Smelly Socks

Once a week during our Morning Meeting, the school counselor comes in a presents an Open Circle lesson. Today, the discussion was about honesty. The students had some very interesting things to say about when it is difficult for them to be honest.

Most of them, of course, hesitate to tell the truth when they are afraid of getting in trouble. But a rather large number of them admitted to lying to their parents about whether or not they had a) bathed, or b) brushed their teeth.

This was unsurprising to me because I've raised 4 children and survived those stinky tween years, when, for some inconceivable reason, they don't want to be bothered to clean themselves and don't mind walking around smelling like a wet dog with rotten egg breath.

So...when they returned from specialist this morning, this was the read aloud I shared with them :)

Robert Munsch, a favorite with children and adults, partially because of his slightly gross sense of humor, takes on the topic of stinky tweens and my class thought it was HILARIOUS! Tina goes to great lengths to get her fabulous new socks and she is so happy about them, that she refuses to take them off. People and animals complain about the stench, but still she refuses. Finally, her classmates take matters into their own hands and drag her down to the river and scrub them while they are on her feet. The last two pages might be the best part of the whole story.

Michael Martchenko, who illustrates many of Munsch's books, sticks with his trademark bright, joyful pictures of spunky, sassy children. His pictures double the pleasure of reading Munsch's books.

Interview with Robert Munsch

Interview with Michael Martchenko

Therapeutic Fiction

I've started a new hashtag on Instagram - #therapeuticfiction .

It's that time of year again, the time when we remember what the phrase "teacher tired" means. Students are antsy and sassy and exhausting. Those who have put in their best effort all year are tired, those who have spent the year piddling their own time, their classmates' time, and their teacher's time with constant disruptions are kicking it up a notch. It's EXHAUSTING.

I have to remind myself every year that they are feeling anxious about the coming changes. For some of them, school is their safe place and summer means instability and uncertainty. Some are worried because they are moving across town or even across the country, or will be far from home with a non-custodial parent for a month or two. Others, like my 4th graders, are anxious about moving to a new school.

We've been reading lots of picture books about strong emotions and new situations, something I do at the beginning of the school year as well. These books are WONDERFUL springboards for conversations about what is bothering children. In the past few days, I have learned so much about these children I thought I already knew so well!

• "That happened to me," 
• "I feel that way, too," 
• "His parents are NEVER getting back together," 
• "My parents got divorced without even asking me," 
• "My brother doesn't even talk to me anymore. All he does is play video games," 
• "I'm scared of that, too,"

Julia Cook is a former school counselor and teacher who writes about tough topics for kids - deployment, foster care, cancer, autism, executive function, and much more. She's written more than 60 books and they are teacher favorites! The two books pictured above are written by her and were our read alouds earlier this week. 

Wilma Jean the Worry Machine is about a girl who worries about EVERYTHING - this girl is a world class worrier, and nothing goes unnoticed or is too small for her to obsess over. Her mom finally snaps, consults every professional she can find and comes up with a plan to help Wilma figure out some strategies for tackling the things that are keeping her from living her life to the fullest.

Thanks for the Feedback...I Think was hilarious! R.J has no skills for handling either compliments or criticism. He also has trouble reading body language and sensing tone. When he is rude to his teacher during a parent-teacher conference, his parents take action and teach him some strategies for responding to others.

My class was keenly interested in the feedback story, which allowed us to have a interesting conversation about what feedback is and some appropriate ways to respond to it. 

I've taught a number of RJs over the years, and sadly, there are more of them in each class as the years roll by. Because they have no strategies for handling feedback, they immediately become defensive, argumentative and disrespectful. Thankfully, teachers have access to books like these to help children identify with characters and process solutions in a non-threatening way.

So...I'm going to keep posting my favorite titles for helping children learn to identify and handle strong emotions and new situations with the hashtag #therapeuticfiction. Join me and soon we'll have a tremendous list of teacher-tested and approved books on Instagram!