What is Depression?
Depression for an adult can come in many shapes and sizes. It can come and go, or it can simply linger on for what seems like months at a time. It affects your daily activities and even turns you into someone you do not recognize. Depression is a mental illness that, “approximately 32–35 million adults are projected to be impacted by… during their lifetime” (Bouchard, 151). We have been conditioned to believe that depression is mostly found in adults who are sad or suicidal however, the number of depressed children are on the rise. “Once thought of as something that only starts during adolescence is now believed to be far more common among many smaller children too” (Tucker, 205).
Depression in children’s literature is somewhat of a touchy topic. A lot of authors and critics believe that books written about depression can affect children in a negative way. Some children are sheltered in a way that reading about this topic would horrify young readers. However, others argue that, “Children’s literature can always be one such influence when read at a particularly impressionable time of life” (Tucker, 208). So the argument is that writing about depression in children’s literature can either hurt or help children. Along with depression, anxiety ties into this mental illness as well. “Studies suggest that 2-8% of children may have an anxiety disorder” (Colletti, 345). Children with anxiety or depression are more likely to abuse drugs and have suicidal thoughts. Studies also show that “depression and anxiety in both children and adults are frequently comorbid, suggesting that parental depression may be associated with child anxiety in addition to child depression” (Bouchard, 152).
Many school are now incorporating a form of help called Bibliotherapy, which, “can assist children gain control over their lives by identifying with others and finding both unique and universal solutions” (Colletti, 347). Reading activities can help students engage in conversations with others about the emotions and feelings they are experiencing. This also helps the parents of children with depression find support among one another. Even though teachers in schools are not required to treat and help students who have been diagnosed with depression. They are able to help their students by incorporating books in their classroom that support this topic.
With this knowledge, as a future educator I can incorporate books and novels that discuss the topics of depression and anxiety. Depression is not always seen, so having books in my classroom library available to my students to read will help encourage them to find resources to help them with their struggles. “Picture-book reading offers a potentially rich opportunity for young children to learn language” (Ressiland, 255).
Depression in children’s literature is not as popular as the more commonly read topics on friendships and family in children’s literature. However, there are plenty of resources including picture books, novels, and chapters to fill your classroom library with to help those struggling students. The books that I have read for this project have been helpful in many ways, and I can see how the author intended for the audience of readers to be encouraged after reading. All of the picture books listed on my site have additional resources in the back of the book that are for parents and children with suggestions on how to handle this mental illness, actions you can, take, and conversations that need to be discussed. Even though some critics are not in favor of depression being discussed in children’s literature Perry Nodelman writes in his book The Pleasures of Children’s Literature, “To deprive children of the opportunity to read about confusing or painful matters like those they might actually be experiencing will either make literature more irrelevant or else leave them feeling they are alone in their thoughts or experience” (Tucker, 205).
Depression in children’s literature is somewhat of a touchy topic. A lot of authors and critics believe that books written about depression can affect children in a negative way. Some children are sheltered in a way that reading about this topic would horrify young readers. However, others argue that, “Children’s literature can always be one such influence when read at a particularly impressionable time of life” (Tucker, 208). So the argument is that writing about depression in children’s literature can either hurt or help children. Along with depression, anxiety ties into this mental illness as well. “Studies suggest that 2-8% of children may have an anxiety disorder” (Colletti, 345). Children with anxiety or depression are more likely to abuse drugs and have suicidal thoughts. Studies also show that “depression and anxiety in both children and adults are frequently comorbid, suggesting that parental depression may be associated with child anxiety in addition to child depression” (Bouchard, 152).
Many school are now incorporating a form of help called Bibliotherapy, which, “can assist children gain control over their lives by identifying with others and finding both unique and universal solutions” (Colletti, 347). Reading activities can help students engage in conversations with others about the emotions and feelings they are experiencing. This also helps the parents of children with depression find support among one another. Even though teachers in schools are not required to treat and help students who have been diagnosed with depression. They are able to help their students by incorporating books in their classroom that support this topic.
With this knowledge, as a future educator I can incorporate books and novels that discuss the topics of depression and anxiety. Depression is not always seen, so having books in my classroom library available to my students to read will help encourage them to find resources to help them with their struggles. “Picture-book reading offers a potentially rich opportunity for young children to learn language” (Ressiland, 255).
Depression in children’s literature is not as popular as the more commonly read topics on friendships and family in children’s literature. However, there are plenty of resources including picture books, novels, and chapters to fill your classroom library with to help those struggling students. The books that I have read for this project have been helpful in many ways, and I can see how the author intended for the audience of readers to be encouraged after reading. All of the picture books listed on my site have additional resources in the back of the book that are for parents and children with suggestions on how to handle this mental illness, actions you can, take, and conversations that need to be discussed. Even though some critics are not in favor of depression being discussed in children’s literature Perry Nodelman writes in his book The Pleasures of Children’s Literature, “To deprive children of the opportunity to read about confusing or painful matters like those they might actually be experiencing will either make literature more irrelevant or else leave them feeling they are alone in their thoughts or experience” (Tucker, 205).