Cross Cultural Kids Resources

CRICS Students are Cross-Cultural Kids

Cross-Cultural Kids (CCKs) are children who grow up among many cultural environments for any reason.  (http://www.crossculturalkid.org/)
We encourage our students, parents, and teachers to understand some of the key strengths and challenges of cross-cultural kids.
Here are some tools for navigating the years together.

Websites and Blogs about Cross Cultural Kids and Third Culture Kids

Cross Cultural Kid: http://www.crossculturalkid.org/
Global Ministry devoted to Missionary Kids: http://michelephoenix.com/
Global TCK Care and Education: http://www.iched.org/cms/scripts/page.php?site_id=iched&item_id=default
Re-entry and transition Care: http://www.barnabas.org/member-care/events/mk-transitional-seminar and http://tckinternational.com/tck-parents/reentry/tck-reentry-seminars.html
http://www.tckidnow.com/
http://mangotreereflections.com/
https://www.interactionintl.org/transition.asp

A few narrative children’s books to consider as you help TCKs process and form their identity

  • When Africa Was Home by Lynn Williams, Illustrated by Floyd Cooper
    This book follows the life of a young white boy who is at home in Africa, moves to America against his will, and then returns. The story is written in the third person but from the curious perspective of a young boy about 3-7 years old. Contrasts are made between Africa and the faraway place he moves to for a time.
    LA- 3-12 | IA- 7-12 | Call- ER Wil
  • Gila monsters meet you at the airport by Marjorie Weinman Sharmat and illustrated by Byron Barton
    This book is full of exaggerated fears of a young boy from New York who is moving out west. Each is contrasted to his life in New York and makes the move seem scary. At the airport, he meets a kid with exaggerated fears about moving out East. The silly story ends when the young boy connects to his old friend, identifies with his new home, and discovers it’s not so different or scary after all.
    LA- 3-12 | IA- 5-10 | Call- ER SHA
  • A Fish Out of Water: A Short Story for TCKs By Hannah Flatman and illustrated by Rekha Salin
    This book is written in simple language about a fish that has to move and how she eventually feels angry and confused. A swallow helps her see that the Creator is always available and that we can have more than one home on this globe. The book ends with a passage of Scripture (Psalm 145:18)  and discussion questions.
    LA-3-9 | IA- 5-10 | Call- ER FLA
  • Just Different by Kwini Wafler
    Ice cream flavors clamor for attention as the little animals come into the shop. The little animals argue what flavor is the best. All the while Mr. Lamb the Ice cream Maker reminds them that each is made special, just the way he intended “Fearfully and wonderfully”.
    LA- 5-6 | IA- 5-8 | Call- ER WAF
  • Just Teddy by Emily Lim-Leh
    The story follows a small stuffed bear seeking belonging in a store full of other stuffed animals. In an effort to be like them he forgets Whose he is and ends up feeling more alone. The story ends with Teddy being “just Teddy” and resting in Psalm 139.
    LA-7-9 | IA-7-9 | Call- ER LIM
  • Tangled Up Travels: Written and illustrated by Kate Pennington
    This book follows the tangles of Kate’s hair as she goes from country to country, building a garden in her tangled hair. Only a bother at times, she continues to travel until she becomes overburdened by the tangle and brushes it out into the yard. A garden grows, the one she needed to root to give room for more adventures. Her struggle with her many homes becomes the beauty of who she is.
    LA- 8-15 | IA- 8-15 | Call- ER PEN
  • Tree of Cranes by Allen Say
    A young Japanese boy has his first Christmas, learning about it through the memory of his mother’s upbringing in California. The tale is full of Japanese cultural observations of the child as well as Christmas traditions of the west. The blend in this family is a conversation starter for sure.
    LA- 8-16 | IA- 12-16 | Call- ER SAY
  • Tea with Milk by Allen Say
    This story weaves together the life of a Japanese highschool student who moves from the USA to Japan and has trouble adjusting to her parents home. Tension with language and gender roles leaves her learning, proving herself, and making connections between worlds that only a TCK could. The story includes romance and some of the TCK elements that made this true story such a blend of cultures.
    LA- 8-18 | IA- 12-18 | Call- ER SAY
  • Amber Brown is not a crayon: fighting with your best friend is not fun by Paula Danzinger
    Two third graders have a friendship marked by helping each other, making jokes, and and spending time together. Amber Brown processes how her best friend Justin will soon move due to parents getting a new job. The class and Amber deals with this, including a fight that makes the leaving harder right at the end for the two best friends.
    LA- 7-11 | IA- 8-11 | Call- JF DAN C.1
  •  Hidden in My Heart: A TCK’s journey through cultural transition by Taylor Murray
    This Teenage author boldly shares of her story integrating into Japanese Culture as a child. Each chapter includes clear feelings that were complex, the conext of it it written in the form of a prayer toward God. Part 1 covers prayers dealing with negative feelings and part 2 positive feelings, each chapter ending with a few questions for reflection.
    LA- 12-18 | IA-14-18 | Call- 303.3 MUR
  • Homesick My Own Story by Jean Fritz and illustrated by Margot Tomes
    Jean retells of her upbringing with a sharp focus on the days between 1925-1927 as she grew up as a foreigner in China. The political climate acts as a backdrop, adding tension to what was already there with her family. Her letters to her grandmother process much of this cultural and political tension, wrapped up in the story of an American girl at a British school in China.
    LA- 12-18 | IA- 15-18 | Call- JF FRI

A few extra titles for thinking and processing the TCK experience with caregivers.

  • Slurping Soup and other confusions: True stories and activities to help third culture kids during transition. By Maryam Afnan Ahmad
    A book full of stories and activities for children processing different aspects of transition. These are apportioned over a few age groups and are targeted for a family to do together as the situations come up.
  • Grounded in Grace: Helping kids build their identity in Christ by Jonathan D. Holmes
    This book is a biblically sound and yet culturally relevant book on identity formation for young people. This short work is written to parents but any would benefit from the chapters that use stories, scripture, and statistics to give conversations starters to those who walk with children through identity formation, the real Biblical call of each TCK.

Books for all ages in the CRICS Library

  • A Country Far Away by: Nigel Gray

  • A Different Pong by Bao Phi

  • A Land of Permanent Goodbyes by Atia Abawi

  • After the last border: Two families and the story of refuge in America by Jessica Goudeau

  • Alexander, who used to be rich last Sunday by Judith Viorst

  • Alexander, Who’s Not (Do you Hear me? I mean it!) Going to Move by: Judith Viorst

  • Amber Brown is not a Crayon by: Paula Danziger

  • B at Home: Emma Moves Again by Valerie Besanceney

  • Bee-Bim Bop by Linda Sue Park

  • Belonging Everywhere and Nowhere: Insights into Counseling the Globally Mobile by Lois J. Bushong

  • Blackbird Fly by Kelly & Erin Entrada

  • Blue Willow by Mary Frank Gaston

  • Boy Everywhere by A. M. Dassu

  • The Boy Who tried to Shrink His Name by Sandhya Parappukkaran

  • Braving the Wilderness: The Quest for True Belonging and the Courage to Stand Alone by Brene Brown

  • C. S. Lewis Master Storyteller by Janet Benge

  • The Calling by Cathrun Clinton

  • Children of the River by Linda Crew

  • The Children’s Homer: the Adventures of Odysseus and the Tale of Troy by Padraic Colum

  • Christian Adventures by Ben Larsen

  • Cilla Lee Jenkins: Future Author Extraordinaire by Susan Tan

  • Cilla Lee Jenkins: The Epic Story by Susan Tan

  • Cilla Lee Jenkins: This Book is a classic by Susan Tan

  • Courage by Bernard Waber

  • Cross Cultural Connections: Stepping out and Fitting in around the world by: Duane Elmer

  • Crying in H Mart: A Memior by Michelle Zauner

  • Culture Shock! Thailand by Robert George Cooper

  • Dark Pilgrim; The Story of Squanto by Feenie Ziner

  • The Day You Begin by Jacqueline Woodson

  • The Double Life of Pocahontas by Jean Fritz

  • Dreams in the Golden Country: The diary of a Zipporah Feldman, a Jewish Immigrant Girl by Kathryn Lasky

  • El Chino by Allen Say

  • Ellie McDoodle: New Kid in School by Ruth McNally Barshaw

  • Emotional Resilience by Julia Simens

  • Equal Rights to the Curriculum by: Eithne Gallacher

  • Esperanza Rising by Pam Muanoz Ryan

  • Evelyn Del Rey is Moving Away by Meg Medina

  • Foreign to Familiar: A Guide to Understanding Hot- and Cold-Climates by: Sarah Lanier

  • Free as a Bird: The Story of Malala by Lina Maslo

  • Ghost Hunter by Michelle Paver

  • Gila Monsters Meet you at the Airport by: Marjorie W. Sharmat

  • The Global Nomad’s Guide to University Transition by: Tina Quick

  • Grandfather’s Journey by: Allen Say

  • Growing up Among Worlds by: OMF

  • Half and Half by: Lensey Namioka

  • Hidden in My Heart – A TCK’s Journey through Cultural Change by: Taylor Murray

  • Holy Adventure: 41 Days of Audacious Living by Bruce Gordon Epperly

  • Homesick: My Own Story by: Jean Fritz

  • I Hate English by: Ellen Levine

  • I Know Here by Laurel Croza

  • If Your Name Was Changed at Ellis Island by Ellen Levine

  • I’m New Here by Anne Sibley O’ Brian

  • Immigrant Kids by Russell Freedman

  • In Fear of the Spear by Marianne Hering

  • The Inspirational Writings of C.S. Lewis by C. S. Lewis

  • Invisible Cities by Italo Calvino

  • Ira Says Goodbye by: Bernard Weber

  • J.R.R. Tolkein by Alexandra Wallner

  • J.R.R. Tolkein The Man who Created The Lord of the Rings by Michael Coren

  • The Journal of Otto Peltonen, a Finnish Immigrant by William Durbin

  • Just Like That by Gary D. Schmidt

  • Kisses From Kate: A Story of Relentless Love and Redemption by Katie Davis

  • Last Stop on Market Street by Matt De La Pena

  • Let’s Read About- Pocahontas by Kimberly Weinberger

  • Lima’s Red Hot Chilli by David Mills

  • The Little Prince by Antione De Saint- Exupaery

  • The Lotus Seed by Sherry Garland

  • Mela and the Elephant by Dow Phumiruk

  • Memories of Summer by Ruth White

  • Misunderstood, The Impact of Growing Up Overseas In the 21st Century by: Tanya Crossman

  • Moving Day by Robert Kalan

  • Moving From Mexico by Liz Rawlings

  • My Name is Not Refugee by Kate Milner

  • My Name is Yoon by Helen Recorvits

  • My Neighborhood: Places and faces by Lisa Bullard

  • The Name Jar by: Yangsook Choi

  • New Kid by Jerry Craft

  • Noodle Pie by Ruth Starke

  • Now What?: Spiritual Discernment for Cultural Encounters by: Gary Green

  • The Odyssey: The Story of Odysseus by Homer

  • Patron Saints of Nothing by Randy Ribay

  • Paula Danziger’s Amber Brown is on the Move by Bruce Coville

  • Pioneer Summer by Deborah Hopkinson

  • Pocahontas by Joseph Bruchac

  • Pocahontas by Nancy Polette

  • Pocahontas and the Strangers by Clyde Robert Bulla

  • Prairie Rose by Catherine Palmer

  • Problems in Plymouth by Marianne Hering

  • Raising global nomads by Robin Pascoe

  • Raising Resilient MKs by: Joyce M. Bowers & Robertson McQuilkin

  • The Reentry Team: Caring for your Returning Missionaries by: Neal Pirolo

  • The Return of Odysseus by I. M. Richardson

  • Safe Passage by Douglas Ota

  • Same, Same But Different by Jenny Sue Kostecki- Shaw

  • Scamps, Scholars, and Saints: An Anthology of Anecdotes, Reflections, Poems, and Drawings by Third Culture Kids

  • Shanghaied to China by Dave Jackson

  • Shipwrecked! The True Adventures of a Japanese Boy by Rhoda Blumberg

  • The Spirit Catches you and you Fall Down by: Anne Fadiman

  • Squanto, Friend of the Pilgrims by Clyde Robert Bulla

  • Squanto’s Journey: The Story of the First Thanksgiving by Joseph Bruchac

  • Sweet Home Alaska by Carole Estby Dagg

  • Tales From the Odyssey. Part Two by Mary Pope Osborne

  • Tangled up travels by Kate Pennington

  • Tea with Milk by: Allen Say

  • The Third Culture Kid Experience Growing up Among Worlds by: David Pollock

  • Third Culture Kids: A Gift to Care For by Ulrika Ernvik

  • Third Culture Kids: The Children of Educators in International Schools by: Ettie Zilber

  • Tigger’s Moving Day by Kathleen W. Zoehfeld

  • Tree of Cranes by: Allen Say

  • The Turtle of Oman: A Novel by Naomi Shihab Nye

  • Uprooted childhood by Faith Eidse and Nina Sichel

  • The Voyage of Odysseus by I. M. Richardson

  • The Wanderings of Odysseus: The Story of Odysseus by Rosemary Sutcliff

  • We Belong by Cookie Hiponia Everman

  • We Belong to Each Other by Jose Galvan

  • When Africa was Home by: Karen Williams

  • When I Grow Up (In Thailand) by Janice Santikarn

  • When I Grow Up Heidi Goennel

  • White Teeth by Zadie Smith

  • Wolf Brother by Michelle Paver

  • The Year My Parents Ruined My Life by: Martha Freeman

  • You Don’t Know What War Is: The Diary of a Young Girl From Ukraine by Yeva Skalietska

Other Recommended Books Not Yet in CRICS Library

  • Belonging Everywhere and Nowhere – Insights into counseling the globally minded by: Lois J. Bushong

  • Finding Home: Third Culture Kids in the World by: Rachel Jones

  • Fragments And Faith – An Adult TCK Experience in Evangelicalism by: Melody Young

  • Global Soul: Jet Lag Shopping Malls and the Search for Home by: Pico Iyer

  • Raising Global Nomads: Parenting Abroad In An On Demand World by: Robin Pascoe

  • Uprooted Childhoods: Memoirs of Growing up Global by: Faith Eidse and Nina Sichel

  • You Know You’re An MK When ……. by: Andy Kerr and Deborah Kerr

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