Buy the Set: Weird Series

My second graders love learning about bullying prevention (or as I teach it: empathy/assertiveness/compassion) as they listen to the 3 different viewpoints of aggressor, target and bystander. They learn how to handle bullying situations of their own.

The ingenious collaboration between author and illustrator is unique and uniquely powerful. Kids can make their own connections and draw parallels that strengthen messages of self-discovery, respect and empathy.

As an elementary school counselor I use this set in my bullying prevention classroom lessons for second grade. Each book is told from a different perspective (target/aggressor/bystander). I use them to focus on the SKILLS needed by each person in the situation: assertiveness (target), empathy (aggressor) and compassion (bystander) to resolve or avoid a bullying situation. I don't tell my students that each book is the "same story" but told by a different person until they figure it out on their own (so fun to watch their faces and hear their aha comments!) I read TOUGH! last (aggressor) and by the time they've heard the story two times, they are very eager to hear about why Sam might be so hurtful to others. While this book set is wonderful for teaching bullying prevention strategies, it is a treasure for teaching perspective, too - it is difficult to find a resource that does that.