling, Amelia Lau. Mama and Papa Have a Store. Dial, 1998. Ages 4 - 8 Casely, Judith. On the Town. Greenwillow, 2002. Pre-K to Grade 1 Cooper, Elisha. Ballpark. Greenwillow, 1998. Ages 4 - 7 Cooper, Elisha. Building. Greenwillow, 1999. Grades K - 3 Cooper, Elisha. Dance!. Greenwillow, 2001. Ages 6 - 11 Garland, Sherry. My Father's Boat. Scholastic, 1998. Ages 4 - 8 Gershator, David and Phillis. Bread Is for Eating. Illustrated by Emma Shaw Smith. Henry Holt, 1995. Ages 4 - 8 Henkes, Kevin. Good-bye, Curtis. Illustrated by Marisabina Russo. Greenwillow, 1995. Ages 3 - 6 Kalman, Maira. Chicken Soup Boots. Viking, 1993. Ages 4 - 8 Macaulay, David . Angelo. Houghton Mifflin, 2002. Ages 6 - 10 Pilkey, Dav. The Paperboy. Orchard, 1996. Ages 3 - 7 Spinelli, Eileen. Night Shift Daddy. Hyperion, 2000. Ages 3 - 5 What I Want to Be: Exploring Careers -- Books of Information Bourgeois, Paulette. Fire Fighters. Illustrated by Kim LaFave. U.S. edition: Kids Can Press, 1998. Ages 3 - 6 Bourgeois, Paulette. Garbage Collectors. U.S. edition: Kids Can Press, 1998. Ages 3 - 6 Bourgeois, Paulette. Police Officers. Illustrated by Kim LaFave. U.S. edition: Kids Can Press, 1999. Ages 4 - 8 Bourgeois, Paulette. Postal Workers. Illustrated by Kim LaFave. U.S. edition: Kids Can Press, 1999. Ages 4 - 8 Bruchac, Joseph. Seeing the Circle. Photographed by John Christopher Fine. Richard K. Owen, 1999. Ages 7 - 10 Christelow, Eileen. What Do Authors Do?. Clarion, 1995. Ages 6 - 11 Christelow, Eileen. What Do Illustrators Do?. Clarion, 1999. Ages 6 - 10 Cummings, Pat, editor. Talking with Artists: Volume One. Macmillan, 1992. Ages 6 - 14 Cummings, Pat, editor. Talking with Artists: Volume Two. Simon & Schuster, 1995. Ages 6 - 14 Cummings, Pat, editor. Talking with Artists: Volume Three. Clarion, 1999. Ages 6 - 14 Demarest, Chris L.. Firefighters A to Z. Margaret K. McElderry, 2000. Ages 3 - 5 Geisert, Arthur. The Etcher's Studio. Walter Lorraine/Houghton Mifflin, 1997. Ages 5 - 9 Greenberg, Jan and Sandra Jordan . The American Eye: Eleven Artists of the Twentieth Century. Delacorte, 1995. Ages 10 - 18 Greenberg, Jan and Sandra Jordan . Chuck Close Up Close. DK Ink, 1998. Ages 10 - 14 Halperin, Wendy Anderson. Once Upon a Company: A True Story. Orchard, 1998. Ages 8 - 11 Hewett, Joan. Public Defender: Lawyer for the People. Photographed by Richard Hewett. Lodestar, 1991. Ages 6 - 13 Hewett, Joan. Tunnels, Tracks and Trains: Building a Subway. Photographed by Richard Hewett. Lodestar, 1995. Ages 7 - 10 Karnes, Frances and Suzanne M. Bean . Girls and Young Women Inventing: Twenty True Stories about Inventors Plus How You Can Be One Yourself. Free Spirit, 1997. Ages 10 - 14 Kunstadter, Maria A.. Women Working A to Z. Photographed by Shari Stanberry. Highsmith Press, 1994. Ages 5 - 8 Marcus, Leonard. Author Talk. Simon & Schuster, 2000. Ages 10 - 14 Rendon, Marcie R. and Cheryl Walsh Bellville . Farmer's Market: Families Working Together. Photographed by Cheryl Walsh Bellville. Carolrhoda, 2001. Ages 7 - 11 St. George, Judith. So You Want to Be President?. Illustrated by David Small. Philomel, 2000. Ages 7 - 12 Williams, Neva. Patrick Desjarlait: Conversations with a Native American Artist. Revised edition: Runestone, 1995. Ages 8 - 14 This list may be reproduced and distributed by educational and/or nonprofit organizations so long as credit is given to the Cooperative Children's Book Center, School of Education, University of Wisconsin-Madison.