Companion Scripts for “A Kids Book About Food Allergies”
Skip ahead to see the email scripts!
I am so proud of my book A Kids Book About Food Allergies!
It’s unique in that it’s written in second-person (addressing the reader directly); There are no cartoon characters; It’s me talking to your kids about food allergies, whether they have allergies or not.
I wrote this book to be a read aloud, whether it’s a parent reading it to their child at bedtime or being read aloud in the classroom.
And it’s this idea of reading the book in the classroom that I’d like to focus on here.
General tips
Here are a few ideas to consider if you want to read A Kids Book About Food Allergies to your child’s class:
My recommendation is for grades 1 and up.
Read the book ahead of time and think about any additional comments you want to make about any concepts such as anaphylaxis, cross-contact, belonging.
Bring your epinephrine auto-injectors and/or trainers to show to the students after you read the book. If you have an Auvi-Q, show them what the directions sound like.
Be prepared to field questions. When I read this book to my son’s third grade class, there were about a million questions. You’ll know the answer to many questions, but not all.
Keep your child in the loop. Make sure your child is okay with you reading this book to the class. Many kids will love the opportunity to have you visit the class and share about something important to them. Some may not like the spotlight. If your child pushes back, it’s a good idea to have an open conversation about what your purpose is, and why your child might feel negatively. Be sure to uncover and correct any wrong assumptions or misconceptions.
And now, I’ll offer two different scripts:
An email script to customize and send to your child’s teacher requesting time for you to read this book to your child’s class, and
A letter that can be sent home with kids after the book has been read, informing parents about what the kids learned that day about food allergies and encouraging discussion at home.
Introducing the idea to the teacher
We are aware of how hard our teachers work and it can be hard to ask anything of them. But as a former teacher, I know that so many of our teachers are more than happy to hear from the parents, especially if they want to share something that’s important to their family.
If you want to ask your child’s teacher to read the book to the class, here is a sample email script that you can copy and customize to your needs.
Dear Ms. Foster,
Hello! I’m Kai’s mom, Leah Kang, and I have an incredible book about food allergies that I’d love to read to the class. It’s called “A Kids Book About Food Allergies” by Ina K. Chung.
It’s an informative and engaging book about what food allergies are, how cross-contact can occur, and how we can be inclusive to those with food allergies.
Is there a 20- or 30-minute block of time in the next couple weeks when I can read the book and also field some questions? I’m available on Mondays and Fridays before 10am.
Thank you so much!
Sincererly,
Ina Chung
Send a letter home
I love the idea of sending a letter home with kids after the book has been read. Our kids love educating their parents, and the more allies we have, the safer our kids are.
Kids may forget details, so sending a letter home can reinforce some of the new concepts they’ve learned as well and can be a jumping off point for discussions at home about safety and inclusion.
You can print or copy/email this script to your teacher ahead of time and ask if it’s okay to send it home with students.
Dear parent/guardian,
Today, our class had a parent come in and read us the book A Kids Book About Food Allergies by Ina K. Chung. As we do manage food allergies in the class, it was important to read this book so that we can be more educated about what food allergies are and how we can be an inclusive community for those with food allergies.
Here are some important ideas we learned from the book:
- Food allergies can be very serious. An allergic reaction can be mild, but it can also be life-threatening.
- Even eating a little bit of an allergen can cause a serious allergic reaction.
- Cross-contact is the idea that food proteins can transfer to a surface or another food, making it unsafe. So it’s not just about avoiding a food; it’s also about controlling for cross-contact.
- Adults and kids with food allergies can be made to feel like they don’t belong. But in our classroom, everyone belongs and we care about everyone’s safety and inclusion.
Your child may have more questions about food allergies that you may not have the answers to. For more information, visit foodallergy.org and kidswithfoodallergies.com. You can also email the parent who came to read the book with us at email@email.com.
Sincerely,
Ms. Williams
Thank you so much for reading A Kids Book About Food Allergies to your child’s class. Little by little, we’re making the world a safer place for our precious ones with food allergies.
