Written by Helen Recorvits
Pictures by Gabi Swiatkowska
Published by Grances Foster Books, Farrar,Straus and Giroux, New York. Copyright 2008
Recommended for Grades K-2 (possibly 3). This is the third in a series of books featuring the character, Yoon, a young girl who has moved to the United States from Korea.
It is Yoon's birthday and during recess, she watches the other girls playing "jump rope" and wishes she could join in but no one asks her to join them. When she arrives home, her mother tells her she has a present for her. Yoon is hoping that the package contains a new jumprope, but inside the package is a Korean storybook about a little girl who is tricked by a tiger. Her mother tells her the pictures in the book remind her of the pictures Yoon draws. Yoon's mother gives her a second present, a jade bracelet, given to her mother by her grandmother. Yoon's mother has had Yoon's name engraved on the inside of the bracelet, which translated means "Shining Wisdom". The next day at school, a girl from another class sits with Yoon at lunch and tells her she will be her "friend" and they will jump rope together after lunch. She ends up having to "turn" the rope for the girl the entire recess period and never gets to jump rope herself. Before returning to class, the other girl demands that Yoon let her wear the jade bracelet she received as a present. The girl does not give it back the next day, as promised, until a teacher intercedes. Yoon realizes that she has been tricked by the tiger, the girl from the other class.
Great multicultural book to inroduce topics of being new to a school and/or country, feeling alone and left out, being disappointed when receiving presents, children taking advantage of other children, and how honesty is always the best policy. I highly recommend this book.
Yes, I agree that it is a very good book to read, especially in a class of regular students and ELLs. The language is simple but the message is timeless. I think you could have a good discussion about the importance of stories in some cultures (like the tiger who tricked the girl) or maybe a discussion about how the children were named (and if they live up to their names as Yoon did). The most important talk that could come from this book of course is how new students feel when they arrive at a new school and how other students can make them feel welcomed. I'm sure some students can relate to being the newcomer somewhere and being afraid that they cannot make friends or fit in. It is always important to remind them about reaching out to others and being a good friend even to people who are very different from themselves.
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