One of my favorite things about being a mom is finding great books for my kids to read, especially books that help with their growth mindset like children books about perseverance. The most magnificent thing about being a parent is watching your child grow, learn and explore their worlds by not giving up when they may be having a hard time. So whether you have a little girl or little boy at home, I am confident this list of books will be great to add to your collection especially during any difficult times your child may go through. They may be in the middle of trying something for the first time and reading a book from this list might help push them to not give up if things aren’t going as planned.
8 Children Books About Perseverance
1. A Dragon Has to Persevere: A Story About Perseverance, Persistence, and Not Giving Up By Steve Herman
This is one of my favorite children books about perseverance because it is an inspiring story about a young boy who helps his pet dragon push through hard things that he faces. Just like our kids, and us of course, his dragon ran into obstacles that he could either choose to give up or keep going. It is a great book that shows with determination, you can achieve your goals. The dragon tries things like swimming and does not win his swimming meet and falls while riding a bike. He learns that with hard work, you can accomplish anything!
2. I Choose to Try Again: A Colorful, Rhyming Picture Book About Perseverance and Diligence By Elizabeth Estrada
With real life experience for your kids to compare to, this is a great rhyming book that will teach them how to persevere and keep trying again and again by not giving up when things get hard. They will learn that it is okay and normal to fall again but also learn how important it is to get back up and keep trying.
3. Stephen Curry: The Children’s Book: The Boy Who Never Gave Up By Anthony Curcio
If there is a book that shows kids they can do great things, this is it! My favorite thing about this book is that it is based on a true story of a real basketball player that faced all odds and instead of letting those odds break him, he pushed through and hit his goals! The main character, Stephen Curry, played basketball in his dad’s spotlight his whole life and was always told he was too short and too weak to play basketball at an elite level. After facing these hard times head on, he is now one of the best shooters in the NBA. Everyone has different walks of life and I am sure he was told his whole life he couldn’t go far like Michael Jordan but he made it! It is a truly inspirational story and a great way to show that hard work pays off in the end!
4. I Won’t Give Up (Persistence Project) By Daniel Kenney
This is a part of a series and is the second book in the series that teaches kids the value of not giving up. Picture books are a fun way to explore books with your kids and this one is full of silly pictures and fun, positive messages about persistence.
5. A Thousand No’s: A Growth Mindset Story of Grit, Resilience, and Creativity By DJ Corchin
After getting no’s her whole life for one great idea after the next, the young girl in this book doesn’t give up! She keeps pushing and keeps coming up with great ideas until she finally gets her breakthrough and gets a YES! This should definitely be part of your book list for your young readers to give them a new perspective and help them push through their challenges.
6. One More Time: A Story About Perseverance (Bright Start) By Nancy Loewen
This is a great book for very young children to be read and talked through by their parents. It would be a great addition to your little kid’s reading list and shows how a little boy tried over and over again to learn how to ride his bike. Even though he fell a bunch of times, he kept getting back up and trying again. I think young kids can really benefit from reading this book because kids face these situations a lot in life, especially when learning new skills and trying to become little leaders.
7. Still I Fly By Nikki Ace
Become a flying machine with Victor, the main character in this book! Your children can enjoy the beautiful illustrations while building self-confidence with this picture book.
8. No Such Thing as Can’t: A Triumphant Story of Faith and Perseverance By Lisa Sexton
This is a great book, especially for those young kids that have a disability of some sort. It is easy to give up when you think it will be hard work to get where you want to go and if children have a disability, it is even easier to give up sometimes. If your child is having these hindering thoughts or has a disability, get them this book at the beginning of the school year to get them geared up and ready to take on all challenges they may face! This little boy, despite having cerebral palsy, had a big goal of becoming a pediatrician. Years later, after he pushed through, he became a doctor and can now give back like he has always wanted! You really can achieve anything you want!
Great Children’s Book List for Perseverance
These stories of others who had to dream big and keep fighting while trying to maintain a positive attitude to get to their goals, are great for a little child to dive into! Reading stories of people that have gone through things your children may be going through can help them realize that everyone faces hard challenges but they can keep going and eventually get to where they want with a little work! These days, social media really can hinder kids from seeing the full picture of struggles that people have faced to get where they are now. It is a highlight reel that shows the great in people’s lives and not the struggle. So, giving your kids books like these, instead of having their brains full of social media, is great especially for older kids.
This list is full of some of my favorite children books about perseverance for young readers, and I hope your kids enjoy reading them like my kids have!
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Hi, I’m Jessica! I am wife to Chris, and mom to Kaiper, Alana and Koa. I am a graphic designer, website developer and aspiring author. In this space, I share about everything from parenting, working from home, food we cook, and lots of things for kids! Learn more about me here.
