One of Us

I bought the book to use at a church youth-group activity for K-4 graders. The kids loved the book and it presented the ideas of "fitting in" and being different in ways easy for the kids to understand.

Great book especially for kids having a hard time with their peers.

Reviewed by Wayne S. WalkerDo you know what "peer pressure" means? Roberta James is late for school. Two weeks late. Her family had just moved into the community. On her first day, she had put her hair up. When she walks into the classroom, Carmen of the straight-up-hair girls says, "You're one of us," and invites her to sit with them. However, when they have recess, Roberta heads to the monkey bars. Carmen says that her group doesn't go on the playground. So Jasmine invites her to join the monkey bar gang. But at lunch, she has a daisy lunchbox and all of them have monkey lunchboxes, so they point out where the flowered lunch box kids sit. Yet, none of them eats pitas like the one that Roberta has, so she has to go where the pita-eating kids are. However, they all wear cowboy boots, and she wears running shoes.Will Roberta ever find a group of students with whom she can associate? And will the other children learn that they don't always have to be alike in every way? One of the big complaints that I've heard of late from parents with children in traditional schools is the development of cliques and the tremendous pressure for kids to conform to some arbitrary standard in order to be accepted. This simple but meaningful text by author Peggy Moss, whose award-winning children's books include Say Something and Our Friendship Rules, and the colorful, lively illustrations by Penny Weber, combine to remind youngsters that everyone's different and that true friends will respect their differences. It would make a great starting point for an important conversation between children and their parents and/or teachers. The Tilbury House website contains discussion points, activities, literature links, and further educational resources for using this book.

Do you know what "peer pressure" means? Roberta James is late for school. Two weeks late. Her family had just moved into the community. On her first day, she had put her hair up. When she walks into the classroom, Carmen of the straight-up-hair-girls says, "You're one of us," and invites her to sit with them. However, when they have recess, Robert heads to the monkey bars. Carmen says that her group doesn't go on the playground. So Jasmine invites her to join the monkey bar gang. But at lunch, she has a daisy lunchbox and all of them have monkey lunchboxes, so they point out where the flowered lunch box kids sit. Yet, none of them eat pitas like the one that Roberta has, so she has to go where the pita-eating kids are. However, they all wear cowboy boots, and she wears running shoes. Will Roberta ever find a group of students with whom she can associate? And will the other children learn that they don't always have to be alike in every way? One of the big complaints that I've heard of late from parents with children in traditional schools is the development of cliques and the tremendous pressure for kids to conform to some arbitrary standard in order to be accepted. This simple but meaningful text by author Peggy Moss, whose award-winning children's books include Say Something and Our Friendship Rules, and the colorful, lively illustrations by Penny Weber, combine to remind youngsters that everyone's different and that true friends will respect their differences. It would make a great starting point for an important conversation between children and their parents and/or teachers. The Tilbury House website contains discussion points, activities, literature links, and further educational resources for using this book.

I've been watching the new MTV reality series If You Really Knew Me. It's a series focusing on different cliques in different high schools and how they hurt and affect the students. As an elementary school counselor, this is a harsh reality I deal with even in the younger grades. Watching the series reminds me of the importance of reading books that encourage kids to accept one another and not hurt one another based on what we wear, look like, or who we hang with. One of Us is a new story by author Peggy Moss and it's a beautiful example of how diversity should bring us together and not pull us apart. From my own professional experience I observe many students identifying themselves with a particular group. And sadly, sometimes these groups can become mean cliques and not very inclusive - they become hurtful and reject others. I see it across all of the grades (K-5) I work with. One of Us is a smart example of how to teach kids to be accepting of everyone and to cross boundaries. I already know this story is going to be a hit. Kids have huge hearts and want to be guided and encouraged to do the right thing. The possibilities of how to use this book with students are endless. It is going to be a solid resource in my school counseling curriculum for friendship, acceptance, diversity, bullying, and most importantly "Be Yourself." I cannot wait to start reading it this fall and I will be posting a Part 2 review. I will share the reaction and impact it has had on students. As a school community, One of Us is going to be a helpful story to help students feel like one big group.

I wanted to write a thank you note to the author, Peggy Moss, and illustrator, Penny Weber, for including a young Muslim girl wearing her hijab (head covering) in the book, "One of Us."Although young girls are not required to wear the hijab until they are older, it is nonetheless an expression of tolerance and inclusion that is very much appreciated. My 7 year old daughter and I enjoyed reading this story and were pleasantly surprised to see the Muslim girl featured on two pages in the book. Thank you! Please continue to include Muslim girls and boys in your books.

A good book that every child should read .It has strong characters,and brings out the importance of sharing together and accepting differences.🇮🇳🎵🎶💯🔱⚜〽️💘💝💖💗💓❣💕💞💜💙💛💚💌🎉🎀🎁🎊🖼💎🏩🏟🗽🏠🏯🏰🏘🎇🎆🌈🌠🌌🌉🌆🏙🌃🌇🏝🏖🌅🌄🏜🛤🛣🏞🗾🏕⛺️🌋🗻🏔⛲️🎑⛰🏭🗼🌁🏗🎠🎢🚢🎡🎸🎻🎺🎷🎹🎤🎧🎼🎨🏵🏅🎖🎗🏆🏄⛷☕️🍾🍷🍸🍹🍻🍪🍫🍿🍩🍭🍬🍮🍦🍰🎂🍨🍧🍡🍚🍘🍢🍱🍛🍙🍣🍥🍲🌮🌯🍜🍝🍕🌭🍳🍔🍟🍤🍖🍗🌽🍍🍈🍒🍆🍓🍇🍉🍊🍋🍌🍐🍎🍏☃❄️💥✨☄⭐️🌟💫💐🌸🌹🌷🌼🌺🌻🐾🐿🐩🐈🐇🐕🕊🐳🐬🐟🐠🐣🐥🐤🐵🐒🐧🐶🐱🐼👑🕶💍👗👨‍👩‍👧‍👧🙆🙋🏾💃🏼👸🏼😎🤓😛😝😜☺️😉🙃😊🙂😇😆😅😂😃🏁.

I recommend this book for teachers. A great book so facilitating discussions about being yourself as well as talking about who you are.