PPBF: The Way I Act

Today I'm excited because of a text I got last night while I was away. It's from the Assistant Principal at our school and it said this:  An elderly lady came by the school after hours tonight and said she wanted to drop off some candy for the "military boys" and when asked if she had grandkids at our school, she said no, that she had extras because of no trick o treaters last night and that she'd seen the message on our sign.

That's the spirit behind Operation Gratitude, to give our surplus to those who serve. Last year we sent 346 pounds. I am blessed to live in a place where a grandma would email me and offer to partner with us to send our surplus stash to the soldiers and then another granny would bring by her extras, just because she saw the sign. Generous ...


That'd be a great page for today's pick for PPBF!

Title:  The Way I Act
Author:  Steve Metzger
Illustrator: Janan Cain
Publisher: Parenting Press
Date: January 2011
Suitable For Ages: 4 - 9
Themes: Character, behavior, manners, attitudes
Brief Synopsis:  This book targets thirteen specific character values and personality traits, giving examples of each in a clever verse with beautiful, boldly-soft illustrations.
Opening Page:  Curious - What planet is the biggest? Where do while geese fly? I want to learn about the world, I'm curious, that's why!

Resources:  
Information from the author {here
Learning About Feelings Lesson from Education World {here}
Book Review by the Caffeinated Autism Mom {here}

Why I like this book:  It's kind of like a charACTer dictionary for kids with behavior words and explanations that are simple and easy to understand. I used it just this week to help a third-grade student who was in the AP's office for discipline set behavior goals. I asked him what his favorite page was, and after he showed me, I invited him to predict which was my favorite and asked him to explain why. He picked responsible as likely my favorite because "kids with character are good at doing the right thing." While I would have to agree with him that this is, indeed, a very important page, I'd have to say that there's actually a tie between compassionate and trustworthy for my two faves! The perfect follow-up ACTivity would be to encourage students to make their own The Way I Act books by picking out traits that they consider strengths as well as selecting a few attributes that they could work on and improve upon in their own lives. Oh, and as a bonus in the back of the book, there's actually a Note To Parents from the author and illustrator that'll give you five concrete ways to help kids turn these traits from simple words into actual actions.



20 comments

  1. I love this book and so do my kiddos!

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    1. Yes, Jo - I ordered it after you recommended it. I'd seen it but didn't have a copy . . . GREAT suggestion!

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  2. It's when I read things like this that has a GREAT activity in it to do that I REALLY miss teaching. I would love to read what my students would write about each of the character traits. It would make a book that parents and teachers would treasure for a lifetime. Deanna

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  3. What a wonderful PPBF selection. Examining various and the connecting vocabulary sounds like an activity I can incorporate weekly in early ed classrooms. Both children and adults will take away valuable lessons. Thank you for this post. BTW, love the story about the gift for our military boys.

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    1. Thanks, Pam! I am out of town and cannot WAIT to see how much candy we collected. Oh, and you're gonna LOVE this book!!

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  4. Barbara, this is such a great book and I liked how you used it with a student. I'm partial towards books that teach virtues. Sounds like a concept book. Also enjoyed your story about the woman bringing candy to the school. Love Operation Gratitude. Your school must pack care packages. That's great!

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    1. Hey Pat - Thanks for your kind words. I LOVE the books that help kids understand virtue words and connect them to behaviors! And I LOVE Operation Gratitude, too. I remember that we both have that heart for the military. When we send the candy, some kids attach cards, but our big SOS (Supplies for Our Soldiers) project is just around the corner!

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  5. You've convinced me - really intrigued to read this one (attracted by the cover art too). Thanks

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    1. Thanks, Julie - YES, that cover art is STELLAR!

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  6. Your opening page was a great teaser for me.... encouraging CURIOSITY in kids is very important to me.

    Thanks for sharing about the two grannies!

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    1. Yay, Joanna - thanks for stopping by. Each page is truly better than the next; I think you will LOVE this book!

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  7. This sounds like a good book for our detention boys. And I really like the cover. Bright and curious. And I like your activity suggestion about kids making their own book. Thanks for sharing this one.

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    1. Yes, Rhythm, depending upon the age of your detention boys, you may want to ask them what THEY would draw on that page to represent each word.

      ps. I get tickled pink when you drop by the Corner!

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  8. I think my boys are ready for this. They need names for actions, but related in a way they can understand.

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  9. I have this book, and I love your spin on it! (We signed growing character yesterday!)
    ❀ Tammy
    Forever in First

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  10. I've never seen this book but it looks like a great one, Barbara. I think it can be very helpful to spell things out for kids in a way that's really accessible to them, and this book sounds perfect for that. Love your activities to. Thanks so much for adding this to our list! :)

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  11. I'm thinking I would have liked having this on my shelf when I was a teacher/principal. The illustrations look gorgeous. Will be sure to look for it.

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  12. Barbara...what a special story...but I'm not surprised...you always share great books! You have the 'corner on character'...that's for sure! Wonderful activities as well. :)

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  13. Great review. We need good books about character, behavior, manners, and attitudes. Nice choice :-)

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  14. Thanks so much for featuring The Way I Act. Janan Cain's wonderful illustrations are also in The Way I Feel, published by Parenting Press in 2000. We invite you to use "Expressing Emotions," a free, downloadable how-to-draw-emotions script, at www.parentingpress.com/activity/wayifeelplan.pdf. For those in schools, teacher guides are also available for The Way I Act, The Way I Feel and the Spanish version of The Way I Feel; see http://parentingpress.com/activities.html. BTW, at the moment we have previously displayed copies of the board book edition of The Way I Feel available for $2; supplies are limited, so PHONE 800-992-6657, Ext. 101 ASAP. Use "corner on character" as promotion code; please note, this price is NOT available through the web site shopping cart.

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I really enjoy hearing from my readers; thanks for sharing your reflections with us!