PPBF: Dear Boy,

Happy Friday from Friendswood, where it's dewberry season.

Today I'm excited because I ventured out and made 

a mid-week driveway delivery to these superhero friends.

And it reminded me of my purpose; 

oh how I miss real-life people sightings right now.

On Tuesday, while I was getting some Vitamin D poolside, I heard a horn honk out front, twice, and I thought to myself, "How lucky that someone's getting a driveway visit." More honking before I happened to pick up my phone to find a text from the mom of a former student saying they were in our driveway, that they wanted me to come out and say hello. Wait, the honking was for me? So I ran out front but it had been three minutes; the driveway was empty. They were gone. Desperate for eye contact and smiles, I frantically texted back, begging for them to turn around, promising to be on my porch when they returned. They did, and, even if from a safe distance, it was like oxygen for my soul to see them drive up, smile at me, visit for a few minutes. Such a weird thing to be living through and enduring, eh? I pray you're healthy and able to find ways to stay connected.

Now for the reason you stopped by, today's PPBF pick.

Title: Dear Boy,

Authors: Paris Rosenthal and Jason Rosenthal

Illustrator: Holly Hatam

Publisher: Harper Collins

Birth Date: April 23, 2019

Suitable for: ages 4-8

Topics: self-awareness, compassion, encouragement

Brief synopsis: This companion book to Dear Girl, offers a roadmap of the things that our beautiful boys can do to find (and define!) themselves on this incredible journey we call life.

Opening page: Dear Boy, Believe in yourself before others can believe in you.

Resources: Check out the book trailer {here}.

Read a review from Happily Ever Elephants {here}.

Compare and Contrast with Dear Girl, using this activity.

Why I like this book: OK, there's so much to like about this love letter to our wonderful boys! The authors' down-to-earth advice is engagingly-enriched by the gorgeously-playful illustrations. The practical suggestions make all sorts of sense:

Dear Boy, It's okay if you don't run the fastest.

Just be the boy who gives it your all. 

Page after page left me feeling empowered with promise and hope.

It doesn't hurt that I'm forever gripped by the backstory. One of my favorite authors, Amy Krouse Rosenthal, penned Dear Girl, with her daughter Paris before losing her battle with cancer, then it was Paris and her dad Jason who wrote this one for the boys. They used their grief to give us this incredible gift. 💖 

In case I've piqued your curiosity, Jason's memoir is releasing next week. Click the image for an interview with him.

Sorry, I got sidetracked.

So start by comparing and contrasting Dear Boy, and Dear Girl, 

to see what your learners can find as similarities and differences.

 What surprises them? 

What concerns them? 

What connects to them?

What do they love?

What would they change?

Are there any pages they would swap

and put into the other book? Why?

Then use the book (and this time of quiet quarantine) as a springboard to, you guessed it, craft a letter of their own. Whom might they write to? A parent? Grandparent? Teacher? Neighbor? Friend? Themselves? What advice might they give? And why?

You could also ask them what comes next in Dear Boy, 

which ends with Ready? On your mark, get set ... 

So much goodness wrapped up in this little treasure;

check it out and prepare to fall in love.

I'll launch you with something I recorded yesterday,

a reminder to lean in to every feeling that visits you

and lean on your friends as much as possible.

Now head to Susanna Hill's blog for her review of Tap The Magic Tree 

and for today's other PPBF recommendations.