Tag Archives: Self-Awareness

Elem. – Leena Mo, CEO

Posted on by

Shakir, Deena. Leena Mo, CEO. Salaam Reads. 2024. 978-1-665-93565-4. $18.99. Grades PreK-3.

Leena Mo does not like shoveling snow. Leena Mo decides to create a robot to do the shoveling for her! Her invention works fantastic and soon, everyone wants one! Gathering the help of her friends, she begins her own business creating her snow shoveling robots. With determination and focus, watch Leena Mo become a CEO!

THOUGHTS: A fun business-creation story that shows anyone with determination and an idea could make it big!

Picture Book

Elem. – Sometimes We Fall

Posted on by

De Seve, Randall. Sometimes We Fall. Illustrated by Kate Gardiner. Random House Studio. 978-0-593-64549-9. 32 p. $19.99. Grades K-3. 

A bear cub and its mother are exploring a grassy meadow when they come upon a tree full of ripe plums. The mother bear swiftly climbs the tree and settles herself in the branches among the juicy fruit. The cub wants to follow but is fearful about making the climb. What if it leaps for the branches and misses? What if it rains and its paws slip? What if the wind blows and the tree shakes? What if the branch breaks? For each scenario, the mother bear offers gentle reassurance, and eventually, the cub begins the climb. And, when things don’t go as planned, it’s still okay, thanks to mother’s encouragement. Soft gouache and colored pencil illustrations complement the spare text and capture the range of emotions the cub feels as it contemplates the benefits and drawbacks of taking a risk. 

THOUGHTS: This is a gentle story about courage, perseverance, and resilience that will be the perfect addition to social-emotional learning discussions. Students will relate to the idea of taking a risk and trying something hard, and they will be able to make connections when the cub’s adventure does not go as expected. 

Picture Book

Elem. – The Spark in You

Posted on by

Pippins, Andrea. The Spark in You. Random House Studio, 2024. 978-0-593-38009-3. Grades PreK-3. $18.99.

Inside of you is a spark. It shines, it sparkles, it can shimmer and glimmer and glamor! The spark inside shines its brightest when you are your unique self, full of the wonder and brilliance that is simply you. Take a journey through self-affirmation, self-reflection, and pure love as a father tells his daughter just how amazing she is. Each of us truly has a spark that we should let shine out with our unique self!

THOUGHTS: A colorful book set with the background of Carnival, this story hopefully will reach inside and help the readers spark shine.

Picture Book

MG – Crushing It

Posted on by

Becker, Erin. Crushing It. Penguin Workshop, 2024. 978-0-593-52364-4. $17.99. 240 p. Grades 5-8

“Magic Mel” feels most like herself on the soccer field, where she can focus on the game in front of her and tune out the world. She is voted for team captain and is ready to finally lead her 8th grade team to the championship game. But, when Mel is off the field, she feels like she is messing up left and right. Her friend group is in pieces; she struggles giving a speech in class; and her ex-best friend, Tory, is being cold toward her. The only place Mel feels like she can be herself off the field is texting her poetry with BTtoYouPlease. Tory on the other hand seems to have her life all together. Her mom is around, but seemingly checked out, so when she escapes into messaging NotEmilyD, she starts to feel like she has someone to confide in. But what happens when NotEmilyD and BTtoYouPlease meet in real life? 

THOUGHTS: This novel is character-driven with the characters Mel and Tory showing how they manage friendships, family life, confusing feelings, and middle school sports. Those who love soccer, and even those who don’t, will enjoy this novel. The characters are relatable and show what it can be like to question who you crush on and how to manage those relationships.

Realistic Fiction

MG – We Built This City

Posted on by

Patrick, Cat. We Built This City. Nancy Paulsen Books, 2024. 978-0-593-46216-4. $17.99. 259 p. Grades 5-8.

Stevie is FINALLY able to go on her performance group’s cross-country tour. Twenty-six teenagers all get to travel across the US lip-syncing and performing their choreographed dance moves. What makes it even better is that she gets to go with her brother, best friend, and her crush. Join Stevie and the crew in what is sure to be a roller coaster of a summer.

THOUGHTS: This book did such a phenomenal job highlighting the awkwardness of having your first crush and trying to get them to notice you, capturing the time period (1980’s) and showing teen and tween readers what it is like to build friendships. This novel also does a great job of portraying what it is like to live with a life-long illness, in this case Epilepsy, and what it can look like to find confidence in yourself.

Historical Fiction
Realistic Fiction

MG – Plain Jane and the Mermaid

Posted on by

Brosgol, Vera. Plain Jane and the Mermaid. First Second, 2024. 978-1-250-31485-7. 368 p. $14.99. Grades 5-8.

Set in the Victorian Era, Brosgol creates a new fairy tale adventure complete with a brave, determined heroine who must save her would-be fiance from the dark depths of the sea. The story opens with the loss of Jane’s parents and the horrible choice of either becoming homeless and destitute or finding a husband. She proposes to the village’s most attractive boy, Peter, who subsequently is lured into the water by a devious mermaid. Seeking assistance from one of the village’s elder women, who may or may not be a witch, Jane must find the courage to travel into the sea and save Peter. This story feels familiar. However, Brosgol challenges the idea that beauty equals good and ugly equals evil often seen in traditional fairy tales, leaving readers with the knowledge that even “plain” girls can have fantastic adventures, learn to love themselves for who they are, and be the heroes of their own stories.

THOUGHTS: I absolutely loved this book and finished it in one sitting. Brosgol is a favorite author/illustrator, and Plain Jane and the Mermaid is my favorite of her books thus far. The illustrations are gorgeous and beautifully captures her character’s emotions. Highly recommended for all middle grade students.

Graphic Novel
Fantasy

Plain Jane and the Mermaid follows our main character who starts the graphic novel with the death of her parents. Because there is no male heir, Jane is going to be kicked out of her childhood home. Jane is determined to propose to James who is just perfect (in her eyes) and just as he agrees he gets stolen by a mermaid. Jane decides she is going to rescue James and what follows is an adventure under the sea that allows Jane to see herself as she really is versus how everyone else sees her.

THOUGHTS: This was a wonderfully told story about accepting yourself and loving yourself, no matter what others think. I loved Jane’s character arc, and it felt so authentic and true to the character we grew to know and love. This is a great addition to any middle school collection.

Graphic Novel

Elem./MG – Poetry Comics

Posted on by

Snider, Grant. Poetry Comics. Chronicle Books, 2024. 978-1-797-21965-3. 96 p. $18.99. Grades 3-6. 

This collection of poems is presented in comic strip form with bright, eye-catching, yet simple, illustrations. The poems are sectioned off into seasons and follow two characters, a boy and girl, experiencing growth, nature, writing, and all the change that comes with it. The poems range from diving deep into contemplations to appreciating the simplicities of life all perfectly through the eyes of children. At the end of each season, a “How to Write a Poem” page is included, which definitely could be used as springboards into lessons on creativity and writing poetry.

THOUGHTS: Presenting poems in this format makes them highly accessible to students who may have shied away from reading poetry otherwise. I highly recommend this collection for classroom use throughout the year, but especially during Poetry Month.

Graphic Novel
Poetry

Elem. – Line Leads the Way

Posted on by

Salas, Laura Purdie. Line Leads the Way. Illustrated by Alice Caldarella. Capstone, 2024. 978-1-684-46928-4. $18.99. 32 p. Grades K-3.

Line Leads the Way introduces numerous topics to young readers including, shapes and their features, perseverance, bullying, and determination. In this colorful, shape-filled book each shape is on a mission to become the new treasure keeper; each shape journeys to the audition at the library exhibiting their unique features along the way. Line is not flashy like the other shapes and his journey is filled with obstacles including other shapes putting him down. As each shape boasts about why they would be the perfect treasure keeper, Line admits that he is in fact not perfect. His humility and honesty impress the librarian who recognizes that the perfect shape for this role is someone kind, open, and a little broken, as we all are.

THOUGHTS: This book provides many opportunities for learning, whether focusing on shapes and what features make each shape unique or discussing bullying and the fact that no one is perfect. I appreciated the simple text and colorful illustrations that will appeal to kids ages 4-8. I think this would make a great addition in any classroom or home library.

Picture Book

Elem. – A Blue Kind of Day

Posted on by

Tomlinson, Rachel. A Blue Kind of Day. Penguin Random House, 2022. 978-0-593-32401-1. Unpaged. $17.99. Grades PK-2.

Childhood mental health is the focus of this sympathetic story. Coen wakes up feeling blue; he doesn’t want to get out of bed. He can’t be enticed by dad or mom to get up, he has no interest in going out to play, laughing or cuddling with his teddy bear. But his loving family does not get frustrated or give up on Coen. Instead, they support him and wait with him until he is ready to accept their warmth and care and slowly begin to crawl out of the dark cave of blueness. Tomlinson, a registered psychologist, deftly describes the physical feeling of depression in terms a child will recognize: heavy, prickly, angry, while Tori-Jay Mordey’s soft, digital illustrations add emphasis to the story. Coen is shown restlessly trying to deal with his emotions, while his anxious family hovers nearby, attempting to determine the best course of action, which ends up being snuggles and patience. Tomlinson includes an author’s note with additional information on childhood depression. While the book is an important tool dealing with an under-represented topic, many children will recognize the experience of simply  feeling out of sorts, and be reassured that they are not unique. Coen and his family are represented as multiracial. 

THOUGHTS: This book hits a perfect note in approaching the topic of childhood depression and will serve as an excellent conversation starter with young children. 

Picture Book          Nancy Nadig, Penn Manor SD

Social and Emotional Learning (Series NF)

Posted on by

Krekelberg, Alyssa. Social and Emotional Learning. The Child’s World, 2021. $228.00 (set of 12), $18.95 (individual titles). Grades K-3.

Doing the Right Thing: Making Responsible Decisions. 978-1-503-84450-6.
Finding Solutions: Problem Solving. 978-1-503-84451-3.
Helping Friends and Family: Taking Care of Others. 978-1-503-84449-0.
Know Your Feelings: Recognizing Emotions. 978-1-503-84452-0.
Let’s Get Along: Resolving Conflict. 978-1-503-84458-2.
No One is the Same: Appreciating Differences. 978-1-503-84456-8.
Setting Boundaries: Learning about Healthy Relationships. 978-1-503-84457-5.
Stop and Think: Learning about Self-Discipline. 978-1-503-84448-3.
We Need Each Other: Being a Good Friend. 978-1-503-84447-6.
We Work Together: Learning about Teamwork. 978-1-503-84455-1.
When Things Get Tough: Overcoming Obstacles. 978-1-503-84454-4.
Worrying Too Much: Learning How to Manage Stress. 978-1-503-84453-7.

Social situations can be difficult for children; they do not have the social experiences that allow them to develop understanding of interpersonal communication and relationships. This SEL series helps children develop understanding of situations they may have encountered or will in the future. Each text is divided into chapters that begin with a vignette that explores a realistic situation and the emotions that are involved in it. Throughout the chapter, ideas on how to respond and questions for reflection are presented. The questions help children reflect on their own experiences and consider the feelings of others in the same situation.  Each text includes a glossary (words are highlighted throughout the text) and a section to learn more about the topic.

THOUGHTS: This is an excellent series for young children to explore their feelings through very realistic situations. The series includes 12 titles. This reviewer had the opportunity to two review Let’s Get Along: Resolving Conflict and No One is the Same: Appreciating Differences. Each individual chapter can be used for character education and development and could easily be divided into short 15-20 minute lessons. This series is highly recommended for all elementary schools for use in the classroom and library especially in our current environment where students are lacking SEL and interpersonal skills due to more isolation from the pandemic.

Erin Bechdel, Beaver Area SD