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Bibliotherapy: Helping Children Through Difficult Times
by Aparna Nambiar

Situation 1: Ten-year-old Anne finds out from her friends that she is an adopted child.

Situation 2: Charlie resorts to threatening other children in his class to get what he wants.

Situation 3: Four-year-old Ben behaves rudely lately. He feels his new baby sister gets all the attention from his parents. They don't seem to have any time for him.

Situation 4: Robert and his family move to a new city. He doesn't enjoy his school like he used to last year. He seems withdrawn and reserved.

One could go on with problems and issues that children face as they grow up. But this is not simply a listing of problems. These are potential areas for the application of bibliotherapy.

Bibliotherapy refers to the use of literature to help people cope with emotional problems and tough situations. It's also used to help in personality growth and development. In other words, it is the use of books for therapeutic purposes. Bibliotherapy began to be practiced back in the 1930s, when librarians began compiling lists of books that helped mould individual thoughts and feelings. The librarians, together with counselors and physicians, began to prescribe specific books that would help clients facing problems.

Who will benefit
Parents have since long been resorting to stories as a means to arouse desirable emotional responses like getting a child to eat his vegetables or not to swear at friends. Their basic aim was to foster affective development of the child. Books and stories too, have been used to achieve these goals.

The situations that bibliotherapy can help in are varied, ranging from divorce and adoption to sibling rivalry and teaching manners. Bibliotherapy can be used for both developmental issues as well as situational stresses that children may face. For instance in the examples above, Ben is facing a difficulty most children do at that age; while in the next, Robert is facing a stress arising out of a situation.

Who can use bibliotherapy
Can anyone use bibliotherapy? Not really. Though teachers may use it in their classrooms at a very broad level, a lot of planning has to be done in terms of what materials are selected. The material should relate to the counseling objectives and to the people using the material—the child himself or the parents/teachers.

When selecting a book one has to keep in mind the clarity of writing style, the suitability of illustrations, the freedom from stereotypes, the choice of theme, the use of appropriate language, and the relevance to the person's experiences. When it comes to children, the size and the length of the book also matter. The Care Bear Series of books are a good resource for bibliotherapy sessions. Children can also identify with the Sesame Street publications like Grover Goes to School and Grover's Bad, Awful Day.

Teachers can use bibliotherapy as a technique when they realize the need for a child to see from another's perspective, to understand the person's feelings. Autobiographies and biographies can help provide role models. Children can learn from the incidents in the lives of famous people. They can discover how others dealt with situations and overcame difficulties.

Children can also learn to deal with problems beyond their grasp by reading about characters that are going through a similar situation. Stories can even be used to provide tips for successful resolution of difficult situations. For instance, children can respond to stories like the Aesop's Fables or the Panchatantra, an Indian series of animal stories. They can identify with the coping strategies used by the story characters.

When using bibliotherapy, one needs to consider the timing of the presentation and to whom it is being presented—an individual or a group. Quite often the books may be above the reading level of the child; hence, they should be read aloud. This should be followed by a discussion to clarify ideas and to provide an outlet for a child's anxieties. In such cases, close supervision of a caring adult is necessary. Materials can also be read to a group, where the members face a common anxiety.

Bibliotherapy can be used in a variety of situations and at various levels. In order to make it successful, the material must be presented in a non-threatening manner supported by inputs from parents, caregivers, and others associated with the child. Furthermore, practitioners must be aware of any limitations that may arise in each situation and effectively overcome them. For instance, it is necessary to ensure that the personal values of the practitioner are not imposed upon young impressionable minds or to ensure that sensitive topics like death, sex and so on are dealt with care. Most important of all, care should be taken to avoid a moralizing or preaching approach. Bibliotherapy is powerful tool for teachers and counselors. To use it otherwise, the basic purpose of bibliotherapy will be lost.

Suggested Reading:
Bombeck, E. Motherhood: The Second Oldest Profession. NY: Dell Publishing, 1983.

Gumaer, J. Counseling and Therapy for Children. NY: Free Press, 1984.

Overstad, B. Bibliotherapy: Books to Help Young Children. MN: Toys 'n Things Press, 1981.

Internet Resources:
http://home.nyc.rr.com/teachertools/Bibliotheraphy.htm

Aparna Nambiar is a freelance writer and storyteller. She has written various articles and stories for both the electronic and the print media. She also conducts storytelling and puppetry workshops for children and teachers. She wishes to use various media to teach children and to make learning an enjoyable experience. She can be contacted at: aparna.nambiar@gmail.com.