Respect

This book is a classic, or in my humble opinion, it should be.  Many young students don't know who Jackie Robinson is, but he was the first African American to cross over from the negro baseball leagues to the major baseball league.  A man named Branch Rickey wanted baseball to represent all of America and plus he loved baseball and wanted to bring the best players to his team, the Brooklyn Dodgers.  Jackie Robinson had to sign a contract that he would be brave enough not to fight back, because racial prejudice was beginning to make its face known in America. This book puts our students into that place and time in America where change was about to occur, and how presented with so many negative things going on around him, Jackie Robinson stayed true to his word.

In the midst of trouble, you can still make a good decision, and self respect is extremely important. what better lessons can we teach our students?

Why I liked this book:
I am sure there are lots of books like this, but this books takes us through what people do to surmount obstacles that may stand in their paths.  Our students have big obstacles at times and this story may be the one that a child remembers when he or she needs to bounce back!

Who Would Like This Book:
I read it to fifth grade students, then showed a you tube "Bio" short presentation.  They were very quiet and it hit the spot that I was trying to reach, which was tapping that pride in the human spirit and the American way of bouncing back from defeat or negative things that happen to us.

Honesty

Ruthie is a little girl fox who likes teeny 

and ever so tiny things like dinky dinosaurs, and bears that are hardly there.  At school one day while playing on the twirling bar during recess, she finds a tiny camera in the grass nearby.

She starts clicking away til Martin comes up and says, "Hey that's my camera!"

Well Ruthie was thinking what a great find I have here, and now Martin has burst her bubble!

     She runs inside with Martin following close behind, to Mrs. Olsen their teacher.

Mrs. Olsen says, "It can't belong to both of you..." so she puts it safely inside one of her desk drawers til tomorrow.  Well, Ruthie can't concentrate for the rest of the day because slowly it dawns her she has lied and the camera is really not hers. By bed time she is beside herself with worry and when her parents sit down beside her on her bed, she confesses and tells them everything.

      Well, the next day she takes the long walk to Mrs. Olsen's desk to tell her the truth.  Ruthie has imagined that she will have to sit in a corner all day, or she would not have any friends left, or no one will ever want to be her friend again.  That, fortunately, is not what happens.  Mrs. Olsen kisses her forehead and thanks her for telling the truth.  The next page is devoted to Ruthie apologizing and Martin forgiving her.  The book ends with Ruthie sitting on the bus going home with a clear conscience, happy with herself and not missing that teeny tiny camera one bit.

What I Liked About This Book:

Classrooms can have sticky fingers sometimes, and this book gives us a window to look into a child's life and show them that  taking something that does not belong to you is wrong and doing the right thing makes you feel good about yourself.

This Book is for:

Kindergarten, First Grade, and maybe Second Grade

Learning Some Things Already.....

Well, the posts start at the bottom don't they.  I hope I can make this work.  I will need to be patient with myself!

Have you ever wondered how to teach a child about character?

Our children are not born knowing about character, are they?  They can be quite "all about me"!  Well, I have learned some things about character in the Guidance Room, and I want to share them!

Usually, I hear lots of words and lectures coming from parents when they begin to talk about doing the right thing with their children.  

(I have been one of them, with three grown children of my own!)  

Well, parents have a strong effect on their children, and talking to them is wonderful and listening to them is even more wonderful.  My intention is to show you how I have introduced character into the lives of many children in the past 15 (or so) years by just doing it!  I hope you enjoy the ride as we begin our journey together!  

Books, Books and More Books

My purpose in this blog is to talk about some great books I find.  I love to find books that my grand daughter would like to hear and read them to her!   I also like to read to classrooms, both young and old! 

There are lots of 'good reads' out there and I want to bring them to you! 

So...get ready to hear some of my great finds!  As an elementary guidance counselor I have a nose for a good read, and the most important thing I want you to know about me, is I look for value, character value that is.  

My thought has always been, that if I fill a child's mind with good character reads and read alongs, they don't really know where they learned to treat others kindly and how to take turns or what empathy means, they just know it!

Please be patient as I learn how to get through the computer savvy stuff  I need to know!