I Like Being Me: Poems About Kindness, Friendship, and Making Good Choices

by Judy Lalli

Twenty-five rhyming poems invite children to believe in themselves, learn from mistakes, cooperate, share, help others, solve problems, be kind, tell the truth, make positive choices, and more. The short poems are quick to read, easy to learn, and fun to recite—making them perfect for teaching social skills to young children. Children can memorize their favorite poems, talk about them, act them out, and get ideas for creating their own. Accompanying photographs show children from diverse backgrounds in realistic settings, and back matter provides adults with ideas for thought-provoking discussion, activities, and learning. This charming update to a popular volume of poetry for children is a book that adults and children will love sharing again and again.

Genres: Poetry, Picture Books

64 pages, Paperback

Published August 12, 2016

Reviews

[Monica · Rating 4 out of 5]

Star rating:4
Copyright: 2016
Genre: Poetry
Themes: Positive attitude; Patience; Listening; Believing in yourself; Learning from mistakes; Integrity; Kindness; Communicating; Working through differences; Making good choices

I gave this book a 4-star rating, only because there were a couple of pens that were a little harder to read aloud, so they wouldn’t be as easy for children to pick up the rhythms. Otherwise, such a great book! I love that with the animations, there are real-life photographs of children that could be used to support students who struggle with social cues. Also, some of the poems are so catchy and meaningful that I can see myself memorizing them and reciting them to my students “in the moment”. I think this book would be great as a “Morning Poetry Minute” for my classroom. I would read a poem aloud each morning as a mental warm up and give the students a minute to decide the lesson/theme that it teaches. Then we could have a brief discussion and move on to morning work, or whatever routine is in place.

[Emily Johnson · Rating 5 out of 5]

I Like Being Me is a collection of young children's poems on kindness, friendship, and good choices. It has simple, caring messages that are important for young children to help build and keep self-esteem. The poems are short and easy to read and would be good for preschool to age 5 years old. This would be a good book to have in classes as well as at home as a quality reading experience. It can teach children that emotions are normal and ok to express. The book shows various races and skin tones and can also foster inclusion and the images let the comforting feeling of the book come through.

[Jenny Larges · Rating 3 out of 5]

No AR rating as of 12/17. Sweet book with simple poems that younger learners can easily relate to (mistakes can be good, I'm a person too, etc...) Each page features a poem with a black and white photos of diverse kids. The illustrator and photographer are both from Mpls.

[Rachel · Rating 3 out of 5]

Solid poems about some important topics, great for social emotional learning.

[Durratul Hanis · Rating 5 out of 5]

great for social emotional learning.

[Storywraps · Rating 5 out of 5]

This little gem of a book is one that is written in short poems. These poems enter in through your mind but end up in your heart. They are positive powerful words to reflect on and perfect to memorize. In a world that seems to be coming apart at the seams, this book teaches manners, values and instills in a child's heart the idea that the world is in need of a HUGE group hug, starting with their own circle of friends.

The clear, crisp, black and white photos are happy, encouraging and the diversity of children portrayed is perfect for the book's all inclusive message. This book when shared and applied, would be a perfect combatant against rudeness and bullying towards others, thus sewing seeds of love to those encountered in life's journey.

Here are a few samples of what is in store for you:

I Didn't Believe I Could Do It

I didn't believe I could do it.
I was afraid to try.
My teacher believed I could do it,
And next time, so will I.


At Least I'm Getting Better

I run and run and run and run,
And then I trip and fall.
I throw and catch and throw and catch,
And then I drop the ball.

I write my name and write my name,
And then I miss a letter.
But everybody makes mistakes.
At least I'm getting better.


Don't Say "Crybaby!"

Don't say "Crybaby!"
Don't say "Dummy!"
Teasing makes me
Feel so crummy.

Falling down
Can bruise my knees,
But words can hurt
Where no one sees.



Hands

Hands can fight,
Hands can scare,
Or hands can join together
To show they care.


The author has included a section at the back of the book entitled, "Discussion Starters and Activities": a Guide for Teachers, Families, and Other Caring Adults. The author's final word invites the readers to share ways they used the book with their children. She sends an open invitation to write to her in care of her publisher at help4kids@freespirit.com and tell her about your experiences with the book.
I loved the book and highly recommend it.

[Carla · Rating 4 out of 5]

"I like Being Me: Poems about kindness, friendship and making good choices is a beautifully written and illustrated poetry book for children in primary/junior grades.It deals with various social skills such as having a positive attitude, apologizing, listening, being kind and dependable and more. The poems are simple to read and recite so could be read independently or used in large or small groups.

There are twenty-five poems, and each poem is accompanied by a black and white photograph of children. Teachers can read the poems to their students or they can teach the poems as a song; which could help students to memorize the poems. In all, this is an awesome book that can help with classroom management and it can help students to be aware of themselves as well as their actions.

The back of the book is a section for Teachers, Families and Other Caring Adults. It has a table showing what social skill is being taught as well as activities that children could do individually or in groups. There are a lot of great ideas here. This is a great book to be in libraries, teacher resource areas and for family libraries as well.

I received a copy of this book from Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.

[Liza Tabita · Rating 3 out of 5]

The poems are short and easy to learn, even in preschool. The poems can encourage children, some are a little hard to use as daily remainder, but some are fun and easy and they can be associated with an activity, a situation, a problem or a feeling. Children can use this poems to get through problems. Even so, I don't think children will pick them up on their own.

[Tara · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a great first poetry book for a young child. Themes include friendship, making mistakes, making good choices, bullies and more. Alongside the poetry, there are many pictures of young children of different ages, backgrounds, races and ethnicity. While I don't think that a child would pick this up on their own, it would be great for parents and school teachers to purchase and use.