Beautiful Oops by Barney Saltzberg

Beautiful Oops! is a creative, unique and interactive picture book. Each page shows how a mistake is actually an occasion for creativity and problem solving. Whether a torn piece of paper or a little drip of paint, this book strives to show children how, with a little patience and imagination, an “oops” can be an opportunity to make something beautiful.

Each page has a flap, or some kind of interactive, tactile surprise to show an “oops” being transformed into something new. Although this only takes a minute or two to read through, your child will likely want to spend more time interacting with the pages over and over again.

Because we have multiple children who struggle with perfectionism, we used this book as an opportunity to talk about looking at a mistake as a learning experience, but also as an opportunity to get creative and try something they didn’t plan on doing.

Because this book is so hands on, you may not be able to find it at your library, but I do recommend this one for a home collection, especially if you have little ones that struggle with perfectionism. You can pull this book out and show how much fun an “oops” can be, if they need a little reminder.

This post may contain affiliate links. Please read our disclaimer for more info.

1. When have you made a mistake that upset you?
2. Is it okay to make mistakes?
3. What is something you can do to remind yourself that a mistake is a chance for a beautiful oops?