I Am (Not) Too Small

Inspired by I Am (Not) Scared by Anna Kang and illustrated by Christopher Weyant, I created an opportunity for my students to think about how they are not too small to be brave and do good (and big) things.

We started our discussion by sharing what we are afraid of now or were afraid of "when we were little."  (I love this discussion with my 6 year olds that are so "worldly" now...)  Several students shared fears of the dark and a variety of bugs.

Taking a close look at the cover of I Am (Not) Scared students noticed that the characters looked rather scared, despite the title.


(*Spoiler alert*) We read the book and students joyfully pointed out the juxtaposition of the last page.  We talked about how doing scary things can make us feel brave.



Next we read Morris Mole by Dan Yaccarino.


Morris was not like his brothers in size and ideas, but he managed to "dig" their family out of a big problem in his own unique way.  We brainstormed how we help the people around us:

  • "I help my big brother fix his car.  He needs my little hands to reach where his big ones don't fit."
  • "I get things from the basement."
  • "I help mom do the dishes."
One of my students has great plans for his future, "I am going to be an inventor and build machines to help people."

Next time we meet, students will build something that will help someone.  I can't wait to see what they come up with!

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