I have always found the work of Julia Cook to be a valuable tool in working with children in my school counseling program. She has the ability to take difficult topics and distill them into kid-friendly images and ideas that resonate with children. Students are able to easily relate to their own "tattle tongue" or "volcano mouth."
Julia Cook's latest book is titled, A Flicker of Hope. I love the personification of the candles she uses as the characters in this story. The many different shapes, sizes, colors, and styles of candles is a great analogy to the unique differences of people in our classrooms, our schools, and in our world. It gives us a bridge to talk about the idea that although we may be different, we all have times when dark clouds dim our light and we need a little boost.
Just like little candle, the pressures in the lives of our young students can seem too great for them to handle on their own, but Julia reminds them they can always ask for help. Whether they are struggling with feelings about grades, friends, family, loss, or just feeling they are not good enough and don't really fit in anywhere, the dark clouds can be pushed away by asking for help. Julia not only encourages our students to ask for help when faced with their dark clouds, but also teaches them they can be "hope builders" by sharing their gifts with others and "offering a litte boost of hope" to those whose light may have grown dim.
The concept of teaching children to feel hope is empowering. It can help them move from a place of darkness, uncertainty, and self-doubt to a place of light and a feeling of freedom. Our students begin to realize, they are not alone, there are others who can help, and there are things they can do to help others too. This book provides school counselors educators, parents, and anyone who cares for children a sweet little story to teach about the beauty of hope and how we all can be hope builders. What a powerful message for our young ones today!
To read more about the benefits of building hope in children, check out these articles at Psychology Today, HERE.
How to win your FREE copy of Julia Cook's new book,
A Flicker of Hope
In celebration of Julia Cook's new book, A Flicker of Hope, I am giving away 2 copies. Many thanks to the National Center for Youth Issues for sponsoring this give-away.
There are 3 easy ways to enter the Rafflecopter contest below.
Winners will be selected using Rafflecopter and announced at the close of the give-away on my Exploring School Counseling Facebook page on Sunday morning. Thanks for participating and good luck!
a Rafflecopter giveaway
Julia Cook's latest book is titled, A Flicker of Hope. I love the personification of the candles she uses as the characters in this story. The many different shapes, sizes, colors, and styles of candles is a great analogy to the unique differences of people in our classrooms, our schools, and in our world. It gives us a bridge to talk about the idea that although we may be different, we all have times when dark clouds dim our light and we need a little boost.
Just like little candle, the pressures in the lives of our young students can seem too great for them to handle on their own, but Julia reminds them they can always ask for help. Whether they are struggling with feelings about grades, friends, family, loss, or just feeling they are not good enough and don't really fit in anywhere, the dark clouds can be pushed away by asking for help. Julia not only encourages our students to ask for help when faced with their dark clouds, but also teaches them they can be "hope builders" by sharing their gifts with others and "offering a litte boost of hope" to those whose light may have grown dim.
The concept of teaching children to feel hope is empowering. It can help them move from a place of darkness, uncertainty, and self-doubt to a place of light and a feeling of freedom. Our students begin to realize, they are not alone, there are others who can help, and there are things they can do to help others too. This book provides school counselors educators, parents, and anyone who cares for children a sweet little story to teach about the beauty of hope and how we all can be hope builders. What a powerful message for our young ones today!
To read more about the benefits of building hope in children, check out these articles at Psychology Today, HERE.
How to win your FREE copy of Julia Cook's new book,
A Flicker of Hope
In celebration of Julia Cook's new book, A Flicker of Hope, I am giving away 2 copies. Many thanks to the National Center for Youth Issues for sponsoring this give-away.
There are 3 easy ways to enter the Rafflecopter contest below.
- Leave a comment in the section below this post about how you teach children to have hope.
- Like this post on the Exploring School Counseling Facebook page and leave a comment about how you teach children to have hope.
- Like this post on the School Counselor Store Facebook page and comment on how you teach children to have hope.
Winners will be selected using Rafflecopter and announced at the close of the give-away on my Exploring School Counseling Facebook page on Sunday morning. Thanks for participating and good luck!
By showing students that they are important, teaching coping skills, kindness is important, and they are a big part of how their futures turn out.
ReplyDeleteI help build hope in students by fostering a culture of kindness, growth mindset, and self-care among my students. I also build relationships with my students so that they feel comfortable asking me for help when they need it.
ReplyDeleteFocus on the positive and teach coping skills
ReplyDeleteidentifying people in their lives that they can turn to!
ReplyDelete