Lily and Nico: Social Skills Stories about Friendship, Feelings, and Facing Challenges

Empower kids to strengthen their social skills and emotional resilience with this engaging and interactive ＂You Choose＂ early chapter book for kids ages 6 to 9.

What do you do if someone bullies your friend? What about when you hurt a friend’s feelings? Explore these questions and more in Lily and Nico, a collection of short stories about two kids who face conflict, navigate social and emotional growth, and learn about the true essence of friendship. Written by an educator and expert on social-emotional learning, these stories include an interactive ＂You Choose＂ element that allows kids to step into Lily’s and Nico’s shoes and decide what they do next. Share in Lily and Nico’s fun and engaging adventures with your child--and support their journey to stronger social skills, greater emotional intelligence, better problem-solving, and healthier friendships.

Highlights of Lily and Nico

• ＂You Choose＂ interactive book empowers kids. Making choices for the characters helps kids better understand consequences and develop their critical-thinking skills.
• Fun, educational stories tailored for young readers. These stories seamlessly blend fiction and social-emotional learning, helping kids learn to navigate social situations and manage their emotions.
• Relatable characters and realistic scenarios. From basketball practice and science fairs to bullies at a block party, these stories about two best friends will keep kids engaged and reading.
• End-of-the-book reflection questions and activities. Discuss these questions with your child to help deepen their understanding of each story and reinforce the social skills lessons taught.

Peyton Curley is a former teacher who used her experience and passion for working with children to start her business, The Social Emotional Teacher. She is devoted to providing parents, educators, and mental health workers with the resources and strategies they need to develop and nurture social and emotional learning skills in children. She has seen the power of social-emotional learning firsthand through her work as an educator and wants to empower students of all backgrounds. Peyton lives in Nashville, Tennessee, where she enjoys spending time with friends, family, and her dog, Crouton; reading books; and watching Kentucky basketball.

Anuki López is an illustrator from Sevilla, Spain. She loves to illustrate books full of color, texture, love, animals, and, of course, kids. She has been drawing since she can remember, and her inspirations are natural elements, autumn colors, shapes and textures of nature, and all kinds of animals, including her favorite, dogs. When she’s not drawing, she loves to spend her time with her dog, Tanuki, knitting and crocheting, or being with her family and partner.