Have You Filled a Bucket Today?: A Guide to Daily Happiness for Kids

Through simple prose and vivid illustrations, this heartwarming book encourages positive behaviour by using the concept of an invisible bucket to show readers how easy and rewarding it is to express kindness, appreciation, and love by “filling buckets.” This updated and revised 10th Anniversary Edition of this best-selling, award-winning, 32-page picture book will help readers better understand that “bucket dipping” is a negative behaviour, not a permanent label. It also explains that it’s possible to fill or dip into our own buckets.

"Carol McCloud’s timeless picture book, ‘Have You Filled a Bucket Today?’, teaches kids that other people’s happiness should matter to them. Designed as a lesson for children ages 4-9, the book is a how-to on becoming ‘bucket fillers,’ or people who live a happy, rewarding life. It builds upon the idea that we all carry around an invisible bucket to ‘hold your good thoughts and good feelings about yourself.’ A full bucket means that you’re happy; an empty bucket signifies sadness or loneliness. . . . ‘Have You Filled a Bucket Today?’ is a helpful guidebook for young children about how to be happy in their daily lives, demonstrating its tools in action and leaving children with actionable advice."
- Rebecca Monterusso, Clarion Foreword Book Reviews

"Children are not the only ones that need to learn how to be truly happy. It’s all in the bucket, that invisible bucket that follows you everywhere. Carol McCloud has written a delightful story, colorfully illustrated by David Messing. ‘Have You Filled a Bucket Today? A Guide to Daily Happiness for Kids’ teaches young readers valuable lessons about giving, sharing, and caring. This guide to daily happiness, though, is not just for kids. We all need reminders of the benefits of positive thinking and positive behavior. It’s an important lesson to teach and remind us all, from time to time, that showing kindness and appreciation of others goes a long way to making this world a happier place for everyone, including ourselves. A classic tale, beautifully told and beautifully shared."
- Emily-Jane Hills, Orford, Readers’ Favorite Book Reviews

"A childhood play toy becomes the symbol of universal compassion and caring. Carol McCloud guides the readers towards making the world a better place to be. Her bucket filling symbolism is written with sheer simplicity, yet results in powerful returns."
- Donna DeWitt-Schnell, thirty-year public education teacher; 2005-2006 Lake Orion, Michigan Middle School Teacher of the Year; mother and grandmother