The Other Two

The other two books Bernice sent were Sourpuss and Sweetie Pie, by Norton Juster and Chris Raschka and Hug a Bug by Eileen Spinelli.

Sourpuss and Sweetie Pie is the story of a little girl who is sometimes quite pleasant and other times more of a grouch. The girl's moods quickly change and she sometimes seems not to know who she is. Children who struggle to control emotions will be relived to know that changing moods happen to others.This book presents a positive way to talk about a difficult topic. It is obvious that the girl in the story is loved and that is probably the best place to start. Let the child know you love her and then discuss things the child can do when she is feeling grouchy. It may even be appropriate for adults to talk about times when they behaved less well than they should have and steps they will take to remain calm. Role modeling and thinking out loud are powerful teaching tools. Children are such imitators at this age, that they are quick to act as adults do.
As nice as this book is for children, I think it would be a great read for parents and grandparents. They too need to know that it is not only their child who has times when he or she is not so nice. This book can help caregivers have a better understand of normal child development and would be a great conversation started of what to do to help the child and themselves get through those grouchy moods.

The other book, Hug a Bug is simply a warm fuzzy book. You might want to read it in conjunction with Sourpuss and Sweetie Pie and discuss how good a hug can make you feel. It would be easy to make a class book of who each child thinks gives the best hugs. If you want a lesson to go with this book, talk about appropriate hugs and touching. The main character in the book does not limit her hugs to family and close friends, so you could discuss who we hug and that some people don't want hugs. For myself, I think I would simply use it as feel good book to end the school day or to read at bedtime.