Hadley's Hidden Smile

It is finally time for Hadley the hedgehog to go back to school. Even though she knows that things will be different this year, she feels ready. What she soon realizes, however, is that there will be difficulties in understanding and communicating emotions while wearing facemasks. Join the Compassionate Critters as they embark on a journey of emotional understanding and come up with creative and compassionate ways to communicate feelings.

At a time when we have to literally mask our emotions, communicating has become increasingly more difficult for children and adults alike. Young children who rely heavily on facial expression now have to find new ways of figuring out how others are feeling. Hadley’s Hidden Smile aims to help do just that.  For caregivers of all kinds from parents, to teachers, to therapists and more the book not only explores the now common problem but also offers a range of solutions. Included is a list of discussion questions and games to help teach children to look for other clues in tone and pitch of voice and expressive eye movements for “clues” as to how others are feeling and learn how to communicate better themselves when they have to wear a mask.

Angela Parks Baldasare

Angela has been happily married to her husband and business partner, Dr. Brent Baldasare, for 27 years. They have 3 children, Lyndsey (our illustrator) Braxton and Makenna. Together they run a busy Med Spa and Wellness Center in East Orlando. Above all else, Angela is passionate about her role as a wife and mother. She has the heart of a teacher and has homeschooled her two youngest children for more than 14 years. She's also a fiction junkie— Angela loves to read and has been known to fly through a good book in less than 24 hours!