Tag Archives: School Counselor Lessons

Elem. – The Dreams We Made

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Bentley, Lisa. The Dreams We Made. Simon & Schuster, 2023. 978-1-665-91765-0. Unpaged. $18.99. Grades PK-3.

At the center of The Dreams we Made is a little girl with a big imagination. Each night, her father helps her bring her ideas to life using found items. Each day, she holds tight to her daddy, wishing he didn’t need to go back to work. When he encourages her to keep dreaming while he is away, she does. Her dreams grow, and the little girl and her father begin their biggest project yet. One the eve of completing the project, Mommy delivers the sad news that her father has died and cannot complete their project. Together, the girl and her Mom find a way to continue dreaming and, over time, they put the pieces back together and begin feeling closer to Daddy once more.

THOUGHTS: The Dreams We Made is a beautifully illustrated and balanced picture book that combines imagination, love, and loss to create a story that successfully balances all three–accomplishing the unique feat of a story incorporating loss with the potential of broad appeal to picture book readers. The girl’s projects focus on her dreams of space exploration, and Lisa Bentley’s illustrations are dominated by this space theme, inviting children into an engaging world of creativity and imagination. Bentley’s depiction of the mother sharing the loss of the father with her child is gentle and loving, and the child’s expression of this loss (denial, loss of interest in her creations, and destructive anger) will feel real to both child and adult readers. Bentley does not rush her characters through grief, but rather gives her characters time to heal, first in imagination, then through their actions. This beautiful, wise book is highly recommended for all readers in the general library and also for guidance collections.

Picture Book 

Elem. – Wants vs. Needs vs. Robots

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Rex, Michael. Wants vs. Needs vs. Robots. Illustrated by Michael Rex. Nancy Paulson Books, 2023. 978-0-593-53009-2. Unpaged. $18.99. Grades K-2. 

Wants vs. Needs vs. Robots teaches children the difference between wants and needs. The book uses the robots to show the things that the robots need such as arms, oil, and legs. It also shows the things the robots want such as jelly bean tacos and unicorn hats. The book shows one robot putting his wants ahead of his needs and what happens to him, after which it goes back and shows the robot showing the difference between his wants and needs. It also shows how the robot gets what he wants without sacrificing his needs.

THOUGHTS: Overall, this would be a great book for an elementary guidance counselor to use with young students discussing wants vs. needs. Students who are obsessed with robots might want to read this due to the characters within the book, but this book will be most effective when used with a lesson.

Picture Book

Elem. – Woo Hoo! You’re Doing Great!

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Boynton, Sandra. Woo Hoo! You’re Doing Great! Little, Brown and Company, 2023. 978-0-316-48679-8. Unpaged. $17.99.  Grades K-3.

Woo Hoo! You’re Doing Great! is a motivational book that features a chicken who follows you and screams about how you are doing great at whatever you are trying to do. The book starts with asking if you have ever felt low or down? Maybe what you need is a chicken to wave and cheer. As the book goes on, the chicken cheers for multiple animals until finally they cheer for a sleeping bear which does not go well. The chicken has made a mistake and learns that everyone makes mistakes. A mouse steps in and teaches the reader what the best woohoo is that you can do.

THOUGHTS: This is such a fun book to read aloud and will be a great addition to any elementary collection. This book would also make a great read aloud for any elementary guidance counselor lessons.

Picture Book