Mindset Monday: A Perfectly Messed-Up Story (Perseverance, Mindset, Perfectionism)

A Perfectly Messed Up Story is about a boy named Louie whose story keeps getting ruined.  Louie feels like giving up but by the end of the story he is hopeful again.  I haven't used this book yet but plan to use it to teach students the impact of self-talk, both positive and negative.  I also think it will be good for discussions on attitude affecting behavior.  I'm thinking this book is best for early elementary students.  I always love when books come with a free educator's guide so I've linked that down below!

Description from Amazon:  Little Louie's story keeps getting messed up, and he's not happy about it!  What's the point of telling his tale if he can't tell it perfectly?  But when he stop and takes a deep breath, he realizes that everything is actually just fine, and his story is a good one--imperfections and all.

You can purchase A Perfectly Messed Up Story HERE.

Lesson Plan by The Ned Show

Educator's Guide

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

Making Mistakes (Beautiful Oops!)

I was really excited to find the book Beautiful Oops!.  I see a handful of students who put a lot of pressure on themselves to be perfect.  I have been using the book Nobody's Perfect as well as the book The Girl Who Never Made Mistakes.  Both of these books have females as the main character so I was looking for something more universal.  When I saw this book, I thought it was perfect for all students.  I also love that there is an educator's guide and lesson plan available.

Description from Amazon:  A life lesson that all parents want their children to learn: It’s OK to make a mistake. In fact, hooray for mistakes! A mistake is an adventure in creativity, a portal of discovery. A spill doesn’t ruin a drawing—not when it becomes the shape of a goofy animal. And an accidental tear in your paper? Don’t be upset about it when you can turn it into the roaring mouth of an alligator.

An award winning, best-selling, one-of-a-kind interactive book, Beautiful Oops! shows young readers how every mistake is an opportunity to make something beautiful. A singular work of imagination, creativity, and paper engineering, Beautiful Oops! is filled with pop-ups, lift-the-flaps, tears, holes, overlays, bends, smudges, and even an accordion “telescope”—each demonstrating the magical transformation from blunder to wonder.

Connections:

Lesson Plan (turn mistakes into art)

Dare to Make Mistakes

Educator's Guide

You can sign up here to receive free materials!  http://www.beautifuloops.com/take-the-resolution/