When a child becomes a new big brother or big sister, life changes. The attention that he used to receive from mommy and daddy now has to be shared with a new sibling. One exasperated toddler, after being woken at 3 AM by her baby sister who was hungry, complained, “is that baby STILL here?!?” Fortunately, there are things that you can do for your child to prepare for being a new sibling. By preparing a new sibling survival kit, you can provide your older child with some resources he can use to help make the transition from only child to oldest child.

The first thing that you can include in a new sibling survival kit is a good book about becoming an older sibling. There are several books available that children may enjoy. Some of them might include:

“Arthur’s Baby,” by Marc Brown. The popular character Arthur deals with the issue of having a new baby.

“Julius, the Baby of the World,” written by Kevin Henkes. This book starts out with the big sister, Lilly, thinking that her baby brother gets too much attention. By the end, Lilly discovers how much she loves and cares for her new sibling.

“Alligator Baby,” by Robert Munsch. This delightful tale pits the preschooler as a hero to her new sibling.

“Will there be a lap for me?” by Dorothy Corey. This is a classic book that is excellent for your preschooler both before and after the new sibling is born. During pregnancy, the mom’s lap gets smaller and smaller, and the child is worried that the mother will never be able to spend time with the child again. The mom, of course, helps to assuage the child’s fears.

“A Place for Ben,” by Jeanne Titherington. This is an excellent book if the new sibling will be sharing a room with your preschooler.

“The New Baby,” by Mercer Mayer. The author of “Where the Wild Things Are” and other books presents an excellent look at having a new sibling.

“A Baby for Max,” by Kathryn Lasky and Maxwell Knight. This book uses black and white photography to explain how a preschooler thinks about his new sibling.

In addition to books, you can include some other items. You might include an “emergency coloring book” that your child can use when she would like to play with you, but you are busy with the baby. You could instead include an “emergency toy” or “emergency doll” for the same reason. For an older child, you could include a set of ear plugs or headphones for when the baby is being particularly noisy.

With a little creativity and effort, you can create a new sibling survival kit for your child that will be both fun and useful.

Posted in Parenting

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