Kindness is Cooler, Mrs. Ruler
Kindness is Cooler, Mrs. Ruler
by Margery Cuyler
illustrated by Sachiko Yoshikawa
To get her students to act more kindly to each other, the quirky Mrs. Ruler gives her students an assignment to each do five acts of kindness for others. In time, they have done 100 acts of kindness, all tracked on a kindness bulletin board that barely fits their classroom!
This is a great book to read in a classroom to foster an atmosphere of kindness, especially given all the MANY ideas for how to be kind that are provided. (The back of the book lists all 100 acts of kindness that the kids do.)
"Although sophisticated listeners may find Mrs. Ruler a bit preachy, most
children will enjoy the story, and teachers will find the lesson aptly
told. Recommended wherever values education is taught." (Booklist)
In their review, School Library Journal called this title contrived and we don't totally disagree, but it's
such a natural for classroom use (given the storyline) that we
recommend it anyway. They ended their review praising the cute illustrations: "Done in bright hues that reflect the tale's upbeat tone, the cartoon
illustrations are playful and inviting. They feature an endearing group
of students from different ethnic backgrounds."
Reading Level for Kindness is Cooler, Mrs. Ruler:
Interest
Level: Kindergarten - Grade 2
DRA Level: 16
Lexile Measure: BR330L
Guided Reading Level: I
Read-Aloud vs. Individual Reading:
For Kindergarten and first grade, this book
will need to be a read-aloud rather than for individual reading, as kids do not generally read at this
reading level until the end of first grade. Many/most second graders may be able to read this book on their
own.
See Inside for Kindness is Cooler, Mrs. Ruler:
Below are some sample spreads from inside this darling book, Kindness is Cooler, Mrs. Ruler
by Margery Cuyler. We've also included a small version of a spread at
the end that lists '100 Acts of Kindness' -- definitely worth reading
through and discussing with kids!
And at the back of the book, there's this list of the 100 acts of kindness that this kids do in the story. Full of great ideas for readers!
Kindness is Cooler, Mrs. Ruler Lesson / Activity Ideas:
There are quiet a number of lesson/activity packets available for Kindness is Cooler, Mrs. Ruler on the popular teacher website teacherspayteachers.com. We haven't personally used them with our classes, but they all seem to have a lot of positive reviews. (If you aren't familiar with this site, it's full of lesson plans, activities, learning games, and other curriculum materials made by teachers. We LOVE the site!!).
We found a FREE kindness bulletin board set available on Teachers Pay Teachers for this book (parts shown at right). To see this free set, click here: Kindness is Cooler, Mrs. Ruler lesson / activity ideas.
