How was your Character Counts! Week? Since many pay-it-forward opportunities came my way, my heart is overflowing with delight. Next week is National Red Ribbon Week, our chance to spotlight saying no to drugs and alcohol and yes to healthy choices, perfect timing for today's PPBF pick.
Title: The Rechargeables Eat Move Sleep
Author: Tom Rath
Illustrator: Carlos Aon
Publisher: Missionday, LLC
Date: May 5, 2015
Suitable for: ages 3-8
Themes: healthy choices, energy, hope
Realistic Fiction
Brief synopsis: In the village of Verve (don't you love that name?), the people are running on empty. Can one little girl help them recharge?
Opening page: In the village of Verve, a mysterious thing has occurred ... all of the people are completely still.
*Compare and contrast the book with the people in this clip
from Pixar's Wall-E.
Why I like this book: In this clever reality check, brilliantly illustrated by Aon, children will journey through the pages with Poppy and Simon as they not only yearn to reawaken the life that they've slowly seen slip away in Verve, but actually look for and find ways to make it happen.
Today's pick beautifully complements Tom Rath's first picture book, How Full Is Your Bucket for Kids, which was all about taking care of our hearts and refueling our emotional reserve using a bucket-filling metaphor. This one's message about the health of our bodies is supercharged using the battery metaphor. Just like with a battery's power, our energy wears down and we need to recharge to stay in the game, to be fully present. When we start to run on empty, we owe it to ourselves (and others!) to plug in to healthy habits like eating the right foods, drinking plenty of water, getting adequate amounts of sleep, and engaging in meaningful movement so we can be the best version of ourselves that we can be.
To maximize learning.
And growth.
So that we can serve.
And lead.
There's so much food for thought in this little nugget; follow the read-aloud with a goal-setting session after discussing what steps your students think they (and their family members) could take in order to positively recharge and live life with more verve.
I'm super excited and grateful that my friend Shelley at The Write Stuff Teaching blog has generously donated one of her Mindful Bodies, Mindful Learning packets to one lucky reader of this post, so leave a comment and we'll randomly select the recipient from all of today and tomorrow's reflections.
This offer has now ended and the winners have been selected. Thank you all for your reflections.
Oh, and don't forget to check out today's other
