meris's book of the moment-- Guns: What You Should Know

One of the joys of having a small child is teaching them about pretty much everything under the sun. When Meris developed an interest in guns a few weeks ago, I had no idea how best to go about explaining why guns are dangerous. So, I asked the children's librarian for book suggestions.

The librarian had nothing to suggest at first (though I find it hard to believe that I'm the only parent who's ever asked about books to teach gun safety to preschoolers). But she kindly continued her search after I'd gone off to chase Meris, and soon brought me a copy of Guns: What You Should Know by Rachel Ellenberg Schulson.

The cover shows an illustration of two children shooting enormous squirt guns at each other, so of course Meris immediately wanted me to read it. I felt incredibly self-conscious reading it aloud in front of other people's children, and sure enough, the other families had drifted away by the time I got to about page 5.

That said, this was exactly the book I needed. It starts by acknowledging that most children play with toy guns or use their hands as pretend guns, and then asks, "Have you ever wondered about real guns?" From there, it talks about different kinds of guns, how bullets work, and why guns are more dangerous than we (children) might realize. It explains that grownups in the United States have different opinions about gun laws, but that they all agree that children should never play with guns. The final page gives rules about what to do if you find a gun.

Sounds like a lot to cover in one short picture book, but the text is just right for a three-year-old, and the simple illustrations also prompt plenty of discussion.

Whew! We've gotten a solid introduction to what I'm sure will be the first of many tough topics Meris raises. Why did the topic come up at all? That's a story for another post.

~jkg