Ish... (confidence)

I recently did a blog post about The Dot.  I was blown away by all of the great teaching ideas that are out there for The Dot.  I have had the companion story, Ish for about a year and started searching for lessons to go along with the story.  I didn't find nearly as many, however, I am sharing what I did find because I like the book so much.

Ish, by Peter Reynolds, is a companion story to The Dot.  Ish follows the little boy inspired by Vashti in The Dot.  The stories are different in that Vashti didn't believe that she could draw while Ramon, the character in Ish, loves to draw.  In fact, he draws everywhere he goes until his older brother laughs at his artwork.  Ramon loses confidence and is about to quit drawing when his little sister shows him that she has kept all of his crumpled up drawings.  Roman's sister shows him that art doesn't have to be perfect and that his drawings can be "vase-ish".  Ish shows students that imperfection can be a beautiful thing.

So many students are used to hearing "you're not good enough".  This is a beautiful message about feeling important and valued.  It is a must-have for every school counselor!  You can purchase Ish HERE (and it's under $10)

Description from Amazon:  A creative spirit leans that thinking "ish-ly" is far more wonderful that "getting it right" in this gentle new fable from the creator of the award-winning picture book THE DOT.
Ramon loved to draw.  Anytime.  Anything.  Anywhere.
Drawing is what Ramon does.  It's what makes him happy.  But in one split second, all that changes.  A single reckless remark by Ramon's older brother, Leon, turns Ramon's carefree sketches into joyless struggles.  Luckily for Ramon, though, his little sister, Marisol, sees the world differently.  She opens his eyes to something a lot more valuable than getting things just "right".  Combining the spareness of fable with the potency of parable, Peter Reynolds shines a bright beam of light on the need to kindle and tend our creative flames with care.

Connections:
A Guide for Classrooms Using The Dot and Ish

TPT: Ish comprehension questions (free)

TPT: Free Book Activity and Lesson-ish

TPT: Free Activity Sheet Using Ish

TPT: Response Activity

TPT: Ish worksheet (Free)

An Art-ish Activity

TPT: Drawing something -ish worksheet (free)

TPT: Activity Sheet for "-ish" (Free)

The Dot Blog Post