PPBF: A Thousand NO's

Happy PPBF; today I'm thinking about the word no.

I haven't ever been good at saying no, nor

have I been very good at accepting no as an answer.

I'm not even good with softer variations, like

"Can't this just be good enough?" or

"That's as good as it's gonna get."

It's so good for us to have strong boundaries,

so I know that saying no is important. 

In my head, that is.

But in my heart, I always want to find a way

to make things happen.

No has always felt like kind of a bad word

(unless it's helping to keep someone safe).

I feel like we've had a year of NOs.

So many NOs.

This song lyric tends to really resonate:

This year's felt like ... four seasons of winter.

Not that winter is bad, but just that it feels more dormant than alive, 

and it doesn't feel very conducive to a yes.

Maybe it's just me, but I'm ready for a little more yes, 

which might be why I connect with today's PPBF so much.

Title: A Thousand NO's

Author: DJ Corchin

Illustrator: Dan Dougherty

Publisher: Sourcebooks Explore

Birth date: August 2020

Suitable for ages: 5-8

Themes: growth mindset, resilience, creativity

Brief synopsis: Can a series of NO's lead this young girl to something even more amazing?

Opening page: She had a great idea.

Resources: Watch the author read his story {here}.

Check out the author's website {here}.

Read a Kirkus review {here}.

Why I like this book: It's just so relatable. Who among us hasn't felt like we've heard the word no a thousand times? And yet, rather than throwing in the towel and crumbling under the weight and pain of that word, who among us hasn't continued to March on despite (or maybe because of?) that no to find a greater yes? 

My Dad always told me that every no makes rooms for a yes.

Pretty sure that's the point of this newcomer 

to my growth-mindset shelf.

Do we turn this current no into a yes ... 

or do we walk away and find our yes somewhere else?

Here's the cool thing; we get to decide. 

Every. Time!

In this tale, the girl's original idea is hardly recognizable ... 

and yet ... colorized by lots of feedback, her perseverance, 

resilience and grit seem to have made it so much better.

Ask your students what they think her idea was.

Then find out when they've had an idea that got 

what felt like a thousand NOs.

What was that experience like?

Did they abandon the idea or press on?

How did it turn out?

Ask them what they think it means to ...

Live Your YES.

My last in-person keynote was last year at this time, at the elementary school that I attended as a child. I love this picture of these young men who volunteered to spell out the word YES while we talked about finding our YES and living a life of service and love.

The girl in today's selection has to survive a lot of NOs to get to her YES; ask your learners how they predict she lives that out. How did all of those NOs help her find her YES? What do they think she does to help others with her big YES?

Finally, if you're looking to read more about resilience, 

Dr. Michele Borba's new book Thrivers, the perfect companion 

for A Thousand NOs, released this week.

Maybe no isn't such a bad word after all.

 

Is there a no that you could turn into a yes?

Check out this book, then head to Susanna Hill's blog

for today's other PPBF picks.