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I Got the School Spirit
By Mandie Caroll,
Common Sense Media Reviewer
Common Sense Media Reviewers
Spirited girl shines in joyful back-to-school book.
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What's the Story?
A young Black girl with hair pulled up into two spritely puff balls and a face full of joy pulls on her shoes ("STOMP, STOMP"), eats breakfast ("SIZZLE, SIZZLE"), and takes the bus to school ("VROOM, VROOM") with an inspiring excitement for her first day back at school. She breathes out her nervousness, meets and makes friends, and is enchanted by her enthusiastic, storytelling Black male teacher. The story ends with a sweet reunion with parents ("SQUISH, SQUEEZE"), and a message of encouragement for readers: Cultivate school spirit, and it will help you strive, grow, and learn.
Is It Any Good?
This fun and gorgeously illustrated picture book will help young readers face their first day at school with joy and enthusiasm. Some readers of I Got the School Spirit will recognize the happy girl from previous books by Schofield-Morrison. The story tracks her day from waking up and getting dressed to parent pickup at the end of the school day, so new-to-school readers will learn about the kinds of things they'll do their first day. This book stresses for readers the important lesson that a positive attitude can translate into a positive day.
The drawings are positively sumptuous. The girl's face and body exude joy and energy, while bold and neutral color backdrops add depth to each spread. Simple sentence structure helps new readers tackle this one on their own, though the gentle rhymes and bouncy onomatopoeias beg to be read aloud. Either way, this is a book that's sure to be requested over and over and one perfect for the new school year.
Talk to Your Kids About ...
Families can talk about all the ways the girl expresses her enthusiasm in I Got the School Spirit. What things does she do and feel that you have also done and felt on the first day of school? How does she make friends at school? How is she kind?
What character strengths does the main character show? When is she curious and compassionate? What strengths do kids need for their first day of school?
What does the girl do to calm down when she's nervous? How do you deal with being nervous? Who can help you if you need it?
Book Details
- Author: Connie Schofield-Morrison
- Illustrator: Frank Morrison
- Genre: Picture Book
- Topics: Friendship , Great Boy Role Models , Great Girl Role Models
- Book type: Fiction
- Publisher: Bloomsbury Children's Books
- Publication date: July 7, 2020
- Publisher's recommended age(s): 3 - 6
- Number of pages: 32
- Available on: Nook, Hardback, Kindle
- Last updated: September 25, 2020
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